Reclaiming Contentment

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Introduction of Series

Today we are going to be starting a series called “Following Jesus in a Selfie-Centered World.” The idea behind it is this: Social Media is a gift from God, but if you are not wise in how you use social media it will begin to have power and influence in your life that it should not have. It will have the power to shape the way you think and feel about yourself, other people, and ultimately about God. There is a reason why because of social media we can be:

Busy , but bored.

Full, but empty.

Connected to people across the world, but lonelier than ever.

The question is not has social media shaped you, but how has it shaped you.

The question is not has technology shaped you, but how has it shaped you.

And so in this series, we are going to do one thing: We are going to reclaim back the power that we have unintentionally given over to social media.

Reclaim Contentment

Today we are going to start with reclaiming back contentment. Contentment is being satisfied with where you are and who you are. However, when we are not careful in the way we use technology like social media, it will cause us to constantly compare ourselves to other people and therefore lead us to a life where we never feel satisfied.

Introduction

The thing about social media is that everyone is always posting the good stuff and never the bad stuff. The highlights, but never behind the scenes. The achievements, but never the failures. So when you are constantly looking at everyone’s good stuff, you begin to compare your life to everybody else’s and you begin to wonder:

Why isn’t my life like that?

Why am I not as pretty as her?

Why don’t I get to have the new iphone?

Why don’t I have as many friends on instagram like him?

Why doesn’t my family do things like that?

And when you’re doing this, most of the time you don’t even recognize that you are comparing your full reality (both good and bad) to everyone’s good stuff, and now you are dissatisfied with where you are and who you are in your life. And before you know it you end up pressuring yourself and people around you to give you the life that you see posted on social media. But the life you see on social media doesn’t exist.

Just because someone posted a cute picture with the caption I love my boo or I love my family, doesn’t mean that couple or that family never argues.

Just because someone posted a cute picture with the caption I love my boo, doesn’t mean they never argue.

Just because someone posted some new jordans or a new phone, doesn’t mean they had the money to buy it.

Just because someone posted a new luxury car, doesn’t mean they own a home too.

Just because someone posted a picture of them eating steak and lobster doesn’t mean they didn’t have a bologne sandwich for dinner last night.

Just because someone posted a before and after weight loss picture, doesn’t mean it didn’t take them 6 months of non-stop dedication and discipline.

The life you see on social media does not exist. And a lot of people have gone into depression and even debt because they have starred at someone else’s life for too long.

A lot of people have gone into debt trying to get the unrealistic life they see on social media.

But let me see if I can enlighten you. No matter how much you have, there will always be a larger -er.

-er

There is always going to be someone with a larger -er.

There is always going to be someone that is:

Rich -er, Skinny -er, Smart -er, Pretty -er, Happy - er, Popular -er, Talented -er, Healthy -er, Fast -er, more outgoing -er, more liked -er, more retweeted-er, and the list goes on and on.

Skinny -er

And when you see people doing bett-er than you in something, instead of clapping for them, you hate them. You don’t want to hate them, but you do. And that’s sin. (She good, but...)

Smart -er

But there is also the other side of the -er; There is also people that are:

Pretty -er

Heavy -er, Slow -er, Short -er, Poor -er

Happy - er

And you don’t want to feel as good as you do when you are around people that are less than you, but you do. And now you feel superior -er. And that is sin.

-est

Popular -er

-est

Talented -er

But if we were to tell the truth about ourselves, many of us don’t want to be an just an -er, we want to be and -est.

Healthy -er

Rich -est, Smart -est, Pretty -est, Happy - est, Popular -est, Talented -est, Healthy -est

And don’t get me wrong, there is nothing wrong with being competitive or wanting to be the best, until becoming the best becomes your god and begins to conflict with what God wants to do in your life.

If you think one day you are going to be able to satisfy the hunger of comparing yourself to other people by becoming the bets at something, you won’t because comparing yourself to other people is like an appetite. You can be hungry, go and stuff yourself to the point where you feel like you’re in a food coma, but sooner or later you are going to be looking for something to eat in the refrigerator. An appetite will always come back. It doesn’t matter if you become the best in that thing, if you struggle with comparing yourself, you will eventually find something else to compare.

There is no win in comparison (sin). (Have the people repeat this)

There is no way in comparing yourself to other people where it’s going to end well.

Parable of the Talents

The good news is that Jesus talks about this is a parable. And in case you don’t know, a parable is a story that Jesus makes up to make a point. And every time God tells a parable usually someone represents God and someone represents the us. This Parable is called the Parable of the Talents.

And the parable goes like this.

Jesus addresses this in a parable.

Jesus addresses this in a parable.

Illustration where I call up people and give each one a different amount of things.

Matthew 25:14–30 NKJV

14 “For the kingdom of heaven is like a man traveling to a far country, who called his own servants and delivered his goods to them. 15 And to one he gave five talents, to another two, and to another one, to each according to his own ability; and immediately he went on a journey. 16 Then he who had received the five talents went and traded with them, and made another five talents. 17 And likewise he who had received two gained two more also. 18 But he who had received one went and dug in the ground, and hid his lord’s money. 19 After a long time the lord of those servants came and settled accounts with them. 20 “So he who had received five talents came and brought five other talents, saying, ‘Lord, you delivered to me five talents; look, I have gained five more talents besides them.’ 21 His lord said to him, ‘Well done, good and faithful servant; you were faithful over a few things, I will make you ruler over many things. Enter into the joy of your lord.’ 22 He also who had received two talents came and said, ‘Lord, you delivered to me two talents; look, I have gained two more talents besides them.’ 23 His lord said to him, ‘Well done, good and faithful servant; you have been faithful over a few things, I will make you ruler over many things. Enter into the joy of your lord.’ 24 “Then he who had received the one talent came and said, ‘Lord, I knew you to be a hard man, reaping where you have not sown, and gathering where you have not scattered seed. 25 And I was afraid, and went and hid your talent in the ground. Look, there you have what is yours.’ 26 “But his lord answered and said to him, ‘You wicked and lazy servant, you knew that I reap where I have not sown, and gather where I have not scattered seed. 27 So you ought to have deposited my money with the bankers, and at my coming I would have received back my own with interest. 28 So take the talent from him, and give it to him who has ten talents. 29 ‘For to everyone who has, more will be given, and he will have abundance; but from him who does not have, even what he has will be taken away. 30 And cast the unprofitable servant into the outer darkness. There will be weeping and gnashing of teeth.’

Matthew 25

My Struggle With Comparisons

vs. 14 - Man is God coming to earth through Jesus. Servants represent us.

vs. 15 - according to his own ability. At this point it may seem unfair. We may wonder why is it that I only get have 1 talent and they get to have 5 talents. But it says that God handed it out according to their own ability. Could it be that God is trying to be a good steward over his goods? He may give you 5 and you 2 and you 1, but it may be because right now you can only handle 5 and you can only handle 1.

vs. 16-17 - The ones given 5 and 2 doubled their money.

vs. 18 - The one who was given one dug a hole and hid his money. How many times have we hid our gifts, a talent, or didn’t do something because we thought we didn’t have the resources or the ability that someone else had? And a lot times we unintentionally hide our gifts because we are so busy starring at someone else’s gift. We are so busy looking at how many friends someone has on social media that we neglect the relationships that are sitting right in the room with us.

vs. 19 - After along time, which probably means when life was over.

vs. 20-23 - The lord said to the ones with five and two you have been faithful over a few things. Now if you feel like you have only been given one, some of us may want to correct God by saying “A few things?” God gave them five talents and two talents and now they have 10 and 4, that’s not a few, that’s a lot. But it seems like a lot compared to what?

vs. 24-25 - The one blamed God for his inability to not do anything with their one.

Vs. 26-27 - God calls him on his stuff and says you wicked and lazy servant. I gave you one talent and you could have at least did the very minimum but you couldn’t even do that.

vs. 28 - God takes the talent from him and gives it to the one that has ten talents. And again we may want to say why give to the one with 10 and not four. Isn’t that unfair? But what is not fair is not everyone having the same amount of gifts or starting off at the same point, but what’s not fair is that God gives you something regardless of how much he gave someone else and you choose to do nothing with it.

vs. 29-30 - Weeping and gnashing of teeth, I want you think about a situation where you were close to getting something, but it didn’t happen. When that happens you may weep and gnash your teeth (semi-finals game I weeped and gnashed my teeth because we were so close). When this life is over there will be people who will be weeping and gnashing their teeth because they were so close to living the life God wanted them to live, but missed it because they were so busy starring at someone else’s.

Time is limited so don’t waste your life trying to live someone else’s.

Quote: Time is limited so don’t waste your life trying to live someone else’s.

It’s not about what you have, but it’s about what you do with what you have.

_____________ there is no win in comparison. What are you going to do with what God has entrusted to you?