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One Reason Why We Lose Our Joy

by Marci Ferrell
Christian Living Contentment

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I’d love to help you simplify your meal planning. Check out my new menu planning course here.

 
 
Not that I am speaking of being in need, for I have learned in whatever situation I am to be content. I know how to be brought low, and I know how to abound. In any and every circumstance, I have learned the secret of facing plenty and hunger, abundance and need.
Philippians 4:11-12
 

Joy is a gift to everyone of us in Christ from the Lord (Galatians 5:22-23).  Our joy is lost the moment we take our eyes off of Christ and put them on lesser things.  One of the main reasons we lose our joy is we become discontent and in doing that we forget our God is sovereign and in control of all the circumstances of our lives.

Contentment in the Greek term means to be self-sufficient, to be satisfied or to have enough. In the verse above Paul had learned how to be spiritually content.  Paul trusted in God's provision for his life.

Did you catch that above? Paul had learned to be spiritually content.  Where did he learn it?  Through the working of the Holy Spirit within him and in God's wonderful classroom of life. Everything he needed was sufficient in Christ and Paul applied that to the circumstances of his life.

Can you say, I don't care if I have little or I don't care if I have much all I care is that I have God?  We are in a world that is overtaken by material possessions.  I have been given much and my needs are more than met by the Lord but I am learning that can be a dangerous place too because we easily forget our need for the Lord.

So how can we learn to be content as Paul did so we will not lose our joy amidst all the various trials and circumstances that will come about in our lives?

First, we will never be content if we buy into the lie of what the world's system tells us we need.  We can never attain all things and there will always be something else where we can find ourselves saying, “if only I had”.  The “if only” syndrome  can go on all the days of our lives here on this temporal earth and they will never all be met.  We have forgotten God's providence at work in our lives working out all things in our lives for His glory.  It's not about us.

Second, you will never be content if you expect others to meet all your needs.  It just isn't happening and they can't because they weren't meant to meet all your needs.  God is the only one who can meet all your needs.  All your needs have been met if you are in Christ.

Third, Paul tells us above he has learned to be content in whatever circumstance.  In little or in abundance.  Paul has learned to be independent from his circumstances.  You would not find him complaining of being a victim of his circumstances as so many do in our world today.

How did the apostle Paul do this?  He kept his eye on the prize.  He looked to the eternal over the temporal.  He set his mind on things above.  He counted it all joy to suffer for the sake of Christ.  Paul said this light affliction is nothing compared to the glory that is to come.

How can we be content and not lose our joy in this life in the midst of all circumstances?  Trust in the providence of God and His sovereign work in and through your life through all things.  

 

And lastly:

give thanks in all circumstances; for this is the will of God in Christ Jesus for you.

1 Thessalonians 5:18

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

A friend in Pennsylvania wrote, “One of my father's old cows gives good milk, but she sure can be dumb! She has a whole field in which to feed, yet no grass seems quite as tasty as those patches outside her own pasture. I often see her stretching her head through the fence, while right behind her is everything she needs—excellent grazing land, beautiful shade trees, a cool, refreshing stream of water, and even a big chunk of salt. What more could she want?”Many people are like that old cow. They think the “grass is always greener on the other side of the fence.” They are constantly grasping, coveting, and seeking to obtain what doesn't belong to them.If you are a Christian, the greatest blessings in life are already yours. Heaven is your home, and God is your Father. He has promised never to leave you (Heb. 13:5), and He will supply your every need (Phil. 4:19). How green the grass is on your side of the fence!

  ~ R. W. De Haan

Related Posts:

The “If Only” Syndrome

Contentment is a Choice

Thoughts on Contentment

One Reason Why We Lose Our Joy

Related posts:

  1. EP 46: Our Need for Contentment
  2. Do Not Lose Heart
  3. Learning Contentment
  4. Battling Our Sins of Envy & Jealousy


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Comments

  1. Jacqueline says

    at

    I am at war with discontentment! It is on my right flank and follows me everywhere. I am putting it to death at every little opportunity, but there are many skirmishes. My biggest hurdle is that treating Lyme’s and many other things where you are perpetually detoxing is that it clouds your thinking as the toxins come out into the blood to be swept out. No excuses! I pray for myself, for you, Marci, and for all of us women, wives, and mothers to have discernment, wisdom, peace, joy, and courageous zeal, not allowing ourselves an excuse for comparison or materialism to comfort or smooth over deeper pain. Times are heating up, and we need to be ready and alert. 1 Peter 5:8
    I am encouraged as always, Marci! God bless you, friend!

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thankfulhomemaker

Marci Ferrell
By affliction, Christ . . .⁣ shows us our empti By affliction, Christ . . .⁣
 shows us our emptiness and weakness,⁣
 draws us to the throne of grace,⁣
 purifies our affections,⁣
 weans us from the world,⁣
 and makes us long for Heaven.⁣
~ J.C Ryle
This simple free eight-page guide is meant to help This simple free eight-page guide is meant to help you think through your summertime schedule for your family. As you walk through it you'll determine what your family loves to do, leave room for spontaneity, and put together a simple daily routine to help your days run a bit smoother. ⁣
⁣
There are some summertime meal planning tips and a printable with ideas to put on your family's bucket list for summer and maybe spark new ones of your own! ⁣
⁣
Come download your free 8-page summertime guide here and get access to our whole library of printables when you do.
Such a good conversation with Dale Partridge from Such a good conversation with Dale Partridge from @relearnhq about his new Gospel Project called MailtheGospel.org. You can get the gospel to anyone anywhere.
So appreciate @reagantrose (I do recommend you fol So appreciate @reagantrose (I do recommend you follow friends if you don’t yet!)- link to the podcast episode we talked about Homemaking to the Glory of God in my profile @thankfulhomemaker 

Repost from @reagantrose 
Godliness > Your Plans⁠
The Church is not a gallery for the exhibition of The Church is not a gallery for the exhibition of eminent Christians, but a school for the education of imperfect ones.⁣
~ Henry Ward Beecher⁣
⁣
Come listen to EP 32: Preparing Our Families for Sunday Morning Worship at the link in my profile @thankfulhomemaker (click on the link under the blue arrows and then this image)
How many times does Sunday morning roll around and How many times does Sunday morning roll around and you find your heart in a state of chaos instead of calm to worship the Lord?  How many Sundays do you arrive at church and realize you haven’t taken the time all week to pray for your pastor or your church family? ⁣
⁣
I want to share with you some simple steps we can take to prepare our hearts and the hearts of our families for Sunday morning worship to the Lord. ⁣
⁣
The hope today is to get you to understand the purpose and the mission of the local church and then to move on toward how we can proceed with some simple steps to prepare our hearts and the hearts of our families for Sunday morning worship to the Lord.⁣
⁣
Come listen to EP 32: Preparing Our Families for Sunday Morning Worship at the link in my profile @thankfulhomemaker (click on the link under the blue arrows and then this image)
"Home is the true wife's kingdom. ⁣ ⁣ Very lar "Home is the true wife's kingdom. ⁣
⁣
Very largely does the wife hold in her ⁣
hands, as a sacred trust, the happiness ⁣
and the highest good of the hearts that ⁣
nestle there. In the last analysis, home ⁣
happiness depends on the wife. ⁣
⁣
Her spirit gives the home its atmosphere. ⁣
⁣
Her hands fashion its beauty. ⁣
⁣
Her heart makes its love. ⁣
⁣
And the end is so worthy, so noble, so divine, ⁣
that no woman who has been called to be a wife, ⁣
and has listened to the call, should consider any⁣
price too great to pay, to be . . .⁣
 the light,⁣
 the joy,⁣
 the blessing,⁣
 the inspiration, ⁣
of a home. ⁣
⁣
The woman who makes a sweet, beautiful home, ⁣
filling it with love and prayer and purity, is doing ⁣
something better than anything else her hands ⁣
could find to do beneath the skies.⁣
⁣
A true mother is one of the holiest secrets of ⁣
home happiness. God sends many beautiful things ⁣
to this world, many noble gifts; but no blessing is ⁣
richer than that which He bestows in a mother who ⁣
has learned love's lessons well, and has realized ⁣
something of the meaning of her sacred calling."⁣
⁣
~ J. R. Miller, "Secrets of Happy Home Life"
Friends 😊 - I'm so excited to share a conversat Friends 😊 - I'm so excited to share a conversation all about the Gospel with Dale Partridge from @relearnhq⁣
⁣
Please join us on IG live tomorrow (June 21st) at 5:30 PM CST/ 3:30 PST and learn about Dale's new project to help equip us to share the Gospel with anyone, anywhere!⁣
⁣
Please join us!
Summer is a natural time for me to get off my rout Summer is a natural time for me to get off my routine of menu planning. In the winter, we're more apt to stick to a schedule, but summer brings about a more flexible and changing calendar. ⁣
⁣
I'm sharing some simple tips that have been a help to me and hopefully, they'll help you in planning your summertime meals. Menu planning is a time and money saver, and I don't know about you, but I would sure like to have more time to enjoy my summer months.⁣
⁣
Come listen to EP 77: Simple Summertime Meal Planning Tips at the link in my profile @thankfulhomemaker (click on the link under the blue arrows and then this image)
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