Contentment

A Lion’s Roar

Does being strong get you what you need?

Verse of the Day

‘The lions may grow weak and hungry, but those who seek the Lord lack no good thing. ‘

Psalms 34:10

Today’s Devotional

In your daily life, how much do you value strength?  There are many different kinds of strength: physical strength, strength of character, the strength that comes from power, strength of position, a strong mind, a strong personality.  I’m sure there are many more.  I believe that one of the things God is continually trying to teach us throughout the Bible is that our economy, our ranking system, is turned upside down.

For me, the lions in this verse represent strength and power.  I don’t interact with many lions, but I do deal with people in positions of power.  I also have friendships with people who value power and control.

When my daughter was about 4 years old, we went with a group of friends to the Ft. Worth Zoo.  It was a bunch of moms with strollers and a gaggle of kids wandering around together in search of the animals our kids wanted to see.  It just so happened that we got to the lion exhibit right before feeding time.  There was a big male lion who knew it was almost time to eat.  As he heard the zookeepers preparing his meal, he started to get really animated.  He was pacing back and forth, shaking his mane and generally displaying his impatience.  Apparently, the meal prep was taking much too long for him.  So after a few minutes, he put his front two paws up on a tree in his enclosure.  He sunk his claws into this tree and began to shake it like it was a rag doll.  It wasn’t a giant tree, but it was big enough that this feat was rather impressive.  Then…..he stopped shaking the tree, was still for a moment with his paws on the tree, and then let out the loudest roar I have ever heard.  It was the most powerful sound I have ever heard in my life.  It was so loud that I could feel my bones rattling. We were stunned.  The kids were too shocked to even be scared.  It was THAT loud and powerful.  And it lasted a long time.  I guess even lions get impatient when they are hungry.

My point here is that all human (and animal) strength has its limits.  It only serves us to a certain extent.  That lion roaring did not get him his food any faster.  Any displays of my strength probably don’t serve me any better than that roar served the lion.  It might make me feel better in the moment, but it doesn’t generally get me what I really need.

In God’s economy, the weak get the most benefit.  The people who are intimately aware of their lack seem to be the most grounded.  And the most content.  In AA, only those who are continually aware of their powerlessness remain in a place of consistently being submitted to God.  Those people not only stay sober, they commit their lives to seeking the knowledge of God’s will, they constantly ask for God’s power to carry out His will, and they are devoted to serving others.  But it all starts with powerlessness.

I think that’s what this verse is trying to teach us.  We each need to acknowledge our lack of power.  God is in control whether we know it or not.  When we know Who truly has control, and we align ourselves with this Authority, then we are in the right place to be filled.  And as we are filled with the good things that only come from God, that goodness can then spill out onto the people we encounter.

Having strength and power does not put me in a place of contentment.  Even if our culture disagrees.  Seeking God, which assumes that I believe in God and acknowledge His authority, puts me in the only position where I can truly be filled.  Being filled with the good things from God sounds like a great recipe for contentment to me.

Journal Prompts

Answer only the questions that seem relevant to you today.

How have you assumed that your power and strength have helped you get what you want or need?  How well did it work? 

How could your weakness before God look different than that? 

What does seeking God look like to you? 

How, specifically, can you submit to God’s authority and seek His will for your life today?