Contentment. The Apostle Paul tells us that “godliness with contentment is great gain.” He claimed to have learned the secret of being filled and going hungry, of having abundance and suffering need. Jesus taught us to, “be on your guard against every form of greed; for not even when one has an abundance does his life consist of his possessions.” Have I learned those lessons? A typical classroom activity made me stop and think.

My speech club members were seeking to answer a prompt I’d given them: What is the greatest problem facing Chinese students after graduation? They were to quickly come up with two reasons for their conclusion. As I walked about the room, I could see that most had chosen a familiar response: Too few MA and PhD programs and shrinking job opportunities for the number of eligible graduates. Valid, yet predictable. But one senior pushed her paper to the edge of the desk as if she wanted me to see it. She wrote:

“Our problem? We buy stuff online we don’t need. We don’t even like what we order sometimes and we quickly return it for something else. We always want more.”

“Therefore I tell you, do not worry about your life, what you will eat or drink; or about your body, what you will wear. Is not life more than food, and the body more than clothes?" Matthew 6:25

The mention of buying did not surprise me. Long lines of delivery vehicles and piles of packages by our school gate were daily sights. I knew class breaks were spent comparing new discoveries for sale. Students chatted of expensive brand names with familiarity. But this 20-year-old recognized that it was never enough. To my knowledge, this young girl did not know the Creator. She had not yet met the only One who can fill the hole that packages can never satisfy. His love and forgiveness were a mystery to her.

But I know.

When do I say “If only I had ____?” or “I just want one more ____?” When I’m with my like-minded friends how often does our conversation slide into what we want and wish for rather than what we have? Do we look carefully at what we say we want more of?

"Satisfy us in the morning with your unfailing love, that we may sing for joy and be glad all our days." Psalm 90:14