How to Be Content

[427 words] In Philippians 4:11, the apostle Paul said he learned “how to be content.” How did he do that? Over his years living the Christian life, Paul learned contentment does not depend upon circumstances. Happiness in life can exist in poverty or in riches. It is not the presence or absence of money that determines whether people can be happy. Instead, it is learning contentment without any circumstances at all. In Philippians 4:12, Paul wrote, “I know both how to be abased, and I know how to abound: everywhere and in all things I am instructed both to be full and to be hungry, both to abound and to suffer need.” We sometimes believe it is easier to know how to be “abased,” that is “how to live with almost nothing.” The trick to it is refusing to allow the absence of money to define your life. Conversely, people…