Watch
Listen
Read
True Contentment: In Simplicity
Pastor Rollan Fisher
We’re all trying to find Contentment in the Time of COVID
Last week it was reported that 30 million+ in the U.S. alone have now filed for unemployment.
May 30 is the soonest that the modified shelter in place is looking like it will be lifted in Illinois.
That’s a long time and we need to know what to do to maintain our sanity, spiritual vitality and growth in Jesus.
Focus
True contentment comes when we allow God to simplify our lives
Discontent with Boundaries
Contentment with the Bare Essentials
Contentment with the Bread of Life
Discontent with Boundaries
And Elisha came again to Gilgal when there was a famine in the land. And as the sons of the prophets were sitting before him, he said to his servant, “Set on the large pot, and boil stew for the sons of the prophets.” One of them went out into the field to gather herbs, and found a wild vine and gathered from it his lap full of wild gourds, and came and cut them up into the pot of stew, not knowing what they were. And they poured out some for the men to eat. But while they were eating of the stew, they cried out, “O man of God, there is death in the pot!” And they could not eat it. He said, “Then bring flour.” And he threw it into the pot and said, “Pour some out for the men, that they may eat.” And there was no harm in the pot. A man came from Baal-shalishah, bringing the man of God bread of the firstfruits, twenty loaves of barley and fresh ears of grain in his sack. And Elisha said, “Give to the men, that they may eat.” But his servant said, “How can I set this before a hundred men?” So he repeated, “Give them to the men, that they may eat, for thus says the Lord, ‘They shall eat and have some left.’” So he set it before them. And they ate and had some left, according to the word of the Lord.
2 Kings 4:38-44
The famine in the land hit the righteous as well as the unrighteous.
God was still in control for the good of those who would turn to him.
As Elisha was God’s representative at the time, we see that God comes to meet with his people in times of famine.
Yet careful readers immediately ask the question, “Why does God allow this suffering if he is so good?”
“People tend naturally to assume that if God exists, then His purpose for human life is happiness in this life. God’s role is to provide a comfortable environment for His human pets. But on the Christian view, this is false. We are not God’s pets, and the goal of human life is not happiness per se, but the knowledge of God—which in the end will bring true and everlasting human fulfilment. Many evils occur in life which may be utterly pointless with respect to the goal of producing human happiness; but they may not be pointless with respect to producing a deeper knowledge of God.”
William Lane Craig, Hard Questions, Real Answers
In the famine, we need to know with whom we need to eat.
God meets the needs of his people before, during and after the famine in community!
The company of the prophets were to eat together.
This is a challenge not only in our world of social distancing, but understanding the regular rhythms of the local church.
Whoever isolates himself seeks his own desire; he breaks out against all sound judgment. A fool takes no pleasure in understanding, but only in expressing his opinion.
Proverbs 18:1-2
God intends to protect us with his commands and lead us to good with his ways.
We suffer when we throw off his boundaries.
Though this is true, we often don’t see the death in the pot until we’ve suffered from the food poisoning.
It starts with moral philosophy:
One of them went out into the field to gather herbs, and found a wild vine and gathered from it his lap full of wild gourds, and came and cut them up into the pot of stew, not knowing what they were.
2 Kings 4:39
It was when one of the sons of the prophets went out on his own and brought back some food unvetted by the community that the poisonous root came into view.
This is what happens when people leave the pleasant boundaries of orthodox faith and community to have a private and independent spirituality.
The Word of God gives us our healthy boundaries.
The prophet filled the pot not knowing what the wild gourds were...
You have to know something about botany to know what vines are edible and which are poisonous.
Have you ever been in the woods or field and been tempted to eat a berry, mushroom or root that you thought might be ok, but in fact it was poisonous?
This is what we can be like without the Word of God.
In this case we see that even one gifted prophetically, one who hears the voice of God clearly, can fall into error and their contribution can be poisonous if detached from the Word of the Lord.
Wild can imply that which is without boundaries or restraint.
Many times, the things that you thought would feed you, can end up killing you.
We can all have good intentions, but bad results.
“Tolerance has come to mean that no one is right and no one is wrong and, indeed, the very act of stating that someone else’s views are immoral or incorrect is now taken to be intolerant (of course, from this same point of view, it is all right to be intolerant of those who hold to objectively true moral or religious positions). Once the existence of knowable truth in religion and ethics is denied, authority (the right to be believed and obeyed) gives way to power (the ability to force compliance), reason gives way to rhetoric, the speech writer is replaced by the makeup man, and spirited but civil debate in the culture wars is replaced by politically correct special-interest groups who have nothing left but political coercion to enforce their views on others.”
J.P. Moreland
The things you’re saying are ok and sharing with people about God can be poisonous if untethered from God’s word by which he governs and judges.
We can think that we’re doing right in our relationships, are on the right trajectory in our careers, are taking up all the right causes and are being a part of all the right organizations.
Yet over and over again, things don’t feel quite right, our relationships break down and we have a growing sickness in our hearts.
This is the product of cultural group-think separated from the boundaries of God’s Word.
This is what sin looks like.
There is a way that seems right to a man, but its end is the way to death.
Even in laughter the heart may ache, and the end of joy may be grief.
The backslider in heart will be filled with the fruit of his ways, and a good man will be filled with the fruit of his ways.
The simple believes everything, but the prudent gives thought to his steps.
One who is wise is cautious and turns away from evil, but a fool is reckless and careless.
Proverbs 14:12-16
Again, the very thing that you thought would be feeding you, can feel like it’s sucking the life out of you.
In your new home environment it may be the same:
You might have thought to yourself,
“Finally, I have my remote, work at home experience!”
But it’s unintentional death in the pot!
Many of us are battling screen fatigue and are tempted to reduce our communication with the life saving community that the sons of the prophets represented.
It’s because in our temporary format of connection some are even facing new anxieties.
An April 29th article in the Smithsonian helped explain why:
"When we're actually face to face, we don't stare at each other's eyes for that long," Stanford psychologist Jeremy Bailenson tells NPR. "People have very dedicated personal norms about the proper space one should leave between themselves and others," but video calls can push that line depending on how someone chooses to frame their face.
Video calls also remove several nonverbal cues that humans rely on for communication. Micro-expressions don’t come through on oft-grainy video feeds and sitting at a desk leaves little room for body language. At the same time, you’re aware that you’re being watched.
“When you're on a video conference, you know everybody's looking at you; you are on stage, so there comes the social pressure and feeling like you need to perform.” Clemson University psychologist Marissa Shuffler tells the BBC. “Being performative is nerve-wracking and more stressful.”
https://www.smithsonianmag.com/smart-news/why-video-calls-are-surprisingly-exhausting-180974773
This anxiety spills over into our relationships:
Some of you have had even more challenges balancing family life.
You’ve searched for quiet, but found none.
Some of you who live alone feel like you’ve had too much quiet.
The pressure points of interaction have intensified so that people don’t even know at times what’s offending you.
Many people, including your spouse, family members, friends and co-workers are trying to interact appropriately.
We’re having to dig new wells to find ways to give people grace in confined spaces.
We also hate these types is forced boundaries.
Good sense makes one slow to anger, and it is his glory to overlook an offense.
Proverbs 19:11
He who loves purity of heart, and whose speech is gracious, will have the king as his friend.
Proverbs 22:11
This wisdom needs to be employed even while enjoying time with family (as we should be).
May has been designated mental health awareness month.
It’s designed to raise awareness, fight stigma, educate the public and provide support to people with mental illness and their families.
As a whole, mental health during the time of Covid is a challenge.
The stress has produced detrimental results for many.
For some listening today, and for all of our prayers, this is important:
There has been a rise in domestic abuse during this time.
This includes child abuse.
An April New York Times article reported this:
“As quarantines take effect around the world, that kind of “intimate terrorism” — a term many experts prefer for domestic violence — is flourishing.”
Authorities report between a 20 and 30 percent spike of incidents of domestic violence during the lockdown.
“In addition to physical violence, which is not present in every abusive relationship, common tools of abuse include isolation from friends, family and employment; constant surveillance; strict, detailed rules for behavior; and restrictions on access to such basic necessities as food, clothing and sanitary facilities.
It also said victims should “disregard orders to stay at home if they need to seek immediate refuge.”
Eventually, the lockdowns will end. But as the confinement drags on, the danger seems likely to intensify. Studies show that abusers are more likely to murder their partners and others in the wake of personal crises, including lost jobs or major financial setbacks.
With Covid-19 ravaging the economy, such crises are set to become much more frequent.
https://www.nytimes.com/2020/04/06/world/coronavirus-domestic-violence.html
But while they were eating of the stew, they cried out, “O man of God, there is death in the pot!” And they could not eat it.
II Kings 4:40
The sons of the prophets cried out when death was in the pot so that Elisha could intervene.
If you are suffering during this time, do not do so in silence.
If you are the victim of abuse, dealing with depression or even suicidal ideation please reach out.
Let people know who can help.
Contentment with the Bare Essentials
When looking to deal with the unintentional death in the pot, God gave Elisha the solution of simplifying to the bare essentials.
The famine resulted in the sons of the prophets taking inventory of what they had and simplifying their lives to find contentment.
The stew was a simple dish and the sons of the prophets stayed together to make it.
Death in the pot didn’t result in the sons of the prophets abandoning one another.
Instead, as they came together, it provided God the opportunity to purify what was in the pot.
Flour is a bare ingredient for making bread.
It lacks the yeast (temptations found in entertainment, sinful habits) to make a loaf rise.
SIMPLIFY your life with the bare essentials.
Some of you feel like you’ve been working more with shelter in place order
We didn’t realize what down time commutes offered!
In this case, we long for the boundaries we used to have!
It might seem like a miracle for you to simplify, but God can help you do it!
“A skeptic once said to me, 'I don't believe the Bible because it has miracles.' I said, 'Name one.' He said, 'Turning water into wine. Do you believe that?' I said, 'Yeah, it happens all the time.' He said, 'What do you mean?' I said, 'Well, rain goes through the grapevine up into the grape, and the grape turns into wine. All Jesus did was speed it up a little bit.”
Norman L. Geisler
Where do I begin?:
MayoClinic gives these recommendations:
Keep your regular routine. Maintaining a regular schedule is important to your mental health. In addition to sticking to a regular bedtime routine, keep consistent times for meals, bathing and getting dressed, work or study schedules, and exercise. Also set aside time for activities you enjoy. This predictability can make you feel more in control.
Limit exposure to news media. Constant news about COVID-19 from all types of media can heighten fears about the disease. Limit social media that may expose you to rumors and false information. Also limit reading, hearing or watching other news, but keep up to date on national and local recommendations. Look for reliable sources such as the CDC and WHO.
Stay busy. A distraction can get you away from the cycle of negative thoughts that feed anxiety and depression. Enjoy hobbies that you can do at home, identify a new project or clean out that closet you promised you'd get to. Doing something positive to manage anxiety is a healthy coping strategy.
Focus on positive thoughts. Choose to focus on the positive things in your life, instead of dwelling on how bad you feel. Consider starting each day by listing things you are thankful for. Maintain a sense of hope, work to accept changes as they occur and try to keep problems in perspective.
Use your moral compass or spiritual life for support.
Set priorities.
https://www.mayoclinic.org/mental-health-covid-19/art-20482731
We need to take inventory of our lifestyle patterns.
When Elisha put flour in the pot, it not only fed their hunger in the famine, but there was no harm in the pot.
This meant there were no more poisonous roots or seeds that remained.
Anyone who bakes knows that there was nothing miraculous about the flour itself, but it was to WHOM the flour was pointing that made all the difference.
Contentment with the Bread of Life
Jesus is the miraculous flour added, the bread of life that will bring true contentment in our lives.
The Egyptians were urgent with the people to send them out of the land in haste. For they said, “We shall all be dead.” So the people took their dough before it was leavened, their kneading bowls being bound up in their cloaks on their shoulders.
Exodus 12:33-34
When the Israelites were escaping their slavery in Egypt, they were to take the bare essentials, the unleavened bread.
It is what is used as a part of the Seder meal, the annual celebration of that deliverance in the Passover each year.
The bread and the lamb eaten as a part of that meal to celebrate the deliverance from slavery are wrapped up in the person of Jesus.
The Israelites were not to hesitate, but were to leave their land of slavery with this bread in haste.
In the same way, Elisha told the sons of the prophets to immediately add the flour before they tried to eat any more food.
We are to do the same in our reach for simplification and repentance from deadly patterns of life today.
Remember, what you need in good times, but especially times of famine, is food for your soul.
This is why Jesus made it a point to clearly say that he is the bread of life.
Jesus said to them, “I am the bread of life; whoever comes to me shall not hunger, and whoever believes in me shall never thirst. 36 But I said to you that you have seen me and yet do not believe. 37 All that the Father gives me will come to me, and whoever comes to me I will never cast out. 38 For I have come down from heaven, not to do my own will but the will of him who sent me. 39 And this is the will of him who sent me, that I should lose nothing of all that he has given me, but raise it up on the last day. 40 For this is the will of my Father, that everyone who looks on the Son and believes in him should have eternal life, and I will raise him up on the last day.”
John 6:35-40
You can have true contentment in Jesus Christ.
It’s not only because he helps simplify your life by focusing you on what’s most important, but because through the cross he deals with the metaphysical need of reestablishing peace with your Creator.
Even when thinking about the community where he calls us to deal with the death in the pot, we need to remember this:
“Many people seek fellowship because they are afraid to be alone...let him who cannot be alone beware of community. He will do harm to himself and to the community. Alone you stood before God when he called you; alone you had to answer that call; alone you had to struggle and pray; and alone you will die and give an account to God. You cannot escape yourself, for God has singled you out.”
Dietrich Bonhoeffer
God Almighty comes to clean our pots (our hearts) by the blood of Jesus, cleanse our palates by the Spirit of God and make sure that the Word of God is what we’re feeding on for nourishing life.
Yet there was more.
Once we add Jesus to the mix to both simplify and purify our lives, he has us help to feed others.
This is a call to make disciples.
A man came from Baal-shalishah, bringing the man of God bread of the firstfruits, twenty loaves of barley and fresh ears of grain in his sack. And Elisha said, “Give to the men, that they may eat.” But his servant said, “How can I set this before a hundred men?” So he repeated, “Give them to the men, that they may eat, for thus says the Lord, ‘They shall eat and have some left.’” So he set it before them. And they ate and had some left, according to the word of the Lord.
2 Kings 4:42-44
When you simplify and prioritize, giving your firstfruits to the Lord, he multiplies that which you have to feed yourself and those in need.
He does this because you actually have room now to be a blessing.
Again, we know that people are suffering from screen fatigue.
But if the very first thing you do to relax when you finish work is go to Netflix for your down time, the space that you would otherwise have for God is gone.
You’ve lost the emotional bandwidth to prioritize in the area you most need so that you have nothing left to set before others in your community group, outreach or other points of vital fellowship.
In the end, binge watching various forms of media doesn’t end up giving something to me, it actually takes something from me.
That’s the deception.
Don’t let social media influencers and political pundits grab more of your attention than God and his eternal Word.
Have a set time each day that you meet with God - in worship, in prayer and to read your Bible.
If you are able, a physical Bible may be a good option for you during this time.
It will cut down on screen time and provide necessary limits to distractions.
We worry we won’t have anything left in the tank to give.
Yet when you prioritize going to Jesus first as the bread of life, you have what you need for your family, job, friends and something left over for the world that needs the bread to be shared.
Don’t quit while you fight to prioritize and simplify!
“I’ve failed over and over and over again in my life and that is why I succeed.
I realized that if I was going to achieve anything in life I had to be aggressive. I had to get out there and go for it. If you quit ONCE it becomes a habit. Never quit!!!”
Michael Jordan
Jesus died on the cross to taste death for you so that In exchange, through your choosing to follow him, you might have eternal life.
Trust the cook!
Cling to that which he says is right and enjoy the stew.
Turn away from what he calls the wild gourds which look good, but bring death as they try to meet the world’s felt needs.
When you turn away from what the Bible calls sin and come to the cross, your simplifying your life.
You are acknowledging that God, the life-giver, is who you need, and his ways, even in the midst of famine, are what will sustain you.
Even if to this point you’ve been feeding on the poisonous root, Christ’s resurrection from the dead means you can have forgiveness of your sins and new life in him.
Repent and believe the good news today!
Study
Click HERE to download our study guide!
Second City Church - True Contentment - Pastor Rollan Fisher 2020