A thankful heart leads to a giving heart.
As we cultivate thankful hearts for God’s goodness, provision, and presence, generosity that impacts the world will flow naturally from our lives.
God supplies everything we need.
Discontentment can often arise out of fear, but the antidote to fear is knowing that God will supply everything we need.
The apostle Paul appears to have come from an elite background but set it aside for the joy of knowing and serving Jesus.
Paul wrote the letter we’re looking at today, Philippians, from a Roman prison, yet in it he describes himself as being content.
In Philippians 3:4–7, he lays out the fact that he came from a very Torah-observant family from the tribe of Benjamin and that he had gained a reputation for his zeal in persecuting the church.
Paul had Roman citizenship (Acts 22:25). Citizenship in the Roman Empire was highly prized.
Philippians 4:10–13
None of the status and accomplishments in Paul’s life brought the satisfaction he later found in knowing Jesus.
The church in Philippi had brought some supplies to Paul in Rome (4:10).
Paul begins to say something profound here….
That he doesn’t experience “need,” for he has learned too always be content.
So it isn’t that he doesn’t find himself out of bread or lacking a roof for the night, but rather, no matter the situation, he is content with what he has.
Philippians 4:12
He has experienced both hunger and abundance, and regardless of what he is facing, he has learned how to face it with contentment.
That unfailing source of strength comes from God, and God enables Paul to be strong enough when he is faced with nothing, and when he is faced with more than he’d ever needs, not to lose sight of what matters.
In each and every situation, he has the strength required to have a healthy relationship with his environment.
We can also be content in Christ because we know that He will supply our every need.
God loves you unconditionally.
God’s love for you knows no limits; you are loved by the God forever.
Contentment comes from changed priorities.
It comes from how you spend your day, what are you placing first: God’s kingdom or something else?
Philippians 4:19–20