To Be Content
“Contentment isn’t in what surrounds us—but in Who indwells us.”
Inspired by Immeasurably More by Ray Stedman
Photo Credit: Unsplash
Today’s entry from Immeasurably More draws our hearts toward a truer understanding of contentment—not as having everything we want, but as wanting only what we have. Ray Stedman reflects on Paul’s testimony in Philippians 4:12, where the apostle confesses that he learned the secret of contentment. It's not innate. We’re not born with a quiet soul. We grow up striving—reaching for something newer, better, more satisfying—but never quite arriving.
Stedman unpacks three key insights. First, contentment is a learned experience that reorients our values. We were created to love people and use things, but the world’s script reverses this—teaching us to use people and love things. Paul had to unlearn the world’s version of satisfaction and relearn God’s.
Second, both poverty and abundance can be severe tests. We tend to think of wealth as blessing and poverty as burden, but Paul recognized both as trials. Each can pull us away from Christ—poverty through desperation, and abundance through distraction.
And finally, Paul shares the secret to living beyond the distortion of either extreme: “I can do all this through Him who gives me strength.” It wasn’t grit, or wisdom, or willpower—it was a discovery: that true life is the expression of Christ in him. What Christ once was in the flesh, He now is through us. The only life capable of true contentment is Christ’s life—freely available, always sufficient, quietly powerful within.
Personalized Journal Entry — In the Holy Spirit’s Voice Through Scripture
I have given you Myself, and in Me is all the contentment your soul longs for. You are not meant to chase satisfaction—it is already yours in union with Me. When your eyes drift to what you do not have, or to what others seem to enjoy, I invite you back—not to scold you, but to show you again the beauty of all that is already yours.
I have taught you the secret—not through comfort, but through My life within you. You have walked through lean times and found My grace enough. You have had much and realized it cannot hold your heart. What you once considered gain, you now count as loss for the surpassing worth of knowing Me.
Do you see it now? Whether in lack or in abundance, I remain the constant. My peace surpasses understanding because it does not fluctuate with your circumstances. I lead you beside quiet waters—not by changing your surroundings, but by stilling your soul with My presence.
Let Me remind you—you are not lacking. I have blessed you with every spiritual blessing in the heavenly realms. I am your sufficiency. I am your treasure. In Me is fullness of joy. I live in you. I walk with you. I carry you in every moment.
When your thoughts begin to wander, remember: godliness with contentment is great gain. Set your heart on what is eternal. For I am able to make all grace abound to you, so that in all things, at all times, having all you need, you will abound in every good work.
You are not striving for contentment—you are resting in it. Christ in you, the hope of glory.
(Philippians 4:12–13, Philippians 3:7–8, Psalm 23:2, Ephesians 1:3, 2 Corinthians 12:9, Psalm 16:11, 1 Timothy 6:6, 2 Corinthians 9:8, Colossians 1:27)
Prayer — From My Heart
Father, thank You that I am not chasing after peace—I already have it in Christ. In this moment, I trust that Your presence within me is enough. Whether in seasons of plenty or of want, I have learned to desire only what You have given.
Thank You for retraining my desires—not by force, but by showing me something better. You’ve turned my eyes from temporary illusions to eternal riches. I rejoice that I no longer need to use people or chase things. Christ is my life, and He lives contentedly in me.
In You, I rest. In You, I abound. In You, I have all.
Amen.
Devotional Credit: Immeasurably More by Ray Stedman
Photo Credit: Unsplash.com
Suggested Unsplash Image:
A quiet, weathered cabin in a vast field—simple, unpretentious, and resting under a big sky.
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