Contentment – In Christ Alone (Episode 4)

Hello All,

The part of the poem that we will be emphasising on today is highlighted in blue. The black colour text in the poem is a recap of what we have already done last week.

Let us now continue with the fourth and final episode of this poem…

Contentment – In Christ Alone (Episode 4)

By Joanne Liaw Sook Ling (12^th December 2014)

Why are our hearts unsatisfied and not at rest?

What are they seeking in their neverending quests?

Where do they run to for fulfillment and meaning?

What are their unmet wants, desires and longings?

For the things we do not have, we yearn and desire

To procure and gain them at all costs, we aspire

Just when we thought we have secured them in our hands

They slip too easily through our fingers like sand

Our dreams are shattered with broken expectations

Disillusionment sets in with disappointments

Are we able to thank God in spite of failures?

Are we able to find joy in our Creator?

When was the last time we paused to count our blessings?

To rest by the meadow and delight in its springs?

Have we been too focused on our pursuit of dreams?

That we fail to notice the flowers by the stream?

Perhaps we have neglected the overflowing

Providence, loved ones, family, friends and blessings

That God has so graciously bestowed and given

Do we take the time to thank the God of heaven?

Some may too conveniently equate contentment

To one who seeks no progress and is complacent

This notion gives way to laziness - an excuse

The meaning of contentment is sorely abused

Contentment is not akin to complacency

She seeks to do her best with the abilities

And resources given by her God Almighty

She finds rest and thanks the Lord for His great mercy

Contentment finds its fulfillment in Christ alone

Who is our sturdy foundation and cornerstone

When we learn to surrender our desires to Him

Our joy from contentment will flow over the brim

Our quest for meaning ends at the foot of the Cross

Where Jesus died to redeem sinners who were lost

But through faith in His act of love, we are now found

Contented in the arms of our Lord, safe and sound

THE END.

Points for Reflection:

[13] Jesus said to her, “Everyone who drinks of this water will be thirsty again,

[14] but whoever drinks of the water that I will give him will never be thirsty again. The water that I will give him will become in him a spring of water welling up to eternal life.”

(John 4:13-14 ESV)

·         Has contentment felt like such a fleeting and transient attribute to you?

·         We are always grasping in vain for that something that will satisfy our deepest longings.

·         At the end of the day, we find that we have become thirstier than when we have first begun in our quest for life’s meaning.

·         That thirst is meant to lead us to the Fountain of eternal life – Jesus Christ.

·         The water that He gives will bring new life to our perishing souls and quench the deepest desires in our hearts.

·         It is through Christ that we are saved from the futility of this life and spiritual death.

·         Would you drink deeply from Jesus Christ, the Fountain of living water?

·         There is a song sung by Elvis Presley that I would like to share with you. This song, ‘Crying in the Chapel’, talks about finding contentment in God and it is a song that is close to my heart.