Scripture: Matthew 5:5 (the Message)
You’re blessed when you’re content with just who you are – no more, no less. That’s the moment you find yourselves proud owners of everything that can’t be bought.
Thought for the Day: When I’m uncertain what famous person said some interesting quote, I often figure it was Jesus, Shakespeare, Buddha or Benjamin Franklin. In the case of this quote:
Who is wise?
He that learns from everyone.
Who is powerful?
He that governs his passions.
Who is rich?
He that is content.
Who is that?
Nobody.
…it was Benjamin Franklin. I can’t say that I fully agree with his final assessment, though his pessimism points to a significant struggle within human nature. I believe most people recognize that divine blessings have very little to do with money. Richness, as God wishes us to define it, is found in those who can enjoy and celebrate the things that cannot be purchased in the store. The struggle we have as humans is moving from knowing it to believing it to living it. Might I suggest that we do as Franklin suggests, and borrow the wisdom found in the collective which can teach us how to better govern our passions so that we can be content in this life.
Prayer: Joy is not found on the shelves of the local store, but in you, Gracious God, and in the relationships I have with the sisters and brothers I meet each day. Provide me a spirit of contentment so I can enjoy these blessings and not be consumed with those things that will rust and break and devalue in time. Amen.
TOMORROW
Study of the Ten Commandments
at Noon
