Each photo below corresponds to the chapter-a-day post for the book of Mark published by Tom Vander Well in April and May of 2021. Click on the photo linked to each chapter to read the post.
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But I have calmed and quieted myself,
I am like a weaned child with its mother;
like a weaned child I am content.
Psalm 131:2 (NIV)
Sometimes, I think our world lives in a perpetual state of discontent…
Businesses thrive on making me feel discontent that I don’t have this or that.
The magazine rack at the grocery store thrives on making me feel discontented with my body, my looks, my home, and the fact that my life isn’t a Chip and Joanna fairytale.
The news thrives on making me feel discontent with the state of current events and seems to want to keep me focused on fear about everything from the fact that more people are killed each year by vending machines than sharks to the probabilities that the President could push the nuclear button and end the world.
The social media feeds I occasionally follow for my favorite sports teams seem to be 90% discontented fans discontentedly ranting about every loss, every player who’s in a funk, every move the GM makes, and every season that doesn’t end with a championship.
No matter what side of the political aisle you reside there is discontent that the other side exists and that your side doesn’t rule the world.
Social media feeds that I mindlessly scroll through can so easily feed a spirit of discontent that my life doesn’t look like that person’s life.
I sometimes wonder if discontent is such a prevalent and pervasive part of everyday life that I am deaf, dumb, and blind to its omnipresence.
How easily I forget that the serpent’s playbook in the Garden of Eden was to stir discontent within Adam and Eve.
Today’s chapter, Psalm 131, is a short ditty written by King David. It’s just three verses long, but I found the spirit of the lyrics to be so refreshing on a Friday at the end of a busy week. “I have quieted and calmed myself,” he sings. He has centered down in his spirit. He has blocked out all the things he can’t control. He has sought out and found a place of contentment.
In the quiet this morning, I find my soul longing for that place, too. I find it interesting that David claimed responsibility for finding contentment. So often I led to believe that contentment will come when I acquire that thing, when I get to that place in life, or when I make that much money, et cetera, et cetera, and et cetera. Contentment seems always to reside on life’s horizon, but David’s lyrics remind me that it’s found within me, in a humble, quieted, and calmed spirit.
I think I’ll end this post and spend a little more time in the quiet this morning.
Have a good weekend, my friend.
Each photo below corresponds to a chapter-a-day post for the book of Psalms published by Tom Vander Well beginning in July 2020. Posts will be added as they are published. Click on the photo linked to each chapter to read the post. Chapter and title are found in the caption of each photo.
Each photo below corresponds to a chapter-a-day post for the book of Exodus published by Tom Vander Well in May and June 2020. Click on the photo linked to each chapter to read the post.
You’re all caught up! Posts will be added here as they are published. Click on the image below for easy access to other recent posts indexed by book.
Each photo below corresponds to a chapter-a-day post for the book of 1 Corinthians published by Tom Vander Well in November and December 2018 and January 2019. Click on the photo linked to each chapter to read the post.
You’re all caught up! Posts will be added here as they are published. Click on the image below for easy access to other recent posts indexed by book.
Each photo below corresponds to a chapter-a-day post for the book of 1 John published by Tom Vander Well in April 2020. Click on the photo linked to each chapter to read the post.
You’re all caught up! Posts will be added here as they are published. Click on the image below for easy access to other recent posts indexed by book.
Each photo below corresponds to a chapter-a-day post for the book of 2 Corinthians published by Tom Vander Well in Jan-Feb 2019. Click on the photo linked to each chapter to read the post.
You’re all caught up! Posts will be added here as they are published. Click on the image below for easy access to other recent posts indexed by book.
Each photo below corresponds to a chapter-a-day post for the book of Romans published by Tom Vander Well in March 2019. Click on the photo linked to each chapter to read the post.
You’re all caught up! Posts will be added here as they are published. Click on the image below for easy access to other recent posts indexed by book.
Each photo below corresponds to a chapter-a-day post for the book of Ephesians published by Tom Vander Well in April and May 2019. Click on the photo linked to each chapter to read the post.
You’re all caught up! Posts will be added here as they are published. Click on the image below for easy access to other recent posts indexed by book.
Each photo below corresponds to a chapter-a-day post for the book of Philippians published by Tom Vander Well in May 2019. Click on the photo linked to each chapter to read the post.
You’re all caught up! Posts will be added here as they are published. Click on the image below for easy access to other recent posts indexed by book.
