The Grass is Always Greener

Why is it difficult to learn to be happy with what we're given? We live such blessed and full lives but yet we always want just a little bit more. I'm sure we've all used the phrase; "The grass is always greener" in reference to wanting something somebody else has... But sadly, this is the way a lot of people look at life. They convince themselves that - though things aren't exactly how they want them to be, it's just the way it has to be and they need to learn to live with it... Now it's probably safe to say that we won't get everything we want in our lifetime, but having the "I just need to learn to live with it" outlook won't allow anyone to be fully content with their life. As Christians, it shouldn't be a motto we live by..

Going along with that - however - a common misconception is that contentment is automatically tied to Christianity. But we should realize that contentment is something to be learned, sought after, and gained. - It's not just given to anybody who decides to take on the the role of a disciple of Christ. However, I believe that once we take on the responsibility of being a Christian, we have no reason to NOT be content with our life. We've made the most important decision that we'll ever have to make and if we continue to live like and for Christ, we should be happy.

When I think about having a happy and fulfilled life, I think about Paul and the trials he faced. And even though he went through some horrible situations, he was able to remain content. He tells the church at Philippi that he counted everything as loss in order to gain Christ (Phil 3:5-8). He also had a firm grasp on the fact that earthly things are quickly passing away... In 2 Cor. 4:18 he writes, "As we look not to the things that are seen but to the things that are unseen. For the things that are seen are transient, but the things that are unseen are eternal." For me, this is a difficult concept to grasp and hold on to. And again, I think this is why so many people are unhappy - because it's so much easier to focus on things like being better looking or having better jobs, fancier cars, more money, etc because it's right in front of us. But we have to remind ourselves of Paul's words listed above and in 1 Tim. 6; "Having food and clothing, with these we shall be content."

As Christians, we know what's truly important and that we have no reason not to be happy if we're living right spiritually. We need to remind ourselves of that.

The Danger of "Chilling Out"

I recently took on a new position at a production company in California. The job environment is positive and everybody is very friendly and encouraging - which is great. But there's one interesting thing about my job position - It is such that I am able to finish the vast majority of my work with a decent amount of time left over in the day. The job is challenging and hands on, but somewhat limited in the amount of work needed to be done. Now for some people, this would be a dream job... In fact, if given a similar work situation, some people would maybe stroll into work late and sneak out earlier than everybody else. While it has been tempting to "chill out" after finishing the daily tasks, I've been attempting to seek out other things that I could do to help out others with their work load. This has actually given me more daily tasks and allowed me to build a stronger relationship with my co-workers.

I can't help but apply this situation to my spiritual life. It's very easy to find myself going through the motions - sometimes thinking my "job description" as a Christian just entails going to church 3 times a week. Then after that, I can just "chill out" till the next assembly. This is definitely something Satan wants us to think. But truth is, there's a lot that CAN be done (outside of just going to church) that we as Christians should be doing.

In thinking about this, definitely one of the first passages of scripture that came to mind was something Paul wrote about in Colossians 3. He writes (in verse 23) "Whatever you do, work heartily, as for the Lord and not for men." This is similar to what the writer of Ecclesiastes writes in 9:10 ("Whatever your hand finds to do, do it with all your might"). I also think about what James warns us about in his letter - (2:26) "Faith apart from works (deeds) is dead."

Truth of the matter is, there's so much work that can be done - it just comes down to asking yourself the question, "how much do I want/need to do?" It's important for us to work hard and aggressively in all areas of our life, but spiritually speaking, we have to make sure we're working our hardest and putting all our effort into serving the Lord.

A New Year - A Daily Resolution

The start of a new year is always exiting for me. I always look forward to seeing what the year holds for me - what kind of challenges I'll face, what kind of opportunities will come my way, what kind of new friendships will develop. And it can sometimes be exciting to think of "starting over" - a new year to get back on track - with whatever it is you're struggling with. That's why 'new year's resolutions' are so popular.

Resolutions, in my opinion, are good to have - especially if you can stick with them. It takes motivation and determination to stick with a goal and make it part of your life - and those are great characteristics to have. In fact, those are the kind of character traits we need to have as Christians.

As you may have made some resolutions at the start of this new year, whatever they may be, let me encourage you to add one more to the list - if it isn't already on there. Plain and simply, we need to draw closer to God and make sure He's the top priority in our life. In fact, we shouldn't just make this a "new year's resolution" - how about a "new day resolution!" Everyday that we wake up, we should make the decision to put God first in our life and live according to His Word. This is one resolution we can't let fizzle out...

It's extremely easy to let our own selfishness get in the way of putting God first. We start to make sacrifices with our time. If there's something we want to do or accomplish - we tend to put everything else on the back burner. As I said earlier, it's great to have goals and make new year's resolutions - but we CANNOT let these goals and ambitions get in the way of serving our God. Remember, Jesus told us to "Seek first the Kingdom of God - and all His righteousness..." (Matt 6:33). Likewise, Paul told us to not set our minds on things here - but on the things above. (Romans 8:5).

As we start 2011, we obviously want to make it a great year. And it DEFINITELY will be if God is the top priority in our life. Let us remember what Jesus said in Matthew 22:37 - "You shall love the Lord your God with all your heart, all your mind, and all your soul." Let us have this mindset and practice this love for God on a daily basis.