“For I have learned the secret of contentment in every situation, whether it be a full stomach or hunger, plenty or want…”
Philippians 4:12
Dear Friends in Christ,
It will be Thanksgiving soon and again we wonder where does the time go. How did Thanksgiving come so quickly this year. The older we get it seems like time goes by faster and faster. Of course Christmas is coming right behind it. Younger people don’t seem to have this problem but for them time goes by fast because they are always so busy. But thank God for Thanksgiving. We have a day to pause and give hanks to God for providing for us in every situation.
St. Paul in his letter to the Philippians says that he has learned the secret of being content. He learned it because he realized that God has always provided for him as He does for all of us. Sometimes we don’t have everything we want but we do have what we need. God is a God of needs not of wants. We all need to learn to rely on God and the Holy Spirit’s power to help us to be content. Our human nature drives us to always want more, but we all reach a point where enough is enough. And we need to learn to be content with that.
We can trust God will always provide for us. But in this world we recognize that things come and go, but God will never leave us or forsake us. Job said long ago “the Lord giveth and the Lord taketh away, blessed be the name of the Lord.” Job learned to trust God through good times and bad, when he had it all and when he lost it all. We need to learn that and have that kind of attitude although our experiences may be quite different than Job’s.
I hope you will have time with family and friends and have your fill on Thanksgiving. And I hope the day will be blessed with God’s bounty. And may the Lord provide you with everything you need as you learn to trust Him and find the contentment that comes from His abundant blessings.
Happy Thanksgiving,
Pastor Dan