March 3 - 1 Corinthians 7:1-16 & March 10 - 1 Corinthians 7:17-40
REM sang, “Stand in the place where you live…” Jeremiah told the exiles to get jobs, build houses, settle down and pray for the welfare of the city: i.e. to bloom where they were planted. Paul exhorted the Philippians to be content in whatever circumstances they found themselves.
Why do you think we must be reminded of this? What are the things that most cause us to be discontented in life? Why is marriage at the top of some lists? Very, very few of us didn’t choose our spouses. I could see why people in arranged marriages would have had more of a legit gripe with who they were sentenced to marry, er, uh, I mean arranged to marry.
But if we are the ones who stormed the gate to marry “our one and only”, how do the seasons of discontent come about so often or how do we get bogged down in a perpetual, “If I Only” attitude?
Might we need to reexamine our motivations for our marriages? How might this help? How might this be encouragement to someone not yet married, who wants to be married? What can living with constant regret do to your spirit?
If you are married, what would you say to the not yet married about choosing a spouse and contentedness? Is there cause, correlation or is it all coincidence when there is contentment?
The truth is that a spouse will never make us complete. Only Jesus completes us. If you’re relying on a spouse to do a work only God can do, what might you call that?
If you feel stuck in a marriage or in any particular circumstance of life, what role might repentance play in turning around the perspective of your life toward better fortune? How might it help your mind and your spirit?
If we are to be renewing our minds daily anyway, why would we not put this at the top of our to-do list in our mind’s eye?
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