“And be not drunk with wine, wherein is excess; but be filled with the Spirit; Speaking to yourselves in psalms and hymns and spiritual songs, singing and making melody in your heart to the Lord; Giving thanks always for all things unto God and the Father in the name of our Lord Jesus Christ;”—Ephesians 5:18-20

Just before the Civil War, James Fields, whose father had been a sailing ship captain, published a poem called “The Captain’s Daughter.” In it he tells the story of a ship caught at sea during a terrible winter storm. It is after midnight, but everyone on board is too afraid to sleep. Finally when all hope is gone the captain goes below deck and is ready to give up…until his daughter speaks:

But his little daughter whispered,
As she took his icy hand,
“Isn’t God, upon the ocean,
Just the same as on the land?”

This reminder restored the faith of the captain and the passengers, and the following morning they reached the harbor safely. All of us go through experiences that are challenging—a serious health crisis, the loss of a job, a child who is struggling, or the death of a loved one. Bad things do happen to good people, even Christians. Some people respond to these difficulties with depression or anger at God for letting bad things happen to them. But others respond in faith and with a joy that remains in the midst of storms.

The difference in these responses is not found in the circumstances but in the degree to which the Holy Spirit is filling the hearts and lives of those believers. When we are full of Him, joy (part of the fruit of the Spirit) is a natural byproduct. We do not need everything to go well to be joyful. Instead we need to have the Holy Spirit at work in our hearts.–Dr. Paul Chappell

John MacDuff wrote:There is no more gracious provision for our happiness, than what is contained in that brief saying of Scripture, “Whereas ye know not what shall be on the morrow—“ James 4:14

If we knew in full, in this grief-stricken world, all that would befall us in the future–how sad would existence be! It would leave even prosperity without a note of gladness; for the certainty of losing our blessings, would rob us of all their enjoyment while we retained them. And thus moments of unbounded pleasure, would be clouded with the dark characters of anticipated sorrow.

How would the mother’s joy be marred, as the object of her tender solicitude and affection was sporting by her side, or as she hung over the infant cradle–if she could pry with certainty into the future, and read the mournful sequel of that little history–the lingering sickness, the early grave, the blighted hopes, the desolated household, the broken heart. To know the future, would convert the few brief years of possession of her blessing, into consecutive hours of agony–the consciousness and foreknowledge that every moment was drawing nearer the fatal one–sitting by Time’s sand-glass and marking grain by grain, as they dropped and fell, until the last grain of the diminishing heap announced, “The long-dreaded hour has arrived!”

But, thank God that the future is veiled! The storm and coming wreck are concealed, in order that the calm of the present waveless sea may be enjoyed.

Yes, we again say, thank God for hiding the future, and allowing us only to be conversant with the joys and sorrows today.

“But godliness with contentment is great gain.” – 1 Timothy 6:6

Many times we think we need something when we really don’t. Sometimes we want things we don’t need. We get our luxuries and our necessities confused.

Discontentment is a disease that takes away your joy and peace. And what is contentment? It’s not getting what you want but wanting what you already have. You see, contentment will make a poor man rich. And discontentment makes a rich man poor. No matter how much you have, if you’re discontented, you’re really poor.

Sometimes it is God’s grace that we don’t receive what we think we want. Once upon a time, two tears met up along the river of life.

Said one tear to the other, “Where did you come from?”

“Oh,” the second tear said, “I’m the tear of a girl who loved a man and lost him. And where do you come from?”

The first tear answered, “I’m the tear of the girl who found him and married him.”

You are rich today if you know the Lord and are content. Paul goes on to say, “For we brought nothing into this world, and it is certain we can carry nothing out. But having food and raiment, let us therewith be content.” If you have clothes to wear and food to eat and you have Jesus Christ in your heart, my dear friend, you’re blessed.– Adrian Rogers

Many professing Christians entertain the foolish notion that as long as they believe the right things their behavior is no big deal. The Bible teaches otherwise. Believers in Christ are to be followers of Christ that they might become like Christ. And that requires a radical change in the way we think. It is for this reason that Paul writes: Let this mind be in you, which was also in Christ Jesus: who, being in the form of God…made himself of no reputation, and took upon him the form of a servant– Philippians 2:5-7

The daily devotional, “A Good Thing” says:

“Let this mind be in you.The Christian life is not merely intellectual assent to a list of orthodox tenets. It is internalizing the teaching and example of our Lord and Savior Jesus Christ.

And as we look at Christ through the infallible lens of God’s Word the Bible, we are reminded that his way is up-side-down (or rather right-side-up) from the way of this world. Jesus did not work his way to the top; he started at the top, as God himself, and yet chose to humble himself for the sake of his people.

Here was a self-made man: Jesus, who is due all glory and honor, made himself of no reputation. Jesus, who is King of Kings and Lord of Lords, took on himself the role of a servant. How sad and ironic that most of us spend all our energy in life striving to do the exact opposite.

This is doubtless why Jesus, from the outset, told those who admired him that they would have to deny themselves in order to become his disciple. Yet so many Christians want to claim discipleship, but without the sacrifice, without the self-denial, without the humility.

Beloved, let this mind be in you — may you internalize the reality of who Christ is, of how he lived, and of what he demands of us.”

“But thanks be to God, which giveth us the victory through our Lord Jesus Christ. Therefore, my beloved brethren, be ye stedfast, unmoveable, always abounding in the work of the Lord, forasmuch as ye know that your labour is not in vain in the Lord.”—1 Corinthians 15:57-58

Long before the invention of radio, television, the Internet, and the rise of our all-encompassing media culture, a British essayist named Walter Savage Landor wrote, “When little men cast long shadows, it is a sign that the sun is setting.” In an age when fame and notoriety have replaced accomplishment as the fastest way to become viewed as someone of importance, we should never forget that our work is not about the temporal and fleeting values of our culture but about the eternal impact of our labor for the Lord.

If we evaluate ourselves by the world’s standards, we are going to be dissatisfied with the results. Not every faithful servant of God receives acclaim and the notice of others. In fact, many Christians live in obedience to God without ever coming to public attention. They are faithful to their families and to their churches, they treat others with love and share the Gospel with them, and they do their best to order their lives by God’s Word. Yet their names are never splashed across news headlines, and they never receive the accolades and praise doled out to the latest celebrity.

While the world may regard such people as failures, God most certainly does not. He is looking for people who will be faithful and consistent without regard to whether or not they are receiving praise and attention. The knowledge that our work for God—the normal, hard, everyday work of life—is not in vain allows us to continue on faithfully. And as we do, we know that one day He will say, “Well done.  –Daily in the Word