Unlocking Genuine Thankfulness
“Keep your life free from love of money, and be content with what you have, for he has said, ‘I will never leave you nor forsake you’” (Hebrews 13:5).
I carried my lunch tray to a table in the cafeteria of the small Bible college I attended. I sat down with my friends, bowed my head and thanked God for the food then spent the remainder of my lunch break mercilessly criticizing the food with my classmates. At some point toward the end of that conversation I realized “thank you” was nothing more to me than a cliché. I found myself the recipient of James’ rebuke, “From the same mouth come blessing and cursing. My brothers, these things ought not to be so” (James 3:10). That means discontentment and thankfulness cannot co-exist.
Have you ever found yourself guilty of this same level of insincerity? You say, “thank you,” but your heart is anything but thankful. Unfortunately, it’s an easy trap to fall into, one in which I still frequently find myself. Thankfulness is not just lip-service; it is a posture of the heart, and before we can ever be truly thankful, we must be content. However, contentment doesn’t come naturally to us; we find it much easier to fixate on what we don’t have than to be thankful for what we do have.
We often quote the latter half of Hebrews 13:5, “I will never leave you nor forsake you,” but the connection made by the writer of Hebrews is intriguing. He unites this promise with contentment. While our English translation says, “free from love of money,” that entire phrase is only one word in the Greek, literally, “not covetous,” meaning practically anything could apply, not just money. The point being, don’t fixate on what you don’t have, because anything on this earth can be snatched away in a moment. So, be content with the one constant you do have – Jesus Christ. The phrasing of the latter half of that verse is very emphatic and the picture is beautiful. It could read something like this, “I will absolutely never loosen my grip on you, and I will certainly never leave you helpless.”
The contrast is clear, the things of earth – wealth, popularity, possessions, careers, beauty, youth, influence, coveted ideals, fitting in – are ever fleeting, but Jesus Christ is always present. Unlike the things we so desperately covet, there is only one in whom we can put our confidence.
Whatever it is that tries to highjack your contentment, I pray you remember that you have the greatest treasure of all – Jesus Christ – who has said he will absolutely never let go of you or leave you helpless. So, no matter your circumstances, you can be content in him and find the key that unlocks a genuinely thankful heart.
With much love,
Bryan
I carried my lunch tray to a table in the cafeteria of the small Bible college I attended. I sat down with my friends, bowed my head and thanked God for the food then spent the remainder of my lunch break mercilessly criticizing the food with my classmates. At some point toward the end of that conversation I realized “thank you” was nothing more to me than a cliché. I found myself the recipient of James’ rebuke, “From the same mouth come blessing and cursing. My brothers, these things ought not to be so” (James 3:10). That means discontentment and thankfulness cannot co-exist.
Have you ever found yourself guilty of this same level of insincerity? You say, “thank you,” but your heart is anything but thankful. Unfortunately, it’s an easy trap to fall into, one in which I still frequently find myself. Thankfulness is not just lip-service; it is a posture of the heart, and before we can ever be truly thankful, we must be content. However, contentment doesn’t come naturally to us; we find it much easier to fixate on what we don’t have than to be thankful for what we do have.
We often quote the latter half of Hebrews 13:5, “I will never leave you nor forsake you,” but the connection made by the writer of Hebrews is intriguing. He unites this promise with contentment. While our English translation says, “free from love of money,” that entire phrase is only one word in the Greek, literally, “not covetous,” meaning practically anything could apply, not just money. The point being, don’t fixate on what you don’t have, because anything on this earth can be snatched away in a moment. So, be content with the one constant you do have – Jesus Christ. The phrasing of the latter half of that verse is very emphatic and the picture is beautiful. It could read something like this, “I will absolutely never loosen my grip on you, and I will certainly never leave you helpless.”
The contrast is clear, the things of earth – wealth, popularity, possessions, careers, beauty, youth, influence, coveted ideals, fitting in – are ever fleeting, but Jesus Christ is always present. Unlike the things we so desperately covet, there is only one in whom we can put our confidence.
Whatever it is that tries to highjack your contentment, I pray you remember that you have the greatest treasure of all – Jesus Christ – who has said he will absolutely never let go of you or leave you helpless. So, no matter your circumstances, you can be content in him and find the key that unlocks a genuinely thankful heart.
With much love,
Bryan
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