“Not that I was ever in need, for I have learned how to be content with whatever I have. I know how to live on almost nothing or with everything. I have learned the secret of living in every situation, whether it is with a full stomach or empty, with plenty or little. For I can do everything through Christ, who gives me strength (Philippians 4:11-13).”
Many motivational posters, professional athletes or pastors have quoted this scripture to the point of it being a cliché. Is it that God gives supernatural strength to Christian athletes because they are part of an elite group of people? Could it be that perhaps these posters are like fortune cookies intended to give vague messages of hope to the masses? Now that I’ve covered all the bases on basic “Christian-ese” overused expressions derived from this scripture. I am going to take a look at the context of the scripture, which is generally a good place to start in understanding what it means.
Paul was speaking to the church about their concerns for him. I am sure by this time they had gotten wind of the various persecutions he had encountered in his missions. His timing and reasons for the letter served as an encouragement to the church, not to worry, and to assure them that He was okay. He was saying ‘look, I appreciate your concern, I understand how difficult it can be to trust in God at times but I know, that I know, that I know that God is with me. Whether I have little or plenty, whether I am hungry or starving, whether I suffer or I flourish, I can do ALL these things through Christ because of His strength.’ (This is my paraphrase of course). As we look at the heart of what Paul is trying to communicate to the church, we can see that he has found the secret to being content is found in God’s strength. Paul was content in God’s ability to be greater than his current situation. He recognized that apart from God, he could do nothing but with Christ nothing was impossible.
We learn three things form this scripture:
1. Life is hard.
I’d like to think of myself as a very independent woman most days. I feel that my life experiences have prepositioned me to be this way. Perhaps my rough upbringing, my personal disappointments, my educational and ministry setbacks have caused me to be somewhat of a fighter. I think I’ve spent the majority of my life fighting. I’ve fought for everything I have, and still find myself fighting.
A lady from the church approached me this week and asked me to pray for her friend who got into a severe accident and lost her husband of 30 years. My eyes welled up with tears because I cannot imagine what this woman is going through. I do not know what I’d do without my husband. He’s my best friend who I can simultaneously love and be annoyed with. He completes me and makes me a better person. He drives me crazy with love and with frustration! Yet I would be devastated if anything ever happened to him. I’d be lost at the thought of doing life without him by my side.
2. Stop being Strong.
A few weeks ago, my husband went down to Sturgis, SD to get into his first MMA fight. If you’ve ever met Zach, you might agree with me, that he’s more of a “lover” than a “fighter” by design. He is such a caring and compassionate man. I am constantly encouraged to see the good in others through his lead. When he first talked to me about doing this MMA thing, I have to admit my initial response was, “no!” After several months of arguing about the issue, I asked him why he’d wanted to do it in the first place. He had never been in a “real fight” before and he wanted to prove to himself that he could do it. It was more of a bucket list item he desperately wanted to check off. My reaction was, “hey, if you want to fight, let’s go to the parking lot right now, I’ll take off my chanklas (Spanish slang for flip flops), put my hair in a ponytail and we can do this thing!” All joking aside, I could not understand what this meant to him.
When he left to Sturgis for the fight, I was worried. I didn’t want him to get hurt. I wanted so badly to talk him out of this wild idea. I grew up watching violence. I saw the negative effects of an abusive relationship between my parents. I thought of all the fights I’d seen my brothers get in. I remember a few of the neighborhood fights I’d been in. I think for a minute I was brought back to my childhood, and faced with the issues that I’d had with fighting. Stepping outside of my perspective and considering his reasons for wanting to fight. I knew that it was different. This was something that Zach needed to prove to himself. He has always been the “peacemaker” in his family. He’s always been the one to see both sides of a story and to think logically through a situation. Taking that step back helped me appreciate his perspective even if I wasn’t completely comfortable with it.
Where are we drawing our strength from? I could see how I wasn’t fully trusting my husband’s judgment and I could see how this idea was negatively impacting me. Many times our spiritual life mirrors the physical. I had a hard time trusting God with my most prized possession. Instead of finding strength in Christ I was trying to be the “strong one.” The key to being content in any situation whether it’s good, bad or ugly, is to draw our strength from Christ. Maybe the very reason you feel weak is because God is asking you to “stop being strong.”
3. Trust in Jesus.
Getting back to the scripture, I can see how God has been working on my heart with the idea of trust. Part of me trusting in God with Zach fighting was for me to “stop fighting.” I was reminded of one of my favorite proverbs, 3:5-6, “Trust in the Lord with all your heart; do not depend on your own understanding. Seek his will in all you do, and he will show you which path to take.” Where are we drawing our strength from? The key to happiness is to lean on Him. You can see God’s voice transcend throughout the old and new testament about this idea of trust. The idea that His ways are better than ours, His understanding is greater than ours. I believe He’s saying the same thing to us today. Life is Hard, Stop being Strong, and Trust in Jesus.
