Have you ever been robbed? 

I once worked with a gal whose apartment was robbed while she was away. She didn’t feel safe in her apartment for a long time afterwards. Her home had been a place of peace and refuge, but after the break-in, she never felt the same about it.

God wants us to feel safe, satisfied, and calm in Him. But, there are thieves out there who are trying to break into this haven of contentment and rob us of that peace. And they are sneaky!

Meet the two biggest Robbers of Contentment:

1. Envy
2. Complaining

They aren’t going to grab you in the middle of Times Square and demand your wallet or else. They’re much subtler than that. They convince you that it’s okay to whine a little bit (everyone does!) and to want a little bit more than what you’ve got (who doesn’t?).

These are the types of robbers who give you a pat on the back, a joke in your ear, a kiss on the cheek—and when they’re gone, you realize that so is your jewelry and your ID.

In our Contentment Study, there’s a passage in 1 Corinthians 10, verses 10 to 14. Here, Paul rehearses how the Israelites passed through the Red Sea and escaped the Egyptians to freedom. They saw the pillar of fire by night and cloud by day. They ate the manna from heaven and drank the water from the rock.

You’d think that, what with all these miracles, they’d be content with what God was providing. But no. We know the story…they complained every step of the way. 

Verse 6 says that we should look at the Israelites as examples. If they experienced the power of God to that degree and still displeased God by complaining and by “lusting after evil things,” then how much more careful should we be about allowing dissatisfaction to rob us of the contentment God wants for us?

Proverbs 14:30 reminds us that “a sound heart is the life of the flesh: but envy the rottenness of the bones.” 

I’m constantly bombarded with shiny new objects that I desire (thank you, ads, social media, and TV). When I don’t get them, I complain. Envy and complaint…they are Contentment Robbers and sneaky ones at that. 

Let’s not let these thieves whisper lies into our ears today. Instead, let’s be content with what God has given us. “Go on world, keep rushing by. But as for me, for God and I…”

Let’s remember that we already have everything that we need. “I am satisfied, He’ll take care of me. He said He’ll take care of me, so I am satisfied.”

We hope that you learn a lot during week two of our Contentment Study, as we identify threats to contentment and how we can avoid them.

Download the contentment study here

This article has undergone ministry review and approval.