When Your Phone Is Old and Your Heart Is Restless

I joked Sunday about being an Apple fanboy. For a long time, every time a new iPhone came out, I wanted it. I liked being up to date. I liked the new features. I liked the feeling of having the latest thing.

Then the Lord started poking at my heart. Not because phones are evil, but because I was acting like I needed the new thing in order to be satisfied. That is coveting with a glossy screen.

Now Owen has a newer phone than I do. My laptop is a few years old. My iPad is from 2022. Part of me wants to throw a little pity party about it. But another part of me knows this is good for my soul. I need to practice being content when everything in our culture tells me I should always upgrade.

Paul lived through extremes. He knew what it was to sit at a rich woman’s table. He knew what it was to be cold and hungry in prison. He did not just learn how to survive. He said, “I have learned to be content.”

Contentment is not about liking everything in your life. It is about trusting the One who holds your life.

Questions to ask this week:

• Where am I letting comparison steal my joy?
• Am I more grateful for my Savior than I am upset about my stuff?
• What would it look like for me to say, “Christ is all I need,” and mean it?

If Paul can say “I have learned to be content” from a Roman jail, maybe you and I can take a step toward contentment with an older phone, an imperfect car, or a smaller bank account.