A Prayer for Radical Contentment
By James MacDonald
Put no trust in extortion; set no vain hopes on robbery; if riches increase, set not your heart on them. Psalm 62:10, ESV
Do you want to be contented in life? Covetousness runs rampant in our culture, and contentment is rare. All in favor of contentment? If so, make note of these three choices that lead to genuine, biblical, lasting contentment.
1. Seek it.
Seek contentment as a lifestyle. Choose it. Acknowledge that you would not be happier if you had more. You wouldn’t be—you’d likely be more miserable. God’s Word contains clear warnings for us: “It is easier for a camel to go through the eye of a needle than for a rich person to enter the kingdom of God” (Mark 10:25).
2. Say it.
Cultivate the capacity to say, “I have enough.” Let those words ring through your home. Push yourself back from the table early and say, “I’ve had enough.” When you handle money—a surprise bonus from work, an inheritance from your great-aunt, even just an extra bill in your pocket—resist the cravings for more. Follow the words “I have enough” with a prayer: “Lord, how can I use this for You?”
3. Settle it.
Psalm 62:10 advises us, “If riches increase, set not your heart on them.” Here’s the challenge: choose a lifestyle; don’t let your income dictate your lifestyle. Choose a comfortable level of living that meets your needs, and do not compromise that with more spending when more income arrives. If you don’t choose a lifestyle, this culture will choose one for you, and by default it will be the lifestyle of living beyond your means. Be counter-cultural. Be radical. Choose a lifestyle that’s biblically based. Eternally focused. Others-oriented.
Prayer
God, I have enough. These are hard words that I need to practice, yet true words that can fill my heart and transform me. By faith I choose to believe, “My God will supply every need of [mine] according to his riches in glory in Christ Jesus” (Philippians 4:19). I have enough because I have You. You are my everything. In the name of Jesus Christ my Lord, Amen.
Editor’s Note: Content taken from the Our Journey Online devotional, Radical Contentment, written by James MacDonald. You can read that piece in full here. All rights reserved.
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