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Welcome to the Island's 
Christian Church podcast. 

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Subscribe to hear a new episode 
every week. 

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Thanks for joining us. 
So we are in Part 2 of a series 

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called Enough Is Enough. 
Who's ever heard of Malcolm 

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Gladwell's book Outliers? 
Someone give me hands. 

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If you've heard of Malcolm 
Gladwell's book Outliers, three 

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of you. 
Wow, this is amazing. 

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So this is a great book. 
This is actually, the fact that 

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we've never heard of this is 
kind of indicative of our 

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culture and where people's 
hearts are. 

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So Gladwell's argument in the 
book Outliers is that it takes 

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about 10,000 hours to become a 
master at anything. 

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So if you're going to become 
really good at something, it 

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takes about 10,000 hours to do 
it. 

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We tend to think in our culture 
that we should just kind of wake

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up and be good at something. 
Like, you know, we should just 

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be like, I started doing this 
and I've been at it a week and I

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can't believe I'm not getting 
better, right? 

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And that's just kind of how our 
hearts work. 

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We kind of think we want 
immediate satisfaction. 

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We are the microwave culture. 
I mean, you know who grew up in 

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the old days where you had to 
put your popcorn in a little 

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dish and you had to put it on 
the stove and you waited and 

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waited and waited and waited 
over like 20 minutes. 

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You got popcorn and now you put 
popcorn in the microwave. 

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And how fast do you have 
popcorn, right? 

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Two minutes, you got popcorn, 
right? 

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So we kind of live in a culture 
where everything's instant. 

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And Gladwell's argument is 
simply this, that mastery isn't 

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natural. 
Mastery is not natural. 

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I also love the book by George 
Leonard titled Mastery, which 

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also makes the same argument 
that it takes a long time to 

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become a master at anything. 
And this idea that we're just 

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not automatically good at 
something that we have to 

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practice and that it takes time 
and it and it's mastery over a 

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long period of time. 
That idea helps us with our 

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passage today and helps us with 
this, the topic that we've been 

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talking about over this series 
so far, and this idea of 

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contentment. 
Because a lot of us are 

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malcontent, a lot of us are 
discontent. 

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We don't like this about our 
lives. 

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We don't like this that about 
our lives. 

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And we want this to change. 
And we often think if this 

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situation would change, then my 
life would be happier and I 

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would be more content. 
We tend to think that 

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contentment is a personality 
trait or something that just 

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happens that, you know, if 
you're, if you're spiritual 

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enough, if you have enough 
faith, if you believe enough, 

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then you will have contentment. 
But Paul says the opposite in 

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our text today. 
He actually agrees with Gladwell

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and and George Leonard that 
contentment is something that 

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you master and learn over time. 
And so if you're a young person 

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and, and you feel malcontent and
you feel discontent, that's OK. 

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You're still in the learning 
process of how to be content. 

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And if you're an old person and 
you've yet to learn how to be 

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content, then it's getting late 
in the game for you. 

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OK? 
It's getting late because it is 

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something that you learn over 
time. 

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Contentment is learned. 
It's something that God grows in

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US over time. 
It's not something we can just 

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absorb. 
You can't read about it. 

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You can't hear a sermon about 
it. 

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You learn it. 
So we're going to read a text, 

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Philippians chapter 4, verses 10
through 13, and then we'll keep 

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talking about this idea of 
contentment being something we 

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learn Philippians 410 through 
13. 

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Now Philippians, ironically 
enough, we're talking about 

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contentment in the letter to the
church at Philippi, which 

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remember, Philippians is just a 
letter. 

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It's just Paul literally sitting
down like an e-mail and like 

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writing his friends at Philippi 
and he's giving them some 

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instruction. 
And this is what's crazy. 

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This section we're going to read
today is about contentment. 

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And Paul is actually writing 
this letter from does anybody 

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know prison from house arrest? 
He's writing this letter from 

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prison from house arrest. 
So this guy doesn't have 

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freedom. 
He can't just go out and do what

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he wants to do. 
He's he's locked down. 

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And this, these are the words. 
These are the words he says from

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a place where most of us would 
say, I'm not happy right now. 

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I'm not satisfied. 
Life is not good. 

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And this is what he says. 
Verse 10 of Philippians chapter 

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4. 
If you have your Bibles, go 

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there. 
If you have your look at it 

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there, Philippians 4, chapter 
10, verse 13, this is what it 

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says. 
I rejoiced greatly in the Lord 

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that at last you renewed your 
concern for me. 

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Indeed, you were concerned, but 
you had no opportunity to show 

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it. 
In other words, the Philippian 

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believers had sent him some 
money. 

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They'd sent him some resources, 
which is always a good thing 

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when you're in jail, by the way,
put money on my account, right? 

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And so like, like, you know, 
it's it's something that Paul 

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needed. 
He needed some money. 

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They send him some money. 
She's like, I'm thankful that 

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you guys showed concern for me. 
Verse 11. 

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I'm not saying this because I am
in need, for I have learned to 

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be everybody say content. 
Content, for I've learned to be 

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content whatever the 
circumstances. 

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I know what it is to be a need 
and I know what it is to have 

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plenty. 
I have learned the secret of 

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being content in every in any 
and every situation where 

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they're well fed or hungry, 
whether living in plenty or in 

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wants. 
I can do all this through Him 

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who gives me strength. 
So if you're a note taker, and I

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know some of you are note 
takers, there are three ideas 

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that we're going to unpack from 
this text, right from the 

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verses, verse 11, verse 12, and 
verse 13. 

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And here are the three ideas. 
Number one, verse 11, 

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contentment is learned, 
Contentment is learned #2 verse 

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12, Contentment is independent 
of circumstances. 

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Contentment is independent of 
circumstances. 

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So if you write notes, write 
that down #3 verse 13, the 

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secret, the secret of 
contentment. 

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The secret of contentment is 
found in dependence on Christ. 

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So there we go. 
Those are the three. 

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Dependence on Christ is where 
the secret of contentment is. 

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Number 3 #2 contentment is 
independent of circumstances and

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#1 contentment is learned. 
So let's unpack this idea of 

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contentment is learned. 
We tend to think that if you're 

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a believer in Jesus, if you're a
church person, if you're a God 

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person, you tend to think if, if
minute, why am I so discontent? 

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Why am I so malcontent? 
Why can't I be happy with my 

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life if I could just get enough 
faith? 

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Maybe I don't believe in God 
enough. 

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Maybe I don't have enough faith 
then if if I had more faith, I 

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would be content. 
But Paul gives us a different 

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perspective. 
Let me just reread verse 11 to 

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you. 
He says I'm not saying this 

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because I'm in need and listen 
to what he says. 

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Comma for I have, what's it say 
learned? 

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Everybody say that again, I have
what learned? 

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I have learned to be content. 
Whatever the circumstances. 

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When we learn something, what 
are we doing? 

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We're acquiring the skills, 
we're taking the process. 

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If you sat down to learn piano, 
you would not be very proficient

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in the first week or the first 
month. 

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It would take you quite some 
time. 

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And this is what Paul is saying.
This word learn is good news for

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your souls, man. 
It's good news if you're a 

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person who feels discontent 
about life, if you're a person 

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who deals with malcontent, 
contentness, this word is good 

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news. 
We learn contentment. 

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See, contentment isn't something
that you just have or don't 

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have. 
It's something you grow into. 

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It's a spiritual skill that you 
form over time through 

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repetition and experience. 
Now, there's a guy named Thomas 

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Watson who was a Puritan that 
lived in England in the 1600s. 

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Yes, I'm quoting a guy from the 
1600s, all right, because he 

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wrote a book literally about 
contentment, a whole book about 

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contentment. 
The whole book is about 

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contentment. 
It's called the art of divine 

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contentment. 
And you can get it on just like 

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Google it use PDF. 
It's free. 

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So you can read this today. 
Like you can read and I would be

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impressed if you read this 
because like it's, it's you have

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to be pretty smart. 
Read this stuff. 

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All right, So I mean, I have 
struggled reading. 

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I didn't read the whole book. 
I just was perusing it. 

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Listen to what Thomas Watson 
said in The Art of Divine Commit

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Contentment about Paul's words 
in this verse. 

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He says Paul did not come 
naturally by it. 

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In other words, by contentment. 
Paul did not come naturally by 

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it, but he had learned it. 
It cost him many a prayer and 

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tear. 
It was taught him by the Spirit.

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Contentment isn't instant, it 
isn't automatic. 

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And most of the time, listen, 
look at that quote. 

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Most of the time when we learn 
it, we learn it through 

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struggle, through tear, through 
prayer. 

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We we learn it in difficult 
situations, we learn it through 

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necessity. 
There are so many stories of 

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people who are going through 
difficult seasons of life, 

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challenging times in their in 
their walk with God, going 

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through dark seasons of the 
soul, if you will. 

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And they will tell you, like 
when we look at their situation,

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maybe they've lost a loved one, 
maybe they're walking through 

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some great tragedy. 
We look at their situation and 

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we say, how could God do this to
them? 

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Why did this terrible thing 
happen to them? 

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They surely hate God now. 
There's no way that they could 

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be close to God. 
But if you go and sit down with 

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the person walking through the 
dark night of their soul, 

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walking through the difficult 
season of their life, they will 

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tell you that in this dark 
season I'm walking through, God 

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has met me and comforted me. 
He has walked with me. 

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He has taught my heart 
contentment. 

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He has soothed me, He has 
comforted me. 

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And this is the thing about 
contentment. 

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Contentment is something that we
have to learn. 

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And ironically, we oftentimes 
learn it out of necessity. 

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We learn it out of looking at a 
circumstance and saying, well, 

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there's nothing I can do here. 
I can't change the circumstance.

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I can't make it different. 
I can either be content in this 

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moment or I can end my life. 
And so people figure out, they 

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begin to learn contentment from 
God. 

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Contentment works this way. 
We don't learn it by reading 

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about it, We don't learn it by 
wishing for it, but we learn it 

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by walking through real 
situations of our lives. 

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And some people when they hit 
hardship, honestly, I've been a 

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pastor for a long time, When 
they hit hardship, when they 

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come up against something hard, 
they just give up. 

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They just throw their hands in 
the air and they just say, well,

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life's too hard. 
I'm done. 

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I'm they deconstruct away from 
their faith, They walk away from

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God, they walk away from the 
local church, They say, this is 

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too hard. 
There's no way any of this is 

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true. 
But instead, if we looked at 

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hardship and difficulty and we 
said, hey, this is a place where

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God might meet me. 
Let me lean into this moment and

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see if God will show up and move
in my life and grow something in

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me. 
And one of the things often 

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times that God will grow in you 
during difficult seasons of your

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life is contentment. 
And I think this is what Paul is

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saying is that hey guys, I have 
learned contentment. 

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I've learned to be content in 
any and every circumstance. 

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I've learned this because I've 
been through some good stuff and

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I've been through some bad 
stuff. 

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I've had to walk through some 
dark days and I've, and what has

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happened in those dark days is 
God has met me in those places. 

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So here's the deal. 
Contentment is something you 

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learn, and if the apostle Paul 
had to learn how to be content, 

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if his heart had to had to learn
how to be settled and be at 

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peace, then do not think that 
you too will also have to learn 

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to be content. 
In other words, you're not going

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to stumble into it. 
You're not going to have enough 

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faith, you're not going to go to
church enough, you're not going 

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to read your Bible enough. 
It's going to be through 

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experiences, learning to trust 
God and walk with God that He 

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00:10:42,640 --> 00:10:47,840
teaches you contentment. 
He teaches you through time. 

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00:10:48,680 --> 00:10:51,360
Paul learned it through prayer, 
through tears, through pressure,

231
00:10:51,360 --> 00:10:54,440
through difficulty, and the 
Spirit did the work in him. 

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And the same is true for us. 
So that's number one. 

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Contentment is something we 
learned #2 Paul shows us that 

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00:11:01,680 --> 00:11:04,120
our contentment is independent 
of circumstances. 

235
00:11:04,440 --> 00:11:06,840
Our contentment is independent 
of circumstances. 

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00:11:07,040 --> 00:11:10,680
Let's read verse 12. 
Because we tend to think if I 

237
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could just change the 
circumstance, then I would be 

238
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happy, right? 
But look at verse 12. 

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00:11:14,880 --> 00:11:18,200
It says I know what it is to be 
a need and I know what it is to 

240
00:11:18,200 --> 00:11:22,120
have plenty. 
I have learned the secret of 

241
00:11:22,120 --> 00:11:24,560
being content. 
I've learned the secret of being

242
00:11:24,560 --> 00:11:28,960
content in any and every 
situation where they're well fed

243
00:11:29,280 --> 00:11:31,760
or hungry, where they're living 
in plenty or in Walt. 

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00:11:31,960 --> 00:11:34,440
So here's what Paul is saying. 
Paul is saying, hey, I've 

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experienced the full spectrum of
circumstances, man. 

246
00:11:37,120 --> 00:11:39,240
I've had plenty. 
I've had where the cupboards are

247
00:11:39,240 --> 00:11:41,840
full and the, the, the resources
are overflowing. 

248
00:11:41,840 --> 00:11:44,360
I got more than I need and I've 
had it where the covers are 

249
00:11:44,400 --> 00:11:46,880
empty and the bank account is 
dry and I don't know how I'm 

250
00:11:46,880 --> 00:11:49,240
going to pay the bills. 
I've experienced it in both 

251
00:11:49,240 --> 00:11:50,640
extremes. 
And I'm going to tell you, Paul 

252
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says, Paul says, listen, in the 
circumstances where things were 

253
00:11:53,480 --> 00:11:56,680
great and I had plenty that did 
not inflate my contentment. 

254
00:11:56,800 --> 00:11:59,280
In other words, I wasn't more 
content because I had a bigger 

255
00:11:59,280 --> 00:12:01,440
bank account or because I had 
more food in the pantry. 

256
00:12:01,600 --> 00:12:03,960
And then he says, hey, listen, 
I've had it where I didn't have 

257
00:12:03,960 --> 00:12:07,040
enough, where I where I was 
short and the covers were bare 

258
00:12:07,120 --> 00:12:08,720
and the bank account was empty. 
And you know what? 

259
00:12:08,840 --> 00:12:10,760
That did not diminish my 
contentment. 

260
00:12:10,880 --> 00:12:13,200
And what he's saying is whatever
the circumstance, whether it's 

261
00:12:13,360 --> 00:12:16,240
having plenty or having a 
little, those circumstances did 

262
00:12:16,240 --> 00:12:18,720
not determine the condition of 
my heart. 

263
00:12:18,880 --> 00:12:23,200
My heart was content apart from 
whatever the circumstances were 

264
00:12:23,200 --> 00:12:27,080
going on around me. 
So contentment is not dependent 

265
00:12:27,080 --> 00:12:29,480
upon your circumstances. 
It's independent of your 

266
00:12:29,480 --> 00:12:33,440
circumstances. 
His contentment and yours too, 

267
00:12:33,680 --> 00:12:36,440
doesn't have to rise and fall 
with your circumstances. 

268
00:12:36,640 --> 00:12:39,080
You don't have to be like happy 
this week because things are 

269
00:12:39,080 --> 00:12:42,160
going good and unhappy this week
because things are going bad. 

270
00:12:42,280 --> 00:12:45,360
Does anybody live that life? 
It's a terrible way to live your

271
00:12:45,360 --> 00:12:48,360
life. 
It's a because here's the thing,

272
00:12:48,920 --> 00:12:53,840
circumstances change. 
They move, they they change. 

273
00:12:54,400 --> 00:12:57,760
See, Paul gives us a message 
that is better than the message 

274
00:12:57,760 --> 00:12:59,240
of our culture. 
What is the message of our 

275
00:12:59,240 --> 00:13:02,240
culture? 
If you're not happy, change your

276
00:13:02,240 --> 00:13:04,920
circumstance. 
If you want to be happy, change 

277
00:13:04,920 --> 00:13:06,560
your circumstance, change your 
situation. 

278
00:13:06,560 --> 00:13:08,400
That's the message of our 
culture, but that's not the 

279
00:13:08,400 --> 00:13:10,440
message of the gospel. 
The message of the gospel says 

280
00:13:10,440 --> 00:13:12,840
contentment is independent of 
circumstances. 

281
00:13:13,680 --> 00:13:16,720
What we know if you live long 
enough, especially once you 

282
00:13:16,720 --> 00:13:19,960
know, if you, if you live but 
long enough and you and those of

283
00:13:19,960 --> 00:13:23,160
you who are maybe over 45 or 
over 50 / 40, you could set up 

284
00:13:23,160 --> 00:13:24,800
and say this. 
You could say, hey, yeah, there 

285
00:13:24,800 --> 00:13:26,720
were, there was a time of my 
life when I thought if I change 

286
00:13:26,720 --> 00:13:28,000
that circumstance, I would be 
happy. 

287
00:13:28,120 --> 00:13:29,840
And if I change this 
circumstance, I would be happy. 

288
00:13:29,960 --> 00:13:32,560
And without fail, what happened 
was eventually I realized 

289
00:13:33,400 --> 00:13:39,920
wherever I went, there I was. 
Wherever I went, there I was. 

290
00:13:41,880 --> 00:13:47,480
And so, so the, the culture says
our hearts say change your 

291
00:13:47,480 --> 00:13:52,080
circumstance and be happy. 
But Paul says the circumstances 

292
00:13:52,080 --> 00:13:56,400
can change, but contentment can 
remain steady in our hearts. 

293
00:13:56,840 --> 00:13:59,760
Now, let me have a quick caveat 
here, because I, I don't want 

294
00:13:59,760 --> 00:14:03,080
you to walk away going. 
So should we not pursue changing

295
00:14:03,080 --> 00:14:05,520
our circumstances? 
No, that's absolutely not what 

296
00:14:05,520 --> 00:14:07,120
I'm saying. 
There are times when you look at

297
00:14:07,120 --> 00:14:09,200
your circumstances and you ought
to change them. 

298
00:14:09,200 --> 00:14:10,480
And I think there are rules 
around them. 

299
00:14:10,480 --> 00:14:13,240
Like, hey, would changing the 
circumstance dishonor God? 

300
00:14:13,360 --> 00:14:15,400
Well, if it would dishonor God, 
then I don't want to change the 

301
00:14:15,400 --> 00:14:17,000
circumstance. 
You know, like that happens 

302
00:14:17,000 --> 00:14:20,000
whenever I talk to spouses where
one spouse is saying to me, you 

303
00:14:20,000 --> 00:14:21,800
know what, I'm just not happy 
being married to this spouse 

304
00:14:21,800 --> 00:14:23,080
anymore. 
I want to find a new one. 

305
00:14:23,320 --> 00:14:24,960
And I'm like, OK, well slow 
down. 

306
00:14:25,440 --> 00:14:27,920
OK, slow down because we got to 
talk about that a little bit. 

307
00:14:28,080 --> 00:14:30,760
Because if it, if you think just
like changing that one out for a

308
00:14:30,760 --> 00:14:32,120
new one is going to solve your 
problems. 

309
00:14:32,440 --> 00:14:34,840
The first problem you're 
starting out with is you got a 

310
00:14:34,840 --> 00:14:37,600
massive moment of dishonoring 
the Lord in your choice. 

311
00:14:38,120 --> 00:14:39,760
Like you just you're dishonoring
God in your choice. 

312
00:14:39,760 --> 00:14:42,960
So, so if, if changing your 
circumstance doesn't dishonor 

313
00:14:42,960 --> 00:14:44,720
the Lord, right, there's freedom
there. 

314
00:14:45,000 --> 00:14:47,120
OK. 
And so, so I don't want you to 

315
00:14:47,120 --> 00:14:50,280
think that that Paul is 
suggesting that that it's OK to 

316
00:14:50,280 --> 00:14:52,600
have a stagnant life. 
Do you ask the questions, would 

317
00:14:52,600 --> 00:14:54,960
this change a circumstance? 
Would it dishonor God? 

318
00:14:55,120 --> 00:14:57,120
No, it wouldn't dishonor God. 
OK, well, now you have some 

319
00:14:57,120 --> 00:15:00,480
freedom here, but then you ask 
the question, do am I thinking 

320
00:15:00,480 --> 00:15:02,360
changing the circumstance will 
make me happy? 

321
00:15:02,520 --> 00:15:04,880
If that's if, if the answer to 
that question is yes, if you're 

322
00:15:04,880 --> 00:15:07,400
going why I'm going to change 
the circumstance, it's not going

323
00:15:07,400 --> 00:15:09,760
to dishonor the Lord and I think
it's going to make me happy. 

324
00:15:11,320 --> 00:15:14,680
Now you're setting yourself up 
for a terrible mess because 

325
00:15:14,680 --> 00:15:16,560
you're going to find out that 
it's not going to make you happy

326
00:15:16,560 --> 00:15:18,920
in the long run. 
So if you need, if you look at a

327
00:15:18,920 --> 00:15:21,720
a circumstance or a situation 
and you think I should change 

328
00:15:21,720 --> 00:15:25,160
this, here's my advice to you. 
My advice to you is first pursue

329
00:15:25,160 --> 00:15:29,600
contentment in the Lord. 
Pursue having contentment with 

330
00:15:29,600 --> 00:15:31,240
Christ. 
Looking at the situation you're 

331
00:15:31,240 --> 00:15:34,120
currently in and looking at it 
and going, this is not 

332
00:15:34,600 --> 00:15:38,720
determining my happiness either 
way, good or bad, Find 

333
00:15:38,720 --> 00:15:41,760
contentment in the Lord. 
Pursue that first and then from 

334
00:15:41,760 --> 00:15:46,440
a place of that contentment 
prayer and ask Jesus to lead you

335
00:15:46,440 --> 00:15:49,280
in whatever change you're 
considering making. 

336
00:15:49,440 --> 00:15:51,400
So maybe you're thinking about 
changing jobs right now and 

337
00:15:51,560 --> 00:15:52,480
you're like, I want to change 
jobs. 

338
00:15:52,480 --> 00:15:54,160
Or maybe you're thinking about 
changing schools, or maybe 

339
00:15:54,160 --> 00:15:56,480
you're thinking about changing 
majors or whatever the changes 

340
00:15:56,480 --> 00:15:58,120
you're thinking about doing is 
like, I'm going to make this 

341
00:15:58,120 --> 00:15:59,720
change and it's going to make 
things better. 

342
00:15:59,960 --> 00:16:02,720
The the advice I would give you 
is first go, Hey, don't think 

343
00:16:02,720 --> 00:16:03,680
it's going to make things 
better. 

344
00:16:03,680 --> 00:16:05,840
It might make things everybody 
say worse. 

345
00:16:06,320 --> 00:16:10,800
It might make things worse. 
It it just might get making it a

346
00:16:10,800 --> 00:16:14,960
lot worse. 
So first say, am I, am I content

347
00:16:14,960 --> 00:16:16,640
in the Lord? 
Do I have peace with where I'm 

348
00:16:16,640 --> 00:16:18,880
at? 
And then from that place, pray 

349
00:16:19,080 --> 00:16:21,920
and ask for wisdom about the 
change of circumstance you want 

350
00:16:21,920 --> 00:16:24,080
to make. 
Now here's the truth. 

351
00:16:24,720 --> 00:16:27,080
You can change some 
circumstances in your life. 

352
00:16:27,680 --> 00:16:30,440
If you have a if you're at a job
where people are abusive and 

353
00:16:30,440 --> 00:16:32,880
it's terrible, then you pray and
you say, you know what, the 

354
00:16:32,880 --> 00:16:35,760
Lord, this isn't healthy for me.
I'm going to seek a change here.

355
00:16:35,760 --> 00:16:38,080
Will you guide me in that? 
There are some circumstances 

356
00:16:38,080 --> 00:16:40,960
that you have power over and you
can change in your life, but 

357
00:16:40,960 --> 00:16:45,520
let's be honest, the majority of
circumstances that are happening

358
00:16:45,520 --> 00:16:48,200
to you and happening to me, we 
have no control over. 

359
00:16:50,400 --> 00:16:54,720
We just have no control over the
circumstances that we face. 

360
00:16:55,200 --> 00:16:59,320
The world is moving around you 
at breakneck speed and it is 

361
00:16:59,320 --> 00:17:03,160
never asking your permission for
how its movements are affecting 

362
00:17:03,160 --> 00:17:06,079
you. 
Other people are making 

363
00:17:06,079 --> 00:17:08,599
decisions that are impacting 
your life right now. 

364
00:17:10,599 --> 00:17:14,079
Circumstances are always moving 
and changing, and you are always

365
00:17:14,079 --> 00:17:17,640
being affected by them. 
And the reality is we have very 

366
00:17:17,640 --> 00:17:20,760
little control over our 
circumstances. 

367
00:17:21,599 --> 00:17:25,079
I cannot control the things that
might happen to me. 

368
00:17:26,359 --> 00:17:27,760
But here's a principle for your 
life. 

369
00:17:28,280 --> 00:17:32,240
I can always control how I 
respond to the things that 

370
00:17:32,240 --> 00:17:37,120
happened to me. 
I can always respond to how I 

371
00:17:37,120 --> 00:17:39,120
respond to the things that 
happened to me. 

372
00:17:40,440 --> 00:17:43,280
Warren Weirsby wrote a book 
about facing challenging 

373
00:17:43,280 --> 00:17:46,720
circumstances, and in that book 
he had a chapter on contentment.

374
00:17:47,080 --> 00:17:51,800
Listen to what Warren wrote. 
He said real contentment must 

375
00:17:51,800 --> 00:17:55,720
come from within you and I 
cannot change or control the 

376
00:17:55,720 --> 00:18:01,120
world around us, but we can 
change and control the world 

377
00:18:02,040 --> 00:18:05,680
within us. 
We can't. 

378
00:18:05,680 --> 00:18:07,640
We can't. 
We have no control over what 

379
00:18:07,640 --> 00:18:10,480
people are doing around us, but 
we do have control over how 

380
00:18:10,480 --> 00:18:13,000
we're responding to it, how 
we're reacting to it. 

381
00:18:13,880 --> 00:18:19,440
And Paul tells us exactly tells 
us exactly how to respond. 

382
00:18:20,760 --> 00:18:22,720
You see, there may be a storm 
all around you. 

383
00:18:23,880 --> 00:18:26,960
There may be craziness happening
in your life right now. 

384
00:18:27,280 --> 00:18:29,000
If it isn't today, it may be 
next week. 

385
00:18:29,800 --> 00:18:32,400
Whatever that storm is that's 
happening in your life, your 

386
00:18:32,400 --> 00:18:36,160
heart can still sing with joy 
and confidence because 

387
00:18:36,160 --> 00:18:40,640
contentment does not come from a
life that's finally easy. 

388
00:18:41,440 --> 00:18:44,040
You do know looking for a life 
that's finally easy is a waste 

389
00:18:44,040 --> 00:18:47,040
of time, right? 
Contentment does not come from a

390
00:18:47,040 --> 00:18:50,840
life that's finally easy, but 
from a heart that is firmly 

391
00:18:50,880 --> 00:18:54,520
anchored. 
And Paul tells us exactly where 

392
00:18:54,520 --> 00:18:56,880
to anchor our heart. 
He says in the middle of verse 

393
00:18:56,880 --> 00:19:03,400
12, I have learned the secret of
being content in any and every 

394
00:19:03,400 --> 00:19:06,880
situation. 
What's the anchor for your 

395
00:19:06,880 --> 00:19:08,280
heart? 
Where do you anchor your heart 

396
00:19:08,280 --> 00:19:11,160
in that secret? 
I have learned the secret of 

397
00:19:11,160 --> 00:19:13,280
being content in any and every 
situation. 

398
00:19:13,640 --> 00:19:16,920
So Paul says there's a mystery. 
The Greek word there is mystery.

399
00:19:16,920 --> 00:19:19,520
I have learned the mystery. 
I've learned the mystery, the, 

400
00:19:19,680 --> 00:19:23,240
the secret of, of contentment. 
And that's where you need to put

401
00:19:23,240 --> 00:19:24,960
your anchor if you want to 
experience contentment. 

402
00:19:25,080 --> 00:19:27,560
Not in getting your 
circumstances right, not in 

403
00:19:27,560 --> 00:19:30,480
getting just the right job, just
the right spouse, just the right

404
00:19:30,480 --> 00:19:33,600
house, just the right car, just 
the right clothes, whatever. 

405
00:19:33,600 --> 00:19:36,400
And then I'll be happy, like 
killing all of that away from 

406
00:19:36,400 --> 00:19:38,800
you and saying, no, there's a 
secret to contentment. 

407
00:19:39,000 --> 00:19:40,880
And this is what Paul is saying.
And that's where I need to 

408
00:19:40,880 --> 00:19:42,960
anchor my heart. 
So what is the secret to 

409
00:19:42,960 --> 00:19:45,040
contentment? 
And here's #3 for this morning, 

410
00:19:45,680 --> 00:19:49,200
the secret of contentment is 
found in the dependence on 

411
00:19:49,200 --> 00:19:51,840
Christ. 
Dependence on Christ. 

412
00:19:52,080 --> 00:19:58,400
Look again at verse 13. 
Verse 13 says, I can do all this

413
00:19:58,880 --> 00:20:00,720
through him who gives me 
strength. 

414
00:20:01,320 --> 00:20:04,280
Now we got leave this up here 
for a second, please, Chris, 

415
00:20:04,840 --> 00:20:07,880
because we got to talk about 
this verse for a moment. 

416
00:20:08,840 --> 00:20:14,240
This is a verse that has been 
mistreated in many ways. 

417
00:20:16,000 --> 00:20:19,200
The translation of this verse in
the NIV is very good. 

418
00:20:19,200 --> 00:20:23,800
This is my In my opinion, the 
NIV Bot 2011 has some problems 

419
00:20:23,960 --> 00:20:26,000
and it has some good things 
about it. 

420
00:20:26,000 --> 00:20:27,960
I mean, they're just like all 
translations that are good and 

421
00:20:27,960 --> 00:20:30,560
bad. 
This translation of this verse 

422
00:20:30,560 --> 00:20:34,280
in the NIV 2011, this is the 
best translation of this verse 

423
00:20:34,480 --> 00:20:36,960
in all English translations. 
There's not a better one. 

424
00:20:36,960 --> 00:20:39,200
This is it like this is the best
translation. 

425
00:20:40,520 --> 00:20:44,240
And the reason is is because of 
that simple pronoun, I can do 

426
00:20:44,240 --> 00:20:47,160
all this. 
Do you see that I can do all 

427
00:20:47,160 --> 00:20:50,000
this. 
That word makes this the best 

428
00:20:50,000 --> 00:20:53,160
translation of this verse. 
Most translations of this verse 

429
00:20:53,160 --> 00:20:59,280
say something like this. 
I can do all things through 

430
00:20:59,280 --> 00:21:01,720
Christ through him who gives me 
strength. 

431
00:21:01,720 --> 00:21:04,680
I can do all things through him 
who gives me strength. 

432
00:21:05,200 --> 00:21:09,040
And while that sounds really 
good on a coffee mug and it will

433
00:21:09,040 --> 00:21:13,280
sell all day long on AT shirt 
and I think Tim Tebow put it on 

434
00:21:13,280 --> 00:21:15,160
his eyes when he played 
football. 

435
00:21:17,400 --> 00:21:21,040
That translation. 
I can do all things through him.

436
00:21:21,040 --> 00:21:26,600
Who gives me strength is missing
the context of what Paul has 

437
00:21:26,600 --> 00:21:30,520
been saying up to this verse. 
It's too broad. 

438
00:21:32,240 --> 00:21:37,680
It's it's it's it's not it's not
true that too harsh. 

439
00:21:40,320 --> 00:21:46,880
It's just the word this is a 
pronoun and the translators, I 

440
00:21:46,880 --> 00:21:51,240
can do all this. 
They chose this as opposed to 

441
00:21:51,240 --> 00:21:55,920
all things they chose the 
pronoun this to help us capture 

442
00:21:56,240 --> 00:21:58,520
the context of the whole 
section. 

443
00:22:00,000 --> 00:22:05,360
Now English one O 1A pronoun 
always has a what starts with an

444
00:22:05,480 --> 00:22:12,200
A who knows it anybody and to 
antecedent, right, A pronoun 

445
00:22:12,200 --> 00:22:14,440
always has an antecedent. 
You're all like, I don't know 

446
00:22:14,440 --> 00:22:16,080
why I'm here right now. 
I didn't know I was coming to 

447
00:22:16,080 --> 00:22:18,000
English class. 
I actually taught college 

448
00:22:18,000 --> 00:22:19,080
English for a little while, 
guys. 

449
00:22:19,080 --> 00:22:24,000
So, you know, buckle up. 
All right, so we may need, we 

450
00:22:24,000 --> 00:22:25,760
may need to have some English 
class around here. 

451
00:22:25,760 --> 00:22:27,160
Nobody knew what an antecedent 
was. 

452
00:22:27,600 --> 00:22:29,880
So every pronoun has an 
antecedent or what is an 

453
00:22:29,880 --> 00:22:32,240
antecedent? 
That is the antecedent is the 

454
00:22:32,240 --> 00:22:36,080
idea or the word that the 
pronoun is pointing back to. 

455
00:22:36,200 --> 00:22:40,640
The pronoun is standing in the 
place of the antecedent, right? 

456
00:22:40,720 --> 00:22:44,200
And so the pronoun is saying, 
Hey, this is the word. 

457
00:22:44,200 --> 00:22:45,720
This is pointing back to 
something. 

458
00:22:45,720 --> 00:22:50,560
And So what is the pronoun this 
pointing back to? 

459
00:22:51,440 --> 00:22:53,760
Well, in this case, this is 
pointing the word. 

460
00:22:53,760 --> 00:22:55,480
This is pointing back to verse 
12. 

461
00:22:55,600 --> 00:23:00,080
So let's reread verse 13. 
I can do all this through him 

462
00:23:00,080 --> 00:23:02,120
who gives me strength. 
I can do all this. 

463
00:23:02,240 --> 00:23:04,440
Well, what what is it? 
What is the this, what is it 

464
00:23:04,440 --> 00:23:07,040
that you can do, Paul? 
We'll go back to verse 12. 

465
00:23:07,360 --> 00:23:10,040
I can do all this verse 12. 
I have learned the secret of 

466
00:23:10,040 --> 00:23:13,040
being content in any and every 
situation, whether well fed or 

467
00:23:13,040 --> 00:23:15,600
hungry, whether living in plenty
or in want. 

468
00:23:15,680 --> 00:23:19,840
And so verse 12 is Paul saying, 
I have learned how to be 

469
00:23:19,840 --> 00:23:21,360
content. 
I've learned how to whether 

470
00:23:21,440 --> 00:23:23,600
things are going great or things
are going bad, it doesn't 

471
00:23:23,600 --> 00:23:25,040
matter. 
I've learned how to be at peace.

472
00:23:25,040 --> 00:23:26,520
I've learned how to be confident
in God. 

473
00:23:26,760 --> 00:23:29,360
And OK, I've learned all this 
back to verse 13. 

474
00:23:29,440 --> 00:23:31,920
How have you learned it? 
Well, I've learned all this. 

475
00:23:31,920 --> 00:23:36,000
I can do all this through how? 
Through him who gives me 

476
00:23:36,000 --> 00:23:37,320
strength. 
You see how we read the Bible. 

477
00:23:37,320 --> 00:23:39,960
This is how you read the Bible. 
You slow down a little bit, all 

478
00:23:39,960 --> 00:23:42,760
right, You slow down a little 
bit and you read the Bible and 

479
00:23:42,760 --> 00:23:45,320
you say, OK, what's actually 
what's actually the context 

480
00:23:45,320 --> 00:23:47,400
here? 
If you when you read verse 12 

481
00:23:47,400 --> 00:23:49,680
and you read verse 13, there's 
no way Paul can be saying, I can

482
00:23:49,680 --> 00:23:51,560
do all things. 
I can go to the moon through 

483
00:23:51,560 --> 00:23:53,200
Christ who gives me strength. 
There's no way Paul could be 

484
00:23:53,200 --> 00:23:55,440
saying that. 
There's no way He could be 

485
00:23:55,440 --> 00:23:58,560
saying that. 
What he's saying is I have the 

486
00:23:58,560 --> 00:24:01,960
secret of being content, no 
matter how bad my circumstances 

487
00:24:01,960 --> 00:24:05,080
are. 
And that secret is the strength 

488
00:24:05,120 --> 00:24:08,480
of Christ. 
I am dependent on Jesus Christ. 

489
00:24:08,480 --> 00:24:10,520
He's the one who gives me 
strength. 

490
00:24:11,080 --> 00:24:15,840
The word. 
This in verse 13 is the key to 

491
00:24:15,840 --> 00:24:17,920
unlocking the secret of 
contentment. 

492
00:24:18,160 --> 00:24:24,040
This equals being content in 
every and all circumstances. 

493
00:24:24,320 --> 00:24:27,360
Paul is saying I can stay 
content in all situations 

494
00:24:27,480 --> 00:24:29,840
because Jesus gives me strength.
So write that down. 

495
00:24:29,840 --> 00:24:31,360
If you're a note taker, write 
that down. 

496
00:24:31,560 --> 00:24:35,800
I can stay content in all 
situations because Jesus gives 

497
00:24:35,800 --> 00:24:39,440
me strength. 
In other words, contentment 

498
00:24:39,440 --> 00:24:43,760
isn't something I muster up. 
It isn't something I do, you 

499
00:24:43,760 --> 00:24:45,280
know, just being determined to 
do it. 

500
00:24:45,280 --> 00:24:46,760
It's something that this is 
important. 

501
00:24:47,240 --> 00:24:50,720
Contentment is something that 
Christ produces in me. 

502
00:24:51,160 --> 00:24:55,840
And this is true for everything 
related to your sanctification. 

503
00:24:56,000 --> 00:24:59,120
Fancy word that just means 
becoming more like Christ. 

504
00:24:59,600 --> 00:25:02,520
Everything related to your 
sanctification is not something 

505
00:25:02,520 --> 00:25:04,880
you muster up. 
It's not something you do. 

506
00:25:05,040 --> 00:25:07,320
You don't convince yourself to 
be more obedient. 

507
00:25:07,440 --> 00:25:09,440
You don't convince yourself to 
be more righteous. 

508
00:25:09,560 --> 00:25:11,480
You don't convince yourself to 
be more content. 

509
00:25:11,640 --> 00:25:13,360
You don't willpower your way 
into that. 

510
00:25:13,440 --> 00:25:16,680
What we do is we depend on 
Christ to do the work in our 

511
00:25:16,680 --> 00:25:19,480
hearts and to change us from the
inside out so that we become 

512
00:25:19,480 --> 00:25:22,480
people who are content in any in
every circumstance. 

513
00:25:22,560 --> 00:25:26,000
This is why learning contentment
can oftentimes take a lifetime. 

514
00:25:26,120 --> 00:25:30,400
Because Christ is still working 
on you and working on me. 

515
00:25:31,840 --> 00:25:35,320
He's working on you. 
I say this when I do something 

516
00:25:35,320 --> 00:25:36,880
stupid. 
I say something stupid or out 

517
00:25:36,880 --> 00:25:39,000
like a jerk. 
Anybody ever out like a jerk? 

518
00:25:39,440 --> 00:25:43,440
Come on, husbands, don't lie. 
Don't don't make your wife get 

519
00:25:43,440 --> 00:25:46,600
up and testify. 
We will hand her a mic in a 

520
00:25:46,600 --> 00:25:51,480
minute. 
I will say, well, you know, 

521
00:25:52,440 --> 00:25:56,000
Jesus is still working on me. 
He's still working on me. 

522
00:25:57,360 --> 00:26:02,280
He's still, he's still bringing 
from within me a new type of 

523
00:26:02,280 --> 00:26:05,600
person. 
I have a vision of a future self

524
00:26:05,600 --> 00:26:10,560
that I want to be true of me. 
This, this, this type of older 

525
00:26:10,560 --> 00:26:13,880
man that I want to be. 
And I'm not there, but I want to

526
00:26:13,880 --> 00:26:16,280
be like this man. 
And I know that I can't muster 

527
00:26:16,280 --> 00:26:17,600
that up. 
It's the same thing with 

528
00:26:17,600 --> 00:26:20,440
contentment. 
If I'm going to be content, it 

529
00:26:20,440 --> 00:26:24,560
will be because I'm dependent 
upon Christ doing this work in 

530
00:26:24,560 --> 00:26:29,600
me. 
Warren Wisby again has this 

531
00:26:29,600 --> 00:26:31,280
great quote. 
Listen to what Warren said. 

532
00:26:31,280 --> 00:26:35,840
This is beautiful. 
He says contentment is having 

533
00:26:35,840 --> 00:26:40,120
that spiritual artesian well 
within you so that you don't 

534
00:26:40,120 --> 00:26:43,320
have to run to the broken 
cisterns of this world to get 

535
00:26:43,320 --> 00:26:46,800
what you need. 
The power of Christ and the 

536
00:26:46,800 --> 00:26:50,880
inner man is all we need for the
demands of life. 

537
00:26:52,040 --> 00:26:55,040
Isn't that beautiful? 
The world is full of broken 

538
00:26:55,040 --> 00:27:00,800
cisterns. 
The job, the money, the new car,

539
00:27:00,800 --> 00:27:03,320
the new toys. 
If everything would just work 

540
00:27:03,320 --> 00:27:06,600
out, even things that matter 
deeply to you like this is this 

541
00:27:06,600 --> 00:27:11,000
is a hard thing to say. 
But if, if, if everything was, 

542
00:27:11,280 --> 00:27:13,520
you know, if everybody I love 
was healthy, then I would be 

543
00:27:13,520 --> 00:27:17,480
happy. 
And why that feels so true. 

544
00:27:19,000 --> 00:27:24,440
That's still a broken cistern. 
It's easy for us to call like 

545
00:27:24,600 --> 00:27:26,480
new boats and new cars a broken 
cistern. 

546
00:27:27,120 --> 00:27:32,480
But even perfectly healthy kids 
and a perfectly healthy spouse 

547
00:27:33,240 --> 00:27:35,640
and to think if I had that, I 
would just be happy. 

548
00:27:36,120 --> 00:27:44,160
Even that is a broken cistern. 
The only thing that satisfies is

549
00:27:44,160 --> 00:27:47,240
the artesian well of the 
presence of Christ in your life,

550
00:27:48,320 --> 00:27:50,320
the dependence of Christ in your
everyday life. 

551
00:27:50,320 --> 00:27:52,160
That's the only thing that 
brings contentment. 

552
00:27:52,440 --> 00:27:55,680
And so here's the secret. 
Ready Christ is enough. 

553
00:27:55,680 --> 00:28:00,480
No matter what you face, Christ 
strengthens you to endure what 

554
00:28:00,480 --> 00:28:01,920
you never thought you could 
endure. 

555
00:28:04,240 --> 00:28:07,000
He strengthens you to endure 
circumstances that you never 

556
00:28:07,000 --> 00:28:10,760
thought you could endure and 
endure them with contentment, to

557
00:28:10,760 --> 00:28:12,280
endure them with a song in your 
heart. 

558
00:28:14,520 --> 00:28:17,520
Christ sustains you when 
circumstances fall apart. 

559
00:28:17,720 --> 00:28:20,840
Christ stabilizes you. 
When your life is unstable, 

560
00:28:21,080 --> 00:28:26,120
Christ is there for you. 
So when Paul says I can do all 

561
00:28:26,120 --> 00:28:30,280
this through Christ, he's giving
us permission to say the same 

562
00:28:30,280 --> 00:28:32,960
thing. 
I can face this, I can walk 

563
00:28:32,960 --> 00:28:35,560
through this. 
I can endure this because Christ

564
00:28:35,560 --> 00:28:39,320
in me is stronger than what is 
happening around me. 

565
00:28:40,560 --> 00:28:42,440
Dependence on Christ is not 
weakness. 

566
00:28:43,200 --> 00:28:50,440
It's actually the only path that
you have to lasting and lasting 

567
00:28:50,440 --> 00:28:53,680
and strong contentment. 
It's the only path you have is 

568
00:28:53,680 --> 00:28:59,280
dependence on Christ. 
So today when you hold these 3 

569
00:28:59,280 --> 00:29:02,360
verses together, the picture 
becomes beautifully clear. 

570
00:29:03,360 --> 00:29:05,640
Contentment is learned. 
So don't be discouraged. 

571
00:29:06,320 --> 00:29:08,400
Contentment is independent of 
circumstances. 

572
00:29:08,800 --> 00:29:10,840
So don't wait for life to settle
down. 

573
00:29:11,320 --> 00:29:12,720
Don't wait for things to get 
right. 

574
00:29:13,280 --> 00:29:15,760
If you wait for the perfect 
situation to feel content, 

575
00:29:15,760 --> 00:29:17,080
you're never going to experience
it. 

576
00:29:17,840 --> 00:29:20,000
Paul learned to be content in 
plenty and in one. 

577
00:29:21,320 --> 00:29:26,200
Contentment was not attached to 
his situation #3 contentment is 

578
00:29:26,200 --> 00:29:29,240
enabled by Christ. 
It is in your dependence upon 

579
00:29:29,240 --> 00:29:31,240
Christ. 
So you cannot produce 

580
00:29:31,240 --> 00:29:34,040
contentment on your own. 
We talked about this last week 

581
00:29:34,240 --> 00:29:37,200
that the majority of Eastern 
religions and mysticism says if 

582
00:29:37,200 --> 00:29:39,760
you want to have contentment, 
then just kill all desire in 

583
00:29:39,760 --> 00:29:41,560
your heart. 
If you have no desire, then 

584
00:29:41,560 --> 00:29:43,720
you'll be content. 
And what we're learning as a 

585
00:29:43,720 --> 00:29:47,000
church and as Jesus followers is
actually what the Gospel calls 

586
00:29:47,000 --> 00:29:49,800
you to do is not to kill your 
desire, but to redirect your 

587
00:29:49,800 --> 00:29:51,680
desire to the person of Jesus 
Christ. 

588
00:29:51,840 --> 00:29:55,600
And that he is the only place 
your heart can find home is when

589
00:29:55,600 --> 00:29:59,240
you are depended upon Christ. 
Your strength is never enough. 

590
00:29:59,400 --> 00:30:03,720
Your willpower is never enough, 
but Jesus Christ in your heart 

591
00:30:03,720 --> 00:30:07,280
leading you is enough. 
His strength is your source of 

592
00:30:07,280 --> 00:30:10,040
contentment. 
And here's the hope for everyone

593
00:30:10,040 --> 00:30:13,320
of you and for me. 
If you want to learn Paul's 

594
00:30:13,320 --> 00:30:17,040
secret, if you want to figure 
this out, pray. 

595
00:30:19,840 --> 00:30:22,800
It sounds so simple. 
Pray consistently. 

596
00:30:23,480 --> 00:30:27,240
Pray constantly. 
Pray to quote the Bible without 

597
00:30:27,240 --> 00:30:29,560
ceasing. 
Pray. 

598
00:30:30,720 --> 00:30:33,160
Talk to Jesus like you talk to a
friend. 

599
00:30:35,200 --> 00:30:37,280
Just talk to him. 
Tell him what you're happy 

600
00:30:37,280 --> 00:30:38,360
about. 
Tell him what you're not happy 

601
00:30:38,360 --> 00:30:41,280
about. 
Tell him when you're upset. 

602
00:30:41,840 --> 00:30:43,920
Tell him when you're good. 
Just pray. 

603
00:30:45,400 --> 00:30:49,720
Lean into Christ. 
Lean into Him, walk with him, 

604
00:30:49,720 --> 00:30:53,480
look, listen for him, depend on 
Him, Trust Him with what you 

605
00:30:53,480 --> 00:30:55,120
have and with what you don't 
have. 

606
00:30:55,800 --> 00:30:58,760
Let him reshape your life and 
friend. 

607
00:30:58,760 --> 00:31:02,160
When Christ becomes your source,
your strength and your 

608
00:31:02,160 --> 00:31:05,360
satisfaction, you will discover 
what Paul discovered. 

609
00:31:06,520 --> 00:31:11,560
I can do all of this. 
I can live content no matter 

610
00:31:11,560 --> 00:31:15,160
what. 
Through Him gives me strength. 

611
00:31:16,720 --> 00:31:21,280
He is my source, and if I don't 
lean into Him, if I don't know 

612
00:31:21,280 --> 00:31:25,440
him, if I'm not walking with 
Christ, no wonder I'm 

613
00:31:25,440 --> 00:31:27,920
discontent. 
No wonder I'm malcontent. 

614
00:31:29,520 --> 00:31:32,000
Because He's the only source of 
contentment. 

615
00:31:32,200 --> 00:31:39,400
He's the secret in any attempt 
to be content without Him will 

616
00:31:39,400 --> 00:31:43,600
always fall short. 
Will you stand with me? 

617
00:31:43,600 --> 00:31:45,800
And I'm going to say a blessing 
over you. 

618
00:31:51,240 --> 00:31:54,760
So, my brothers and sisters, if 
you want to close your eyes and 

619
00:31:54,760 --> 00:31:57,400
receive this blessing over you, 
that would be great. 

620
00:32:01,800 --> 00:32:06,240
May you go today with hearts 
that rest in Christ alone. 

621
00:32:08,080 --> 00:32:12,280
May His strength be your 
sufficiency, His presence your 

622
00:32:12,280 --> 00:32:16,000
peace, and His love your 
satisfaction. 

623
00:32:17,480 --> 00:32:22,280
As you face plenty or need this 
week, may you remember that 

624
00:32:22,280 --> 00:32:27,320
Christ is enough for you and 
that through Him you can't do 

625
00:32:27,320 --> 00:32:34,400
all this. 
Go in grace, the strength and 

626
00:32:34,400 --> 00:32:38,560
the contentment of Jesus. 
Amen. 

627
00:32:39,040 --> 00:32:41,360
I love you, friends. 
See you back here next week. 

628
00:32:43,400 --> 00:32:46,120
If you enjoyed this episode, 
please like and subscribe to 

629
00:32:46,120 --> 00:32:49,480
hear a new episode every week. 
You can also worship with us in 

630
00:32:49,480 --> 00:32:53,280
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631
00:32:53,280 --> 00:32:57,440
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Have a great week.