More, Please

Are you content?  That question calls out for honest replies, the kind that arise out of self-aware reflections.  Contentment is, to state it proverbially, easier said than done.  God Almighty, the only being who is forever without need for more, offers those with ears to hear the great remedy to lack of contentment.  We find it in the Decalogue, better known as the Ten Commandments.

Exodus 20:17 (NIV)
 “You shall not covet your neighbor’s house. You shall not covet your neighbor’s wife, or his male or female servant, his ox or donkey, or anything that belongs to your neighbor.”

Deuteronomy 5:21 (NIV)
“You shall not covet your neighbor’s wife. You shall not set your desire on your neighbor’s house or land, his male or female servant, his ox or donkey, or anything that belongs to your neighbor.”

While I've never wished to possess my neighbor's donkey, I do know what it is to covet.  What topics fall within your tempted-to-covet category?

Do you want a bigger house?
Do you stare in envy at your neighbor's vehicle?
Long for more "perfect" beauty?
Better vacations?
More prestigious career?
Your friend's dream of a husband?
Your buddy's more-adventurous-than-yours wife?

Coveting, not to be confused with healthy ambition, leads to either heartache or evil behavior toward another or both.  Coveting fuels lack of contentment.  God issued #10 of the Decalogue as a gift.  He is no killjoy; He's the loving Father who really does always know best!  

God enjoys protecting us from ourselves.  Join Him in protecting yourself by rejecting coveting and embracing contentment.  Contentment will serve you well in living the Ordinary Way.

---

Proverbs 30:7-8 (NIV)
7 “Two things I ask of you, LORD;
    do not refuse me before I die:
8 Keep falsehood and lies far from me;
    give me neither poverty nor riches,
    but give me only my daily bread."

#ordinarylives