Editor’s Note: The AMI devotionals from June 29-July 3 are written by Pastor Ryun Chang.
Devotional Thoughts for Today
1 King 11:14, 23, 26, 40: And the Lord raised up an adversary against Solomon, Hadad the Edomite. He was of the royal house in Edom. . . . 23 God also raised up as an adversary to him, Rezon the son of Eliada, who had fled from his master Hadadezer king of Zobah. . . . 26Jeroboam the son of Nebat, an Ephraimite of Zeredah, a servant of Solomon, whose mother’s name was Zeruah, a widow, also lifted up his hand against the king. . . . 40 Solomon sought therefore to kill Jeroboam. But Jeroboam arose and fled into Egypt, to Shishak king of Egypt, and was in Egypt until the death of Solomon.
Larry Dean, having grown up poor, worked hard to build his own software company, but he later sold it for a cool $68 million. With that, Dean built a 68 acre estate consisting of a Moroccan theater, a Hawaii-art gallery, 24-karat-gold sinks, 15 bedrooms, 13 fireplaces, a 24-seat dining room, and an 18-hole golf course worth $40 million. He wanted to establish a family compound where the Deans could watch their children and grandchildren grow up. Nevertheless, Dean’s mansion paled in comparison to the magnificent palace that took King Solomon 13 years to build for himself (1 King 7:1).
To us, this is the dream life—a cavernous mansion with all the amenities at your finger tips. But would you really want to trade your present life with theirs? You might be tempted to say yes in a heartbeat, but upon a closer examination, making that deal is akin to trading away eating “a dry morsel with quiet,” with “a house full of feasting with strife” (Prov. 17:1); it is like trading away “a dinner of herbs where love is,” with “a fattened ox and hatred with it” (15:17).
Solomon always had plenty to eat but rarely got a good night’s rest. How could he when adversaries—like Hadad, Rezon, and Jeroboam—constantly arose to take him out of the throne? Even worse, God was allowing it to happen as a disciplinary measure against the profligate Solomon. As for Dean, he didn’t fare too well either. After only1½ years, a marital separation ensued, and Mrs. Dean and their four children left the estate. Then, disliking living alone in a big house, Dean moved to an apartment above the garage. He quipped, “I’d say this was a big mistake.” The saying, “The grass is always greener on the other side,” seems true until you get closer to see that the grass is spray-painted green!
Even as you strive to be upwardly mobile, “learn[] the secret of being content in any and every situation, whether well fed or hungry, whether living in plenty or in want” (Phil. 4:12). How? Cultivate such an intimate relationship with Christ that that becomes what truly matters in life. When we live in His presence, our social status, the amount of our paycheck or the value of our house won’t matter as much. Seek God.
Prayer
O the great and mighty God, I exalt and glorify You today. There is no one like You in this universe, for You are magnificent and majestic. It is You whom I need and I desire. Lord, help me to put my gaze upon You instead of the fleeting and temporary things of the world. Amen.
Bible Reading for Today: Revelation 18
Lunch Break Study
Read Col. 3:2: Set your minds on things that are above, not on things that are on earth.
Phil. 4:19: And my God will supply every need of yours according to his riches in glory in Christ Jesus.
1 Tim. 5:6-8: But godliness with contentment is great gain, 7 for we brought nothing into the world, and we cannot take anything out of the world. 8 But if we have food and clothing, with these we will be content.
Ps. 84:10: For a day in your courts is better than a thousand elsewhere. I would rather be a doorkeeper in the house of my God than dwell in the tents of wickedness.
Question to Consider
- Ultimately, what causes us to feel that the grass is always greener on the other side?
- I think the secret of being content begins with a certain mindset. Based on above passages, what are some building blocks for this attitude?
- Being content doesn’t mean we stop striving to improve our situation. What is the key to maintaining a balance between these seemingly opposing forces?
Notes
- Setting our minds on things that are on earth means that we continue to fix our eyes on what people in the media and Madison Avenue dictate what our needs are to be cool and successful. As long as we don’t have them, it becomes increasingly hard to be content with our present life.
- First, God always provides to meet our needs; second, anything above food and clothing is a bonus. If we have these, then the minimum requirement for contentment has been met.
- In our striving to move upward, if we become negligent in worshipping and desiring God, then being content in any and every situation will never materialize. It is the seeking of God during our striving to move upward that restrains its excess.
Evening Reflection
As you look back to this day, did you experience a momentary discontentment because of what someone just bought, received or wore? What does that say about you? How is your worship of the Lord these days? Reflect on these questions. Even as you look to move upward, always take time each day to worship Jesus—at the very least, it will keep your priority in order.
How many pairs of shoes do you need to adorn your feet? Imelda Marcos, the wife of former Philippine President Ferdinand Marcos, once owned 2,700 pairs! How many championship rings do you need to adorn your fingers? Michael Jordan was quite content with three, after which he left the glory of NBA to toil in the minor league baseball—when that pursuit didn’t work out, he “unretired” to win three more rings.
Have you ever just wanted to talk to someone wise? It seems like the people of Solomon’s day did – enough to make long journeys, bringing caravans of gifts. They prized wisdom. Is there an example who we can be challenged by today?
I love the sequence in Despicable Me 2, perfectly set to this song, when Gru is dancing down the streets because he’s on cloud nine. His impromptu date with Lucy the night before ended with a kiss on the cheek, and he is happy. A few scenes later, however, we see the sequence played comically in reverse because circumstances have changed, and it becomes a classic example of the distinction we sometimes make as Christians between “happiness” and “joy.” We associate happiness with the emotional high so exuberantly depicted here but which is dependent on circumstances, and we say that joy is better because it does not.
With the arrival of summer come thoughts of slowing down, taking a break, having the leisure to do things we feel we usually don’t have time to do. We start thinking about taking a trip to get away from the normal routine or perhaps picking up a hobby we’ve been meaning to try.
Have you ever had the experience of having to reject someone you loved? A friend of mine was once in a relationship with someone she loved very much. They were together for several years and planning to get married when he became mentally ill. It was a kind of paranoia where he was fine with most people but only became extremely suspicious of those who were closest to him, which meant it affected my friend the most. He began to think that she was a spy working for North Korea; things got worse from there, and in the end, she very painfully had to break off her relationship with him, though she still cared for him very much.
I used to think that the academic calendar did not matter to most people once they started working full-time because they no longer had the long summer breaks; and the beginning and ending of each year probably went from September through June to something closer to the actual calendar year. But then I realized that when people get married and start having children, they are back on that same timetable all over again.
The occasion is the celebration of the completion of the temple. The king offers a prayer of dedication, asking God to hear the prayers to be offered in this place. What would the contents of these prayers be? Most of us would assume them to be for some kind of help or blessing, in which case the king’s prayer should have gone something like: “Hear from heaven . . . and when you hear, deliver us,” or, “and when you hear, bless our land.” But King Solomon’s prayer, “and when you hear, forgive,” assumes that the prayers offered at or toward this temple would be pleas for forgiveness. Though he does go on to pray for deliverance and blessing, he does so asking God for his mercies in the context of his people turning back to Him (vv. 34-40). On an occasion meant for joyful celebration, why does he choose to focus on forgiveness, bringing up the inevitability of the people sinning against God (v. 46)?
Read Exodus 32:19, 34:1: “When Moses approached the camp and saw the calf and the dancing, his anger burned and he threw the tablets out of his hands, breaking them to pieces at the foot of the mountain . . . . The LORD said to Moses, ‘Chisel out two stone tablets like the first ones, and I will write on them the words that were on the first tablets, which you broke.’”