Contentment: God’s intention (Keith Nurse)

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God saw all that He had made, and it was very good.

Genesis 1:31

 

The following chapter - Genesis 2 - gives us a wonderful picture of the way mankind was created to live, a glimpse of God’s intention for creation and mankind as the crowning glory of it. We see a man walking with God, dependent on Him, working for Him, trusting Him, delighting in Him. It’s a picture of total contentment.

 

Sadly it didn’t take long for this to fall apart, as the man and the woman God created to be with Him allow distrust and discontent to blossom, leading them to disobey Him.

 

Sin had well and truly entered God’s world, and we live with the reality of this in us and around us. But it’s important to remember how God intends life to be. At its simplest, whenever we pray Thy kingdom come in the Lord’s Prayer we’re asking God to change the way things are in His world, here and now.

 

When we pray, we can and should expect to see healing and restoration - in our own lives, in those we pray for, in everything God has made. And in particular we can expect to discover a fresh sense of contentment through knowing we have a heavenly Father who is with us and for us. Let’s be bold enough to pray for that.

 

A prayer - Thank you, Lord, that you desire the very best for each of us. Forgive us for times when our selfishness and independence draw us away from your perfect purposes for our lives, and teach us to walk confidently in step with your Spirit moment by moment. Amen

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