28th September 2025

Over the years there have been many wise words spoken about contentment: 

Socrates said, ‘He who is not contented with what he has, would not be contented with what he would like to have.’ ¹  Benjamin Franklin commented, ‘Contentment makes poor men rich; discontentment makes rich men poor’.²  While William Shakespeare wrote, ‘My crown is in my heart, not on my head, nor decked with diamonds and Indian stones, nor to be seen: My crown is called content: A crown it is, that seldom kings enjoy’. ³

As human beings, we are born with an insatiable hunger for more. Children want more toys, different toys, bigger toys. When we grow up, we want nicer cars, more clothes, and exotic travel. If we’re single, we want to be married, if married we want children, if we live in a flat, we want a house. Whatever it is, we have a propensity to want more and more. If you think, ‘I’ll be happy when/if…’ that’s not true contentment.

In addition to our header scripture one of the most well-known expressions of contentment in the Bible is what the apostle Paul said from his prison cell: ‘I know what it is to be in need, and I know what it is to have plenty. I have learned the secret of being content in any and every situation, whether well fed or hungry, whether living in plenty or in want.’ (Philippians 4:12). What was Paul’s secret for being content? Let me suggest it was Jesus. He goes on to say in verse 13, ‘I can do all this through him [Jesus] who gives me strength.’ When we have Jesus, we have everything we ever need and he will give us the strength to be content in whatever situation we find ourselves in.

King David had a sense of this when he wrote, ‘The Lord is my shepherd, I lack nothing’ (Psalm 23:1). In the King James Version it reads, ‘The Lord is my shepherd; I shall not want.’ Real contentment comes when we realise that we don’t need this, that or the other to be happy.

In a sense, true contentment is simply a matter of trusting what God has done for us in Jesus, despite our circumstances, and accepting and finding satisfaction in whatever he gives us. We must trust that God knows what he is doing, and when we can rest in the saving work of Christ, we will feel content. Perhaps the Greek philosopher Epictetus had it right when he said, ‘I am always content with what happens, for what God chooses is better than what I choose’. ⁴

We may never be rich in this life, but as a Christian we can be content because we have a richness and fullness of life in Christ now, and forever more. Now that is great gain and a crown worth wearing. 

¹ Quote by Socrates: “He who is not contented with what he has, would…”
² Quote by Benjamin Franklin: “Contentment makes poor men rich, Discontent ma…”
³ Shakespeare, William, Henry VI, Part 3. 
⁴ Epictetus quote:  I am always content with what happens; for I know…

Local congregation:
Grace Communion West Hampstead 
Sidings Community Centre
150 Brassey Road
West Hampstead
London
NW6 2BA

Meeting time:
Sunday 12.30 pm

Local congregational contact:
Gordon Brown
gordon.brown@gracecom.church

Word of Life contact:  
wordoflife@gracecom.church