The other day I flew into Melbourne and as I was sitting on the sky bus on the way to the city I became very aware of the massive advertising signs along the freeway. What stood out to me was the constant messages of you need this latest gadget, job, home.
It is said, each day a human exposed to 7000 different messages of you need this to be better, happy and fulfilled a day. This is not all bad, but it did tell me that the messages being put in front of us breed discontent and tell society that our life is not good enough unless we have something that we don't have.
In the same week I noticed a number of times articles on my Facebook feed from the Christian perspective and the secular perspective about the growing rates of identity crises, drug taking, binge drinking and obesity all due to the pursuit of happiness and new experiences and things. This pursuit has meant that the increase in people going to life coaches, spiritual gurus other than churches, psychologists is increasing rapidly.
Growing numbers of psychologists and social researchers now believe that the feel good, think positive mindset of the modern self help movement has backfired, creating a culture where happiness in King, and the uncomfortable emotions are seen as abnormal.
It's ok to be real
I know speaking for myself I can say that I'm not always happy and my life at times certainly resonates an aura of discontentment. I get frustrated, angry and at times sad about the state of life and the direction that I'm heading. Is this wrong to be this way as a Christian? My conclusion is no and the reason being is because we are human beings and its just as important to be real with ourselves and real with our emotions as it is to rise about them with the truth of the Word of God.
I think one of the greatest examples of this is King David and as we know that great book the Psalms is virtually a journal of his thoughts, emotions and his challenges of his life and how he navigates this through an amazing 'real' relationship with his Heavenly Father. When I read this book I don't come away from with a "Don't worry, be Happy" tune in my head popularised by the catchy Brian Ferry song, but rather it's ok to feel this way and to be able to be real with yourself, your relationships around you and most importantly your relationship with our Heavenly father.
This is not about breeding the discontented feelings in our lives and creating a woe is me kind of attitude, but it's about creating a process which you can work through those discontented feelings, being real and give them the stage that is needed, but then coming out the other side and having the ability to keep walking and more importantly trusting that God with his truth that He is a Good father and he loves us and wants what's bests for our lives. And that best is not about new experiences and things but is knowing your identity as Son or daughter of the most high and that is enough.
Godliness, with Contentment is great gain.
Its this sentiment that reminds me of a great verse that sums up how we can level ourselves out emotionally and that is in the book of 1 Timothy in chapter 6 and it says, "But Godliness, with contentment is great gain, for brought nothing into the world, and we cannot take anything out of the world." Is this verse saying that we should sit on our behinds and be doing nothing in this life? Is this saying we should not chase new experiences and things?
Absolutely not, but it is saying that when the pursuit of things and experiences that supposedly make you happy becomes your focus, your god you will ultimately find yourselves searching for he next high for whatever that means in your life. Timothy says it great gain to be content and that for me is a vastly different message to the one that as we have heard is not helping our current generation find meaning, purpose and life in this time on earth.
So as we navigate those messages that filter into our minds remember to go back to the very place of the cross and that Jesus message to you is not that you need the latest gadget, the latest world trip to find yourself all you need is to know that you are a loved by him and that if your pursuit is about him you will know true contentment in a world of discontent.
Justin Monaghan is currently launching as a professional prophetic artist under the label JR Faith Creations and runs a creative home fellowship with his wife Liana.Justin is also heavily involved in his local surfing community of South Australia as a surf coach, a judge of surf contests and a member of Christian Surfers
Check out JR Faith Creations to see some of his art at https://www.facebook.com/Jrfaithcreations
Justin Monaghan's previous articles may be viewed at http://www.pressserviceinternational.org/justin-monaghan.html