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Please note: After today, Dr. Matt Brown's Weekly Devotion will be on pause for the next two weeks and will resume on Tuesday, June 4.
“For I have learned to be content with whatever I have. I know what it is to have little, and I know what it is to have plenty. In any and all circumstances I have learned the secret of being well-fed and of going hungry, of having plenty and of being in need. I can do all things through him who strengthens me.” –– Philippians 4:11b-13
“Be all you can be!” –– “There’s no limit to what you can achieve!” –– “You can become whatever you set your mind to!” With good intentions, we offer these well-worn proverbs as encouragement to those we love and support. “Reach for the stars!” –– “Dream big!” –– “Shoot for the moon!” –– “Set your sights high!” On behalf of those we love, or at least like, we join the cheering squad, hoping our hurrahs rally them to their full potential, and our hosannas buoy their confidence. “You can do this!”
Does such tangible support contribute to performance and achievement? Absolutely. The athlete beams –– “The crowd was awesome! I fed off their energy.” –– “I could not have won this award without the encouragement of my teammates. Their names should be engraved on the trophy.” –– “Without the support of my parents, I would not have made it to the starting line.” What life is not enhanced by the championing or advocacy of a friend? They showed up for you, not out of obligation, but in the name of agape (unmerited, selfless, and self-giving love) and philos (friendship). Life is enriched and performance is accelerated wherever these are present.
Yet, in spite our heartfelt, good-intentioned cheerleading, at times the encourager plays a bit loose with the truth, for when someone suggests that there is no limit to what you can achieve or that you can become anything you set your mind to, they are not entirely accurate. Kinesiology, physics, and physiology, among other factors eliminate any number of life options. In addition to the fact that I have no hair to tie into a knot and would never have the confidence or temerity to wear the uniform, basic anatomy dictates that I would never achieve the rank of Yokozuna in sumo wrestling (Not that I ever had the faintest desire to pursue it!). The legend of Kareem Abdul Jabbar was never at risk of being encroached upon by me. And any Einstein/Oppenheimer aspirations in me remain out of the question. Finite, limited, flawed, and “term limited,” self-actualization is a destination never fully actualized in this life.
Understanding this, Paul, reflecting on his own life journey, said, “I have learned to be content with whatever I have. I know what it is to have little, and I know what it is to have plenty.” This gives context to Paul’s next words which should never be confused with the false confidence that may result from our well-intentioned cheers. When Paul says, I can do all things through him who strengthens me,” he is not saying that you, too, can out-sprint Usain Bolt. Rather, he is saying that in spite of our limitations and circumstances, Christ’s strength can provide the fuel to not only survive, but to live fully and even thrive, discovering the extraordinary in the ordinary, confronting hate with love, facing fear with faith, and finding joy as we explore the Lord’s will for us. “Whatever I have, wherever I am, I can make it through anything in the One who makes me who I am.” (Message translation)
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