“Contentment”
February 6th, 2010St. Augustin
e once prayed to God that “our hearts are restless until they find their rest in you.” We have become a society of restless hearts. We have come to pursue the wrong things, more stuff, more money, more of everything. And we have forgotten patience. We have become like the writer of Ecclesiastes. The recession has made all to clear, however, that this is “chasing after wind.” The time has come to learn contentment, not as the world gives, but as only God can give.
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Ecclesiastes 2:1-11
1. A couple years ago – sleep study. Hoag sleep center. Plugged up to all of these machines.
a. Follow-up visit, diagnosed with restless Legs Syndrome, an urge or need to move the legs to stop unpleasant sensations.
b. Lots of information. Even lrs.org.
c. RLS disturbs sleep. Your legs cannot get settled. They cannot remain still.
d. You are not resting – you are literally “exercising” while you sleep – that’s not good.
2. As it is true in sleep, it is true in life – sometimes resting is good. Sometimes, it is o.k. to be content with where you are at.
a. We think contentment is a bad word. We think that sitting still – even if only for a season – is a bad thing.
b. And it is getting worse. Driving Corran to baseball practice recently…it was “too quiet.”
c. He was in the back seat playing his DSI and he had the volume turned down so I would not know.
d. We are raising a generation of children that cannot “sit still.” Everywhere they are, we feel that we must entertain them.
e. But, what we are really doing is raising a generation of restless people – people that might not even be able to find their rest in God.
3. Restlessness – lack of contentment – in and of itself, is not necessarily a bad thing. The problem is, that much of our “stirring of the spirit,” much of our lack of contentment, is nothing more than spiritual restless legs syndrome.
a. It is futile and fruitless. It does not lead us to a deeper understanding of God.
b. It is, to quote the writer of Ecclesiastes, “vanity and chasing after wind.”
c. The book of Ecclesiastes attributed to King Solomon. It is a wisdom book, but it is an advanced text. Not pithy quotes about how to live a righteous life (Proverbs).
d. Deals with deeper, more existential issues.
e. It is a book for the times we are living in. Many of us might connect with Solomon’s lament that was read for us this morning.
4. I love the Contemporary English Version. Read Ecclesiastes 2:1-11 from CEV.
a. “I said to myself, ‘Have fun and enjoy yourself’…I did some great things. I built houses and planted vineyards…foreign rulers brought me silver, gold, and precious treasures…I was the most famous person who had ever lived in Jerusalem.”
b. Most people would say he had it made. He expressed the desires of most of the people in our society.
c. But, what does Solomon say about all of his accomplishments. Read verse 11.
d. “It was simply chasing the wind. Nothing on earth is worth the trouble.”
e. This is not the hopeless ramblings of a depressed king. This is the honest reflection of a man known the world over for the depth of his wisdom.
f. Solomon is not a crybaby. He is reflecting on the ultimate futility of human striving – of human restlessness.
5. United Methodist pastor Adam Hamilton, in his book, writes about the spiritual version of Restless Leg Syndrome. He calls is Restless Heart Syndrome (RHS).
a. He describes is this way. Tell me if this sounds familiar to any of us.
b. He says that the primary symptom of RHS is discontentment. “We find that we are never satisfied with anything. The moment we acquire something, we scarcely take time to enjoy it before we want something else. We are perpetually discontent.”
c. I know – many people consider this a virtue. It encourages “achievement.”
d. However, if unchecked, RHS eventually becomes “chasing the wind.”
6. We cannot have an honest discussion about “where is God in a recession” if we do not address the issue of human striving.
a. Greed that created the crises in our economy (and in our souls). And it is time to consider another way.
b. Hamilton – learn to cultivate contentment – true, spiritual contentment.
i. First – Remember four important words. “It could be worse.” A dear friend that owned his own company. In good times, he lived very well. But, in good and bad times, he always celebrated what was most important to him – family and friends.
ii. Second – ask ourselves an important question, especially with bigger purchases. “How long will this make me happy?” When we make a purchase, have a chemical reaction in our brain that causes a temporary joy. But, it doesn’t last.
iii. Develop a grateful heart. Learn to say thank you for “everything.” Don’t assume entitlement. See things for the gift that they are.
iv. If you want to work on this one, try this exercise, consider this, if you make $50,000 a year here in the United States, you are part of an elite class of the world’s wealthiest 1 percent. Surprised? Try a quick exercise. Go to www.globalrichlist.com, enter your income, and see how you compare when it comes to the distribution of the world’s wealth. Then, consider all that we have to be grateful for.
v. Finally, honestly ask yourself, “Where does my soul find true satisfaction?”
c. This is the question that Solomon was asking, and his answer was contrary to the values of our culture.
7. My friends, we have been talking about “where is God in a recession?”
a. This question implies that God is hiding from us, when the truth is that this recession has come upon us because we have hidden ourselves from God.
b. We have chosen the values of greed and instant gratification over the values of grace and love, and living for eternity.
c. But, all that the values that we have chosen have done for us is to leave us restless. And now, as our economy struggles, the deeper spiritual truth that many of our selfish pursuits are merely “chasing after wind.”
d. Solomon offers a glimpse of the life that we are called to in the second chapter of Ecclesiastes.
e. “If we please God, he will make us wise, understanding, and happy. But, if we sin, God will make us struggle for a living…”
f. The time has come to stop “chasing after wind,” for that is not pleasing to God.
8. The time has come to cultivate contentment of our spirits, not the contentment from having many things – but contentment that is grounded in pursuing the things of God.
a. There is an opportunity here that we must not miss.
b. Question the values of a culture that encourages us to get it all and get it now, and then to show everyone else how well we are doing.
c. Question the values of the restless heart syndrome.
d. We have an opportunity to live out the words of the famous prayer of St. Augustine who prayed to God, “Our hearts are restless until they find their rest in you.”
e. His words are much more than a prayer, they are a deep and abiding truth.
f. Our hearts will always be restless, until they find their rest – their contentment – in the things of God. Amen.
Sermon delivered at Light of the Canyon United Methodist Church Anaheim Hills – February 7, 2010.
