“Well you pray to prosper and succeed, but your flesh is something I just can’ feed.” -Song, To Obey is Better Than Sacrifice, by Keith Green
We all want good things: health, joy, love, wealth, these are the most common desires of the human race. Since we are believers we ask God for these things. We pray for the job we want, the perfect spouse, and healing from diseases. But at the end of the day, we may or may not actually receive these things. Sometimes this can lead to a condition of dissatisfaction.
Even when we do receive what we want often the excitement of getting exactly what you wanted wears off. Why? Don’t be shocked, this is merely a byproduct of the flesh. Romans 8:5 puts it this way, “Those who live according to the flesh have their minds set on what the flesh desires, but those who live in accordance with the Spirit have their minds set on what the Spirit desires.”
If our primary focus is fixated on what our flesh desires, it shuts out our ability to be a Spirit-led and a Spirit-satisfied people. In fact Romans 8:7 explains the outcome of a flesh focused mentality, “The mind governed by the flesh is hostile to God; it does not submit to God’s law, nor can it do so.” This might explain why some people curse God when they don’t get what they prayed for.
However when we are led by God’s spirit and his commands we are able to live in a satisfied state. In Psalms 63 we read, “Because your love is better than life, my lips will glorify you. I will praise you as long as I live, and in your name I will lift up my hands. I will be fully satisfied as with the richest of foods; with singing lips my mouth will praise you.”
It’s clear that true contentment is found in submission to God and his ways instead of using life’s circumstances (good or bad) as the gage for happiness.
Are feelings of discontentment important to explore? Yes. Why? Because they point us to areas that we have not yet rendered over to God’s direction or interpretation. There are ‘flesh areas’ in everyone’s life that need to be ‘taken captive’ in order to hold them accountable to the Spirit of God. Only then can we be governed by the Spirit that satisfies, making it possible to be joyful regardless of our daily situations.
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