Then the word of the Lord came to [Elijah]: “Go at once to Zarephath in the region of Sidon and stay there. I have directed a widow there to supply you with food.” So he went to Zarephath. When he came to the town gate, a widow was there gathering sticks. He called to her and asked, “Would you bring me a little water in a jar so I may have a drink?” As she was going to get it, he called, “And bring me, please, a piece of bread.” “As surely as the Lord your God lives,” she replied, “I don’t have any bread—only a handful of flour in a jar and a little olive oil in a jug. I am gathering a few sticks to take home and make a meal for myself and my son, that we may eat it—and die.”
1 Kings 17:8-12
I feel so sad for this widowed woman. Not just that she had so little, but that she had resigned herself to go down with a sinking ship and had given up all hope of a better tomorrow, all based on what she didn’t have.
DISCONTENTMENT. One of the greatest joy-stealers we can possibly allow to creep into our lives. It can be so easy to focus on what we DON’T have, and miss the treasure of what we DO have. If we’re not careful we’ll live with empty hands for our whole lives, letting go of what we have in the attempt to grasp that which we don’t.
This widow felt like she had nothing, but she did have SOMETHING. It wasn’t a lot, and her situation probably looked and felt very dire. And sometimes life is hard, and it feels like life is crumbling all around. So this woman was hungry…did she have to be hungry and hopeless? The hopelessness she expressed wasn’t going to change her end, but it very well could have robbed her of any joy while she was going down. If I die, I’d prefer to die with joy.
I’m guessing, though, that most of us still struggle with discontentment even if we’re not on death’s doorstep and completely destitute. (For instance, if you’re reading this you have access to the internet, likely on some kind of device you own or have access to. That’s SOMETHING in your hand!)
How do we get out of this mindset no matter what our life circumstances look like?
1. Take inventory of what God has blessed you with—even very little is a treasure. Begin praising God for what you DO have, and make a list so you can see what you do have at your disposal. At the very least, you have the breath of life in you, and as long as you’ve got that, you’ve got options! Forget about what you’re missing and rejoice in what you have!
2. Begin to formulate a plan for how you can care for and cultivate what you DO have, so that even the little can be made as great as possible. Get a very narrow focus to exclude all you don’t have or all the ways you wish your situation was different and zero in on tackling the one thing that can expand, increase or be made stronger. For example, you can be disheartened that your boyfriend isn’t perfect and wish you had a new one, or you can devise ways to nurture, care for and properly respect the man in your life right now, and there’s a good possibility the time and care you begin to put into your current relationship may change your mind about his worth. He may not necessarily change, but how you see him certainly will in response to your increased effort.
3. You have to go the extra step and not just create plan for cultivating what you have, but be willing to walk your plan out and put time, effort and creativity. Let’s say you only have $10 to your name, you can spend time crying about having so little or you can get creative and find ways to make it work for you. Either way, the tears and discontentment don’t change the $10, your ability to see the potential in the $10 you have will. $10 seems like very little, but in the right hands that can become $1000. I watched it happen. A woman once took $10 and bought some cleaning supplies, and found a home where they were in need of some cleaning services. That woman got paid $100 a month for one afternoon of cleaning, and did this for a year. A $10 investment became $1000. It took ingenuity, time and creative effort. Be faithful with the little, and watch it grow.
Lord, I pray that in each of our lives, we do not let the spirit of discontentment blind us to the blessings You have provided. Help us to be like the Apostle Paul who said he had learned to be content in whatever state he found himself, and over the course of his life his worldly provisions varied greatly. Help us to be faithful and joyful about what is in our hand, and to make it work for us, as our efforts and fruits are ultimately to bring you glory and honor.