Changing Discontent to Delight
To serve Christ with a Christian heart, we must overcome discontent and cultivate cheerfulness in our duties.
Mary Wilder Tileston preaches about the importance of finding delight in doing God's will, emphasizing the need to have His law within our hearts. She highlights how dwelling on the negative aspects of our duties can make them seem harder than they are, hindering our ability to experience peace and joy. Tileston encourages believers to approach their duties with cheerfulness and a content heart, as discontent can disrupt our obedience to God and prevent us from fully serving Him.
Text
I delight to do Thy will, 0 my God; yea, Thy law is within my heart.
PSALMS 40:8
CROWN us with love, and so with peace;
Transfigure duty to delight;
Our lips inspire, our faith increase,
Brighten with hope our darkest night.
Bring us from earthly bondage free
To find our heaven in serving Thee.
HENRY WILDER FOOTE
WE often make our duties harder by thinking them hard. We dwell on the things we do not like till they grow before our eyes, and, at last, perhaps shut out heaven itself. But this is not following our Master, and He, we may be sure, will value little the obedience of a discontented heart. The moment we see that anything to be done is a plain duty, we must resolutely trample out every rising impulse of discontent. We must not merely prevent our discontent from interfering, with the duty itself; we must not merely prevent it from breaking out into murmuring; we must get rid of the discontent itself. Cheerfulness in the service of Christ is one of the first requisites to make that service Christian.
FREDERICK TEMPLE
Sermon Outline
- The Problem of Discontent
- The Solution of Delight
- Cheerfulness is a Christian requisite
- Get rid of discontent in service
Key Quotes
“We must not merely prevent our discontent from interfering with the duty itself; we must not merely prevent it from breaking out into murmuring; we must get rid of the discontent itself.” — Mary Wilder Tileston
“Cheerfulness in the service of Christ is one of the first requisites to make that service Christian.” — Mary Wilder Tileston
Application Points
- We must resolutely trample out every rising impulse of discontent to serve Christ with a cheerful heart.
- Cheerfulness is a fundamental requirement for a Christian service, and we must prioritize it in our duties.
- By focusing on the plain duty at hand and getting rid of discontent, we can make our duties easier and more fulfilling.