A Life Without Want
The Lord is my shepherd; I shall not want. Psalm 23:1
Most of my business career, I was in the relentless pursuit of “want”. Whether it was the want of money, status, or some milestone of success, my life was oriented toward achievement. Every morning, I woke up and aligned my calendar with my wants.
At the end of the day, I would look back and ask, “Did I make progress, am I any closer to achieving what I want?” Whether I checked everything off my list that day or not, I was still feeling dissatisfied– I didn’t have the time to do everything.
In my mind, if I could reach the next level, I could be content, slow down, and enjoy the process. However, as my career progressed and I started to achieve some of my wants, I was becoming less satisfied, less content. To offset the discontentment, I would speed up and push harder, climb faster.
Stephen Covey, author of the book 7 Habits of Highly Effective People, once wrote,
“If the ladder is not leaning against the right wall, every step we take just gets us to the wrong place faster.”
I eventually reached a point in my career where I realized my ladder was on the wrong wall. No matter how high I climbed, there was going to be emptiness at the top.
While I had read all the books on success in pursuit of contentment, I had brushed over how Jesus defined a content life. Simply put, Jesus said to live a life characterized by contentment, we just need to love God, and love people.
“‘Love the Lord your God with all your heart and with all your soul and with all your mind.’ This is the first and greatest commandment. And the second is like it: ‘Love your neighbor as yourself.’ - Matthew 22: 37-40
In reality, my wants were defined by the world’s definition of success. However, when I began to reorient toward Jesus’s definition of “success”, I realized my yearning for success was actually an innate desire from God to be in relationship with him. Or put another way, when my wants began to align with His wants, peace began to reign in my life. Striving began to diminish.
In John 14:27, Jesus says,
“Peace I leave with you; my peace I give you. I do not give to you as the world gives. Do not let your hearts be troubled and do not be afraid.”
I love that part, “my peace”. That is not a peace that you can buy or achieve. That’s a peace we receive, as believers in Christ, from El Shaddai— the all sufficient God— the God that is from eternity to eternity.
As I think about climbing my ladder on the wrong wall, I think of Jesus being at the bottom. Patiently waiting. I wonder if He ever says, “Look at him go, he is really up there. He really thinks he has it figured out this time.” Or as the good shepherd, does he have to come up the ladder and guide me back down and help me move the ladder to his wall?
John 10:14-16 is so powerful.
“I am the good shepherd; I know my sheep and my sheep know me— just as the Father knows me and I know the Father—and I lay down my life for the sheep. I have other sheep that are not of this sheep pen. I must bring them also. They too will listen to my voice, and there shall be one flock and one shepherd.”
“I know my sheep”. The good shepherd knows me! He knows what I want and He gives me His peace freely, if I am willing to accept it and keep the ladder on His wall.
(By the way, doesn’t verse 16 make you want to get your hands dirty for the Kingdom? “I have other sheep that are not of this sheep pen. I must bring them also.”)
A central part of John 10:14 is “and my sheep know me.” It could arguably be read as a directive. “You need to know me as I know you.”
How do we know him? We fix our eyes on Him. We spend time with Him daily, without fail. We talk with Him. We trust Him with our finances, our careers, our families. We stop moving and we listen.
“Do not conform to the pattern of this world, but be transformed by the renewing of your mind. Then you will be able to test and approve what God’s will is — his good, pleasing and perfect will.” —Romans 12:2
This is the key to a life without want, that we fix our minds on Christ– our Good Shepherd, who gives us His peace without restraint.
Chip Measells
Executive Director & Legacy Team Leader
The Point Church