May 8: Insight Post by Karenna Rowenhorst
Friday Insight Post
by Karenna Rowenhorst
Contentment is about as opposite as you can get from our American culture. The drive to do more, acquire more, and even save more are woven tightly into our social fabric. Discontent is nourished and grows everywhere. We look for ways to get to the top in more arenas than we even realize.
For many of us, wealth represents security and choices. It represents independence. Our prosperity is so closely tied with our feelings of worth. And yet, God shows us another way. Even in the beginning, God shows us the value of placing our security in Him by creating the Sabbath Day. God tells us that we can and need to depend on Him, to rest, because we aren’t as in charge of everything as we think we are. God says we are loved for who we are as His children, not because of what we can earn or what our 401k balance looks like.
A trusted counselor I know recently shared this story with me, and it’s a perfect illustration of two different mindsets about contentment. While you read it, see which mindset you align with:
A successful businessman was on vacation in a small coastal village when he noticed a fisherman docking his small boat with a few freshly caught fish.
The businessman complimented the fisherman on the quality of his fish and asked, “How long did it take you to catch them?”
"Only a little while," the fisherman replied.
The businessman then asked, "Why don’t you stay out longer and catch more fish?"
The fisherman smiled and said, “This is enough to support my family’s needs.”
"But what do you do with the rest of your time?" the businessman asked.
The fisherman answered, “I sleep late, fish a little, play with my children, take a nap with my wife, and in the evenings, I stroll into the village to sip wine and play guitar with my friends. I have a full and happy life.”
The businessman scoffed. “I have an MBA and can help you. If you fish longer, you can sell more fish. With the extra money, you can buy a bigger boat. With a bigger boat, you can catch even more fish and buy more boats. Eventually, you could have an entire fleet.”
"Then what?" asked the fisherman.
"Then," the businessman continued, "instead of selling to a middleman, you could sell directly to consumers, open your own factory, and control the whole supply chain. You could move to the City, then Los Angeles, then New York, where you'd run your expanding enterprise.”
"How long would this take?" the fisherman asked.
"About 15 to 20 years," the businessman replied.
"And then what?"
"Millions? And then what?"
The businessman laughed, "That’s the best part! When the time is right, you can sell your company and make millions."
"Then," the businessman said, "you could retire, move to a small coastal village, sleep late, fish a little, play with your kids, take naps with your wife, and spend evenings playing guitar with your friends."
The fisherman smiled, nodded, and walked away.
“If you are wise and understand God’s ways, prove it by living an honorable life, doing good works with the humility that comes from wisdom.But if you are bitterly jealous and there is selfish ambition in your heart, don’t cover up the truth with boasting and lying.For jealousy and selfishness are not God’s kind of wisdom.” James 3:13 – 15a NLT
And Jesus tells us how we need to prioritize our desires:
“Then Jesus told his disciples, 'If anyone would come after me, let him deny himself and take up his cross and follow me. For whoever would save his life will lose it, but whoever loses his life for my sake will find it.For what will it profit a man if he gains the whole world and forfeits his soul?” Matthew 16:24 – 26a ESV
There will always be achievements that are just out of reach. And life will never be without problems. If we spend our lives waiting for the problems to go away, or reaching for these elusive goals, we will miss the present. We will miss out on the life God has planned for us and the beautiful work He has called us to do.
Karenna Rowenhorst
Senior Director of Education
New Hope Church
Lorton, Virginia
www.newhope.org