Ahoy and welcome to another edition of TCD. Glad to have the opportunity to close out the book of 1st Timothy with you and reflect on Paul's sage instructions.
Think with me for a moment. How much more money would you need in the bank to feel totally satisfied and content? $100K? $1M? $10M? There has to be a point where it's enough and we achieve peace, right? But maybe we've incorrectly classified our 'needs' and are resultantly left with an impossibly swollen figure. And maybe that miscalculation keeps our focus on the trivial vice the consequential. In the passage this week Paul, per usual, provides an answer with an alternate perspective:
“A devout life does bring wealth, but it’s the rich simplicity of being yourself before God. Since we entered the world penniless and will leave it penniless, if we have bread on the table and shoes on our feet, that’s enough.”
Some strong words on the theme of contentedness. Choose your favorite cliche on the topic and they all have the same meaning: We are often satisfied with our lot until we recognize that someone else has more or different. Paul takes the concept to the logical extreme: we don't take any of our stuff with us when we die. Therefore, if our basic needs are satisfied, we have a enough. A fairly somber reality to contemplate.
However, Paul's point in not morbid but empowering. By redefining what are truly our needs, we are far more grateful for the abundance we receive and less constrained by constantly struggling to meet a mountain of misclassified needs. With Paul's perspective in mind, being truly content becomes an achievable end state.
In the same way, we often project our inflated 'needs' to God. We decide that we can't have a relationship with Him because he needs us to change these 15 parts of ourselves before any fellowship is viable. But all God has ever asked for is the basics of any relationship: trust and honest dialogue. God isn't looking for a buttoned-up, white-washed version of us, simply consistent and real interaction.
Our practical application this week is therefore to reset our bins of 'want' and 'need.' If successful we just might be able to find contentment in the midst of this challenging season. Secondly, we are called to establish and maintain a real relationship with God, not waiting until we have ourselves fully put together.
Have a great week, share with a friend, and be sure to leave us a comment.
-the contrary disciple