Ps. 116:7 – ‘Return to your rest, O my soul, for the LORD has dealt bountifully with you.’ (NASB)
Is the ‘If only…’ mantra familiar to you? You know,
‘If only I had this or that…’
‘If only I did this or that…’
‘If only this or that happened…’
‘If only he or she or they…’
‘…then my life would be a lot better.’ I would be a lot further; I would be a lot happier; more content, more fulfilled, more established.
Would you though?
Is The Grass Really Greener on the Other Side?
Motivated by envy, regret, discontent or disappointment, we can find ourselves pouring over actions and events in hindsight. While there is legitimacy in reflection, I have found that when this mantra comes up, I am usually wallowing in one pit or the other, and comparing my current reality to an alternate one wherein I obviously know just the right requirements for guaranteed success.
Let’s humour ourselves for a minute and pretend that the ‘if only…’ you had in mind actually happened; what would your life look like? Sure, you might have that position you so cherished, or that possession you so desired, or that person you are so endeared with, but does your romantic version of life excuse the happenings of life? Now, I could present to you a plethora of examples and scenarios of how things might not work out the way you think they would, but I don’t think I have to; surely you have lived long enough to see what usually happens in life—life happens. Besides, wanting is a slippery slope, and we will never be truly satisfied if our satisfaction is found in things, statuses and relationships. Take it from the man who had it all:
‘…I became great and increased more than all who preceded me in Jerusalem. My wisdom also stood by me. All that my eyes desired I did not refuse them. I did not withhold my heart from any pleasure, for my heart was pleased because of all my labor and this was my reward for all my labor. Thus I considered all my activities which my hands had done and the labor which I had exerted, and behold all was vanity and striving after wind and there was no profit under the sun.’ (Ecc. 2:9-11)
A Sovereign Providence
‘Providence is God taking the millions of contingencies and working them according to His will.’ – John McArthur
Another reason to dismiss the ‘If only…’ mantra is because it rejects the sovereignty of God and His good and perfect will for your life. For the believer, to assume that you would be in a better place than where you are now is to deem yourself wiser than God—you know what is best for yourself, and your way would have been the better choice. Oh reader, ’Who is able to advise the Spirit of the LORD? Who knows enough to give Him advice or teach Him? Has the LORD ever needed anyone’s advice? Does He need instruction about what is good?’ (Isa. 40:13-14a, NLT)
Of course, what we are addressing here is not a legitimate regret over the consequences of a wrongful deed; indeed, we would all be better off denying sin altogether. However if the guilt of sin is your plight, take comfort that ‘If we confess our sins, He is faithful and righteous to forgive us our sins and to cleanse us from all unrighteousness.’ (1 John 1:9) So run to Him and take shelter in His merciful love, for
‘There is a fountain filled with blood
drawn from Immanuel’s veins;
And sinners, plunged beneath that flood,
Lose all their guilty stains’—
And your guilt and shame can be washed away too.
Whether you are a believer in the gospel of Jesus Christ or not, the Sovereign Ruler of all that is in existence works ‘all things after the counsel of His will’ (Eph. 1:11); the key difference here however is the possessiveness that the believer as a child of God enjoys. As the ultimate Parent, He carefully and tenderly watches over His children, and things may not go how we hope they would, but He ‘causes all things to work together for good to those who love God, to those who are called according to His purpose’ (Rom. 8:28), and therefore we can trust that all that happens to us will bring about our ultimate good and His glory.
The Application
The bed of God’s providence is where we are wrapped in His peace, kept in His grace, warmed with His love, and shielded in His mercy. When we find contentment in all that He is and all that He provides, we will be less inclined to want and more inclined to give thanks.
Next time the mantra starts ringing in your ears, take it captive under the knowledge of Christ through the help of the Holy Spirit, and respond: ‘If only… it were true; but even then, the LORD is my Shepherd, and I shall not want.‘
Dear reader, if you do not [yet] know the privilege of being named in the household of God, please come, ‘taste and see that the LORD is good; how blessed is the man who takes refuge in Him! …The young lions do lack and suffer hunger; but they who seek the LORD shall not be in want of any good thing.’ (Ps. 34:8-10)
(At the time of writing this post, I came across this 2-part message on contentment by John McArthur; do check them out if you can, and I hope it encourages you in this matter > https://www.gty.org/library/sermons-library/90-125/Fundamental-Christian-Attitudes-Contentment-1-of-2 <)
(If you enjoyed and were encouraged by this post, I would recommend checking out one of our previous posts, ‘Poem: Contentment‘)
