March 5, 2023
Living the Good Life
The Apostle Paul - “Teach those who are rich in this world not to be proud and not to trust in their money, which is so unreliable. Their trust should be in God, who richly gives us all we need for our enjoyment. Tell them to use their money to do good. They should be rich in good works and generous to those in need, always being ready to share with others. By doing this they will be storing up their treasure as a good foundation for the future so that they may experience true life.” (1 Timothy 6:17-19)
DAILY DEVOTION
The “good life” means different things to different people. To some, it means looking good. To these people, the focus of life is on losing weight, buying the right clothes, and making strong appearances. To others, the good life means feeling good and happens through experiences, parties, and addictions. To many, the good life means finding someone good. To these folks, romantic relationships are more important than anything else. And to many, living the good life means having the goods. These people believe that if they could only make a certain amount of money, live in a certain kind of house, drive a particular model of car, and wear certain brands of clothing, then they would truly be happy.
In 2005, the band Nickelback released the song “Rockstar” which summarized many people’s feelings about the good life. Here are a few of the lyrics:
I’m gonna trade this life for fortune and fame. I’d even cut my hair or change my name.
‘Cause we all just wanna be big rock stars and live in hilltop houses, driving 15 cars,The girls come easy, and the drugs come cheap. We’ll all stay skinny ‘cause we just won’t eat. We’ll hang out in the coolest bars in the V.I.P. with the movie stars. Every good gold digger’s gonna wind up there. Every Playboy Bunny with her bleached blond hair and Hey, hey, I wanna be a rockstar.
That song summarizes the good life for many people. Unfortunately, as many people, including those in Nickelback, have probably discovered is that having money doesn’t mean that you’re living the good life. As the Apostle Paul wrote to Timothy, “Some people, craving money, have wandered from the true faith and pierced themselves with many sorrows (1 Timothy 6:9-10).
What many people don’t understand is that the Lord really does want us to experience the good life, just not the good life defined by most of the people in the world. We read in Romans that “The Kingdom of God is not a matter of what we eat or drink, but of living a life of goodness and peace and joy in the Holy Spirit.” (Romans 14:17) The real good life is one filled with righteousness, peace and joy where we also experience spiritual growth, uplifting relationships, and financial stability. Instead of comparing ourselves with the world, our “trust should be in God, who richly gives us all we need for our enjoyment.” (1 Timothy 6:17) We should be sharing what we receive from the Lord, being generous with our worldly resources so we “may experience true life” (1 Timothy 6:19) in the Lord.
FOLLOW UP ACTIVITY
In your journal or on a piece of paper, create two columns. In column one, make a list of items people in the world believe is necessary to live “the good life.” In column two, write the words “righteousness, peace, and joy.” Then pray and tell the Lord which of the two columns is better and ask for His help in achieving it. If you’re leading your family through this devotion, do the same exercise with them, adding in a time to dialogue about why one column is better than the other.
PRAYER FOR TODAY
Lord, I want to live a good life filled with righteousness, peace, and the joy that comes only from You. Help me as I go through this devotion series to surrender all I have to You and Your will. In the name of Jesus, Amen.