Be Content With What The Lord Provides
Word-Of-The-Day: ‘(6) But godliness with contentment is great gain. (7) For we brought nothing into the world, and we can take nothing out of it. (8) But if we have food and clothing, we will be content with that.’ (1 Timothy 6:6-8)
The context of 1 Timothy 6 is, in a nutshell, ‘Love God for what He provides, not money and the false hope it delivers’. We should be concerned of possible famine for example, but do not worry about it or put it over your Walk with Christ. We need to be content and joyful in the Lord and not panic over events, such as the recent Hamas attack on Israel and the potential to have events like that here in the US.
It is important to be discerning over what we see, what the Lord enlightens us on, and move out smartly on preparing. In Timothy 6:6-8, we are talking primarily about food and clothing, but in anything this can apply. Someone commented to me back earlier in the year that they were ‘impressed’ that I was so prepared to fill in for Pastor Ron while he was battling COVID, and I am humbled and thankful for their kind words of encouragement. However, I felt it necessary to be forward-looking and be prepared for the potential, if ever called upon, to have a sermon ready ‘just in case’. If that call never came, I would still be content and satisified in the knowledge that at least I was prepared with a sermon that never would have been heard.
Being prepared is not ‘hedging your bets’; it is relying on the Lord to give wisdom and good judgement on what to prepare and what to be prepared for. This is the ‘being aware’ part. We need to fellowship and share information, so you are aware what I’m aware of, to see the potential pitfalls we will all collectively face. If we are aware of potential events, good or bad, we can ‘plan accordingly’ and mitigate the negativity or the euphoria if these end up occurring. It is hoped that by each of us looking into topics, be it ‘news’ or Scriptural references, then collectively we can come to a consensus and learn God’s wisdom and knowledge together.
The Lord will meet our needs! He also expects us to dig a ditch when one needs dug; praying for the Lord to provide a dug ditch doesn’t mean the Lord will magically show up with a backhoe. He can do that (perhaps a neighbor or a home builder will show up with one), but most of the time it requires action on our part. (The Lord will likely provide us with a shovel for us to dig the ditch, for example.) We need to be content what the Lord provides, the knowledge to tap into His provisions, and what to use His provisions for.
