The holiday season is now upon us, or if I may be allowed to repurpose a phrase from the bard, now is the season of our discontent. For various reasons, the holidays are, for many of us, a season of discontent. These feelings begin to stir inside of us as early as Thanksgiving. We have been programed to think of thanksgiving as the quintessential feast of the year but inevitably, it’s not. The day is supposed to begin with the smell of freshly baked pies filling the air as the family wearing fall flannels and festive sweaters gathers to watch the Macy’s day parade. Between the parade and the football game, a 35-pound turkey is to be placed in the oven. During commercials the turkey is to be basted, and the sides are to be assembled. At half time hors d'oeuvres are to be served as the winner of the Westminster Kennel Club Dog Show is announced. During the second half of the football game smells of a perfectly prepared feast should start to entice the family to the table and, if done properly, the oven is to ding at the precise moment the 4th quarter ends. The family ought to then gather around the table to express their profound appreciation for one another before savoring the juiciest of turkeys, the sweetest of corn, the spiciest stuffing, and the smoothest of mashed potatoes. During the meal the family conversation is to be light and lively and compliments to the chef are to be heartily expressed. As the meal concludes the family may then choose to eat their pie in the living room before falling asleep to a holiday movie.
That is what we are led to believe Thanksgiving is supposed to be, but this is never what Thanksgiving is. Something always happens either the turkey is dry, or the potatoes are lumpy, or a glass of wine gets spilled, or somebody says something offensive, or the maid forgets to do the dishes. Thanksgiving dinner never turns out the way the Hallmark channel says it should, the way we hoped it would. So even though our bellies are so full we must loosen our belt a notch or two somehow there is still room inside of us for feelings of discontent.
Thanksgiving is just the beginning of the season of discontent. As Christmas approaches and the halls don’t get decked with boughs of holly, and chestnuts don’t get roasted over an open fire, and the dream of a white Christmas doesn’t come true, the feeling of discontent grows and grows.
The holiday season can easily become the season of our discontent. I know that is an uncharacteristically pessimistic thing for me to say about the holidays. I typically try to channel my inner Norman Rockwell this time of year and lean heavily into the sentiment of the season. However, this year with supply chain shortages and the lingering effects of the pandemic threatening to season the season with a dash of humbugery, I thought we might all be especially vulnerable to feelings of discontent this holiday season. So, I thought it might be a good idea for us to spend a few moments seeing if we can figure out what saint Paul calls “12 the secret of being content”.
Approximately a decade had passed since Paul the missionary had first brought the message of the crucified and risen Christ to Philippi. As Paul writes this letter to his beloved Philippians, he is himself awaiting trial in Rome. For 2 years Paul had endured numerous trials as he tried to defend himself from the trumped-up charges of the Jews who accused Paul of being a “troublemaker, stirring up riots among the Jews all over the world… and even trying to desecrate the temple”[1] Finally, Paul made his appeal to Caesar so to Caser he was sent. In Rome Paul’s appeal dragged on for another 2 years. During this time Paul was considered a prisoner. However, though his movements were restricted his ministry was not. The Roman guards took note of Paul and were receptive to the gospel. These guards spoke about Paul to their family and friends. As a result, the gospel of Christ crucified for the forgiveness of sins and the remarkable man who was willing to suffer imprisonment for the sake of the gospel soon became the talk of the town. In this way the gospel spread throughout Rome.
The Christians in Philippi were generous supporters of Paul and his ministry in Rome. Paul wrote this letter to the Philippians to let thank them and let them know how the gospel was being preached as a result of their generous gifts. But Paul did not want the Philippians to think his letter of thanksgiving was a way for him to manipulate them into giving him more. That is why in verse 11 Paul writes, “I am not saying this because I am in need, for I have learned to be content whatever the circumstances.” Paul tells the Philippians he doesn’t need anything from them because he is content. The Cambridge Dictionary defines contentment as one who is “pleased with their situation and not hoping for change or improvement”. In effect Paul told the Philippians that though he was currently incarcerated for a crime he didn’t commit, though things had not exactly gone as he had planned, he wouldn’t have it any other way; he was content.
In verse 12 Paul told the Philippians, “I know what it is to be in need” ... to be “hungry” … to be “in want”. You see, Paul was not some pampered prince who never really knew what it was like to have a need, feel the pains of hunger, or suffer want. Paul expounded on the some of the needs, hungers, and wants he had experienced in his life in a letter he wrote to the Christians in Corinth. There Paul wrote, “25 Three times I was beaten with rods, once I was stoned, three times I was shipwrecked, I spent a night and a day in the open sea, 26 I have been constantly on the move. I have been in danger from rivers, in danger from bandits, in danger from my own countrymen, in danger from Gentiles; in danger in the city, in danger in the country, in danger at sea; and in danger from false brothers. 27 I have labored and toiled and have often gone without sleep; I have known hunger and thirst and have often gone without food; I have been cold and naked.”[2]
When a person has a need, a hunger, or a want such as this it is tempting for them to lose faith in the providence of God; it is tempting for them to roll their eyes at the Psalmist who claimed, “15 The eyes of all look to you, (O LORD) and you give them their food at the proper time. 16 You open your hand and satisfy the desires of every living thing.”[3] You know from your own personal experience how hard it is to trust that the Lord will open His hand to provide when you have a need, a hunger, or a want. That is why it is so remarkable that Paul says even in circumstances such as these he wouldn’t have it any other way because he was content.
In verse 12 Paul told the Philippians, “I know what it is to have plenty” … to be “well fed”. Before we get the idea that poor Paul didn’t know any better; that he didn’t know what it was like to enjoy the finer things of life we need to remember before his conversion Paul went to the best schools where he received the finest education. In his community he was considered a Hebrew of Hebrews and a respected member of the church. Even after Paul’s conversion to Christianity life was not all shipwrecks and chains. He seems to be a rather capable tent maker and he enjoyed the company of wealthy men like Philemon and the hospitality of wealthy women like Lydia.
When a person experiences the finer things of life it is tempting for them to become obsessed with the finer things of life; it is tempting for them to close their ears to the Proverb that says, “4 Do not wear yourself out to get rich; have the wisdom to show restraint. 5 Cast but a glance at riches, and they are gone, for they will surely sprout wings and fly off to the sky like an eagle.”[4] You know from your own experience how hard it is to enjoy the finer things of life and not want for more. That is why it is so remarkable that Paul says even in circumstances such as these he wouldn’t have it any other way because he was content.
In verse 12 Paul told the Philippians “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.” And then in verse 13 Paul shares his secret with them and with us. There Paul writes, “I can do everything through him who gives me strength.” The Greek stoic philosophers taught one could only experience feelings of contentment when they were self-reliant and independent from all others. It was said that the person who needed only himself and was completely independent of all others, was content. Not long ago a person who sought contentment in this way would be called a hermit or loner. Today millennial minimalists who choose to live the nomadic van-life or build remote off-grid yurts in the Canadian wilderness are searching for contentment in the same way the Greek stoic Philosophers sought contentment. However, Paul tells the Philippians that he has learned to be content in any and every situation not by being independent from all others but by being completely dependent on One.
The secret to being content in any and every situation is to be completely dependent on the one who gives us strength; to be completely dependent on Jesus. When you are in need, feel hunger, or have a want depend on Jesus who has promised to feed you better than the birds of the air and cloth you in more splendor than the flowers of the field.[5] When you experience plenty and are well fed depend on Jesus who has promised to reserve a seat for you at the banquet table of the King[6] and is preparing one of His Father’s mansions for you.[7] When you depend on Jesus you can do everything, even something as difficult as being content in any and every situation.
The holiday season can easily become the season of our discontent. But even if the holidays don’t turn out exactly how the Hallmark channel says they should or we hoped they would; even if the turkey is dry, or the potatoes are lumpy, or a glass of wine gets spilled, or somebody says something offensive, or the maid forgets to do the dishes, this does not have to be the season of our discontent. Through Him who gives us strength we can say “I wouldn’t have it any other way, for I have learned the secret of being content.” Amen.
[1] Acts 24:5-6
[2] 2 Corinthians 11:25-27
[3] Psalm 145:15-16
[4] Proverbs 23:4-5
[5] Matthew 6:25-34
[6] Matthew 2:22
[7] John 14:2