Required reading
Rare Jewel of Christian Contentment by Jeremiah Burroughs (available from Amazon or free on the internet,
here for example)
- Chapter 9: Sections VI to VIII.
My notes and thoughts
Burroughs continues outlining reasons why a murmuring spirit is evil.
I'm about to begin preaching on the Lord's Prayer this Sunday so was immediately attracted to the sixth point: 'By murmuring you undo your prayers, for it is exceedingly contrary to the prayers that you make to God.' Burroughs makes an excellent point here, that when we pray true prayer we place ourselves at God's disposal: 'When you come to pray to God, you acknowledge his sovereignty over you, you come there to profess yourselves to be at God's disposal.' We do not tell our Father what is to be done: 'If you will come to petition him and yet will be your own carver you go contrary to your prayers'.
I also liked the point that discontentment wastes time: 'How many times do men and women, when they are discontented, let their thoughts run, and are musing and contriving, through their present discontentedness and let their discontented thoughts work in them for some hours together, and they spend their time in vain!' I'm always trying to redeem my time and so it was good to be reminded that getting annoyed and upset is a waste of precious time.
Now it's your turn
Please post your own notes and thoughts in the comments section below.
1 comment:
And several pages on (158-160) from that quote he says, in effect, that for all our discontent we cannot change things; discontent spreads, and it axacerbates our very concerns! Let us seek to be content with all the good the Lord has given us.
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