I am too often discontented.  I think of the old Talking Heads song “Once in a Lifetime”, David Byrne sings in a discontented shock about his house, his car, his wife (ironically his wife is tallied with possessions).  We need to consciously engage with the world around us and also be content with the circumstances that we are in.  Have you managed to maintain the balance?  Of course, look to make positive changes (if you are a slave get freedom).  However, don’t wait for more time to pass before you learn to be happy.

1 Corinthians 7: 17-24

 ¹⁷Nevertheless, each one should retain the place in life that the Lord assigned to him and to which God has called him. This is the rule I lay down in all the churches. ¹⁸Was a man already circumcised when he was called? He should not become uncircumcised. Was a man uncircumcised when he was called? He should not be circumcised. ¹⁹Circumcision is nothing and uncircumcision is nothing. Keeping God’s commands is what counts. ²⁰Each one should remain in the situation which he was in when God called him. ²¹Were you a slave when you were called? Don’t let it trouble you—although if you can gain your freedom, do so. ²²For he who was a slave when he was called by the Lord is the Lord’s freedman; similarly, he who was a free man when he was called is Christ’s slave. ²³You were bought at a price; do not become slaves of men. ²⁴Brothers, each man, as responsible to God, should remain in the situation God called him to.

Questions

1. What should each person retain?
2. What is the person who is a free man when he is called?
3. What is the drive of Paul’s argument?
4. What does your life lack?  How does that strip you of peace?
5. How can you iimprove your life AND accept your circumstances?

Going Deeper

Try to understand what Talking Heads are singing about:

http://www.songfacts.com/detail.php?id=1867