I am sharing a couple of
well loved books today.
I have shared both before,
and thought they might be an
encouragement to new readers.
The first is...
"The Rare Jewel Of Christian Contentment"
by Jeremiah Burroughs written in 1648.
He writes at one point that
"the devil loves to fish in troubled waters."
That's so true isn't it?
As soon as our hearts are
whiny and discontent
we are deeply vulnerable and
open to spiritual attack.
He writes...
"God does not dwell in
spirits that are in confusion,
He dwells in peaceable and quiet spirits."
We enter into confusion when
we cannot decide to trust the Lord,
and begin to doubt His will and His truth.
James 1:6-8..
"When you ask,
you must believe and not doubt,
the one who doubts
is like a wave of the sea,
driven and tossed by the wind.
Such people should not expect
to receive anything from the Lord.
They are
double minded
and
unstable in all their ways."
Double minded
and
unstable.
This is what our hearts
become when we embrace
doubt and engage in
complaining and grumbling.
Another passage reads...
"There was a man named Marius Curio
who had bribes sent to him
to tempt him to be unfaithful to his country.
He was sitting at home
with a dish of turnips for his dinner,
when he was promised rewards he said,
'That man that can be contented
with this fare that I have
will not be tempted by such rewards.
I thank God I am content with this fare,
and as for rewards, let them be offered to
those who cannot be content
with a dish of turnips.'
Those who are tempted
are those who cannot be content
to be in a low condition.
The devil will not meddle with those
who are content to submit to
God's hand in all things.
Dear One shared a sweet verse
with me last evening before
we fell asleep...
1 Timothy 6:6
"Godliness with contentment
is great gain."
True contentment brings
joy, freedom and rest.
Contentment:
satisfied, at ease in my situation.
a body and mind mentally and emotionally
satisfied with things as they are,
acceptance of one's situation.
Contentment is the secret
to lasting calm.
"Let your conduct be without
covetousness;
be content with such things as you have."
Hebrews 13:5
The above book was written after
70,000 people had died in London
of the Bubonic plague.
It was written to
"revive the drooping spirits
of the saints in these sad and sinking times"
along with encouragement from
Philippians 4:11
"I have learned in whatsoever circumstances
I am in, therewith to be content."
From the book
"The Art Of Divine Contentment"
by Thomas Watson, 1653,
we read...
"The comfort of life does not consist
in having much, but in being contented...
contentment lies within a man,
in the heart,
and the way to be contented
is not by having our barns filled,
but our mind quiet."
Discontent makes a person so
they cannot enjoy what they
have already been given.
Ecclesiastes 6:1-2 describes
"an evil under the sun"...
that evil being the fact that
some people have all
things their hearts desire,
yet,
God does not grant them the
ability to enjoy those things.
The root problem is
the love of money...the love of more.
True enjoyment in life
is a gift from God.
Ecclesiastes 5:19
Our ability to enjoy our blessings
comes from God.
A mind content with God's
will and provision,
is a mind at peace....
a mind that appreciates
what is given
and
can stop at having enough
without wanting more.
May we find our
contentment in what He has chosen
for our blessings this day.
.jpeg)
