I Get Better Every Day

Now there is great gain in godliness with contentment, for we brought nothing into the world, and we cannot take anything out of the world. But if we have food and clothing, with these we will be content. But those who desire to be rich fall into temptation, into a snare, into many senseless and harmful desires that plunge people into ruin and destruction. For the love of money is a root of all kinds of evils. It is through this craving that some have wandered away from the faith and pierced themselves with many pangs. But as for you, O man of God, flee these things. Pursue righteousness, godliness, faith, love, steadfastness, gentleness. Fight the good fight of the faith. Take hold of the eternal life to which you were called and about which you made the good confession in the presence of many witnesses. (1 Timothy 6:6-12 ESV).

Few of us look in the mirror and come to the conclusion of Hall of Fame quarterback Joe Namath. During his heyday as a player, Namath wrote a book titled I Can’t Wait Until Tomorrow...’Cause I Get Better-Looking Every Day. Yet, the desire of God for all of us is to find such contentment with who and what we are each day.

Once walking through the streets of the West End in Dallas, I came upon a tattoo studio. In the window were displayed samples of the tattoos available. On the chest or arms you could have tattooed an anchor or flag or mermaid or whatever. But what struck me with force were three words that could be tattooed on one’s flesh, Born to Lose. I entered the shop in astonishment and pointing to those words, asked the tattoo artist, “Does anyone really have that phrase, ‘Born to Lose,’ tattooed on his body.” He replied, “Yes, sometimes.” “But,” I said, “I just can’t believe that anyone in his right mind would do that.” The man simply tapped his forehead and said, “Before tattoo on body, tattoo on mind.”

God calls us to a far more stable basis for significance. He wants us to establish our identity in the fact that we are His children, created by Him to carry out good works as responsible people in His kingdom. This is our calling or vocation from God. According to Scripture, our calling:

• is irrevocable (Romans 11:29).
• is from God; He wants to let us share in Christ’s glory (2 Thessalonians 2:14).
• is a function of how God has designed us (Ephesians 2:10).
• is an assurance that God will give us everything we need to serve Him, including the strength to remain faithful to Him (1 Corinthians 1:7-9).
• is what we should be proclaiming as our true identity (1 Peter 2:5, 9).
• carries us through suffering (1 Peter 2:19-21).
• is rooted in peace, no matter what the circumstances in which we find ourselves (1 Corinthians 7:15-24).
• is focused on eternal achievements, not merely temporal ones (Philippians 3:13—4:1).

So you can see, there is a genuine sense in which we can get better everyday! Trust in Him rather than the things around you and you will find contentment for your soul.