Be content!

Be content!
Waktu jamannya dulu masi maen2 MSN messenger, ada 1 teman statusnya adalah – be content!-
Gak terlalu ngerti itu artinya apa dulu, tapi selalu menarik, karena dia adalah salah satu orang yg statusnya gak pernah ganti! I think he was content enough with his status.

Be content!
Salah satu bagian Alkitab yang sangat kusukai adalah *yang aku yakin hampir semua orang hafal ayat ini* I can do all things with God who strengthens me… *kayaknya ini adalah ayat pertama yg aku hafal dalam bahasa Inggris*
Filipi 4:13 Segala perkara dapat kulakukan di dalam Dia yang memberi kekuatan kepadaku.
Waktu jaman cuma afal ayat mah, ditelan mentah2 ayat ini, toh ayatnya bagus.. nah pas udah gedean dikit.. jaman mulai baca Alkitab … baru tau alasan Rasul Paulus kenapa bisa berkata sebegitu hebatnya *di ayat sebelumnya* adalah..
Aku telah belajar mencukupkan diri dalam segala keadaan. Aku tahu apa itu kekurangan dan aku tahu apa itu kelimpahan. Dalam segala hal dan dalam segala perkara tidak ada sesuatu yang merupakan rahasia bagiku; baik dalam hal kenyang, maupun dalam hal kelaparan, baik dalam hal kelimpahan maupun dalam hal kekurangan.

Setelah tahu ayat ini, dan actually mengalaminya langsung *Aku pernah mengalami ketika sisa uang di tabungan hanya 100 yen, en gak tau besok mau makan apa… kok yah lewat2 aja hari2ku.. dan malah terlebih lagi.. aku bahkan tetap gemuk aja yaah selama di jepang?* for I have learned to be content whatever the circumstances. , ini jadi ayat "sakti", sumber kekuatanku..aku tidak takut!!
Masa2 di Jepang, adalah sungguh pertama kalinya aku belajar bahwa aku hanya mengandalkan Tuhan saja dalam hidupku.
Orangtuaku? Tidak..aku gak mau mama stress melihat anaknya actually stress dan tidak punya uang.. mama bahkan tidak pernah tau kesusahan ku disana.
Diri sendiri? Haha..boro2 mau mengandalkan diri sendiri, aku hanyalah seorang anak kecil..tidak bisa apa2..yang cuma tau kalo Tuhan dah bukain jalan aku sekolah di Jepang, Tuhan gak mungkin biarin aku berhenti di tengah jalan, Tuhan pasti pimpin sampai aku bisa selesai disana, bagaimana dan apapun caranya…aku Cuma ngikut! Itu! Itu yang mengisi hari2ku.

For I have learned to be content whatever the circumstances.
Pulang ke Indonesia..dengan problema yang baru! Seakan semua masalah “kesusahan” di Jepang, tidak ada artinya, tidak sebanding dengan “kelas” baruku ini. Ujian yang Tuhan perhadapkan denganku, beda2 pula. Seringkali aku merindukan “kelas” lama ku di Jepang, ketika yang perlu kupikirkan hanyalah bagaimana aku makan, bagaimana aku mengumpulkan uang untuk pulang ke Indo ketemu mama!!

Kalau sedang musim2 normal, anggaplah musim semi.. dimana bunga bermekaran..aku bayangkan bunga Sakura dan bunga Matahari bersebelahan..duh cantiknya! *gak mungkin bgt lah, jelas2 musimnya beda!* eniweii… aku nangis itu hanya sebulan sekali! Aku bersyukur akan hal itu, karena itu menunjukan aku masi cewe yg normal and sebulan sekali mataku dibersihkan, literally!

Nah, dalam setahun ada musim kekeringan *dimana air mata kering…nangis gk habis2 berhari2*, atau bisa juga dengan kata lain musim badai, dimana tenaga habis terkuras berusaha bertahan menerpa badai *hehe, salah sendiri! Padahal harusnya saat badai gini yah… tinggal diam aja di pelukan Tuhan, yang jauh lebih besar dari badai itu…enak bisa bobo nyenyak! Tapi kan kadang2 aku suka sok jago tuh..sok yg "Bisa! Bisa! Bisa!" Akirnya kecapean sendiri*

Namun asiknya di setiap badai itu, selalu ada yang Tuhan bisikan, yang awal2nya tidak terlalu kedengeran, karena aku masi bersikukuh dengan sok jago-nya aku..tapi lama2 Tuhan yg super keren ini berteriak sampai akirnya aku sadar!

Kali ini, kembali lagi Dia ajarkan ku to be content!!!

Aku berulang kali ngomong ke Tuhan….”duh Tuhan, eyn gak ngerti kenapa rasa gak enaknya kok belum ilang2 yah? Kenapa yah? Kenapa? Boseen nih!! Mau hidup normal!! Cape mellow2!! Gak asik!”

Dari beberapa renungan yg aku baca beberapa hari ini, berulang-ulang.. be content!
Sermon mgg lalu di gereja juga, be content!
Dan hari ini .. lagi!!! Be content! *sampai akirnya aku senyum sendiri…dan “ooooh gitu yah Tuhan?!”*

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(from Crosswalk Women, "A Believer for All Seasons", by Kathi Macias)

Philippians 4:11, which declares, "I have learned in whatever state (condition, circumstance, season) I am, to be content." Easier said than done!! ........

2 Timothy 4:2 instructs us to "Be ready in season and out of season." Each time I read that I realize how often God gives me time to prepare for the situation I'm in—and how often He doesn't. * I wasn’t ready this time huh?! –eyn-*

Obeying God doesn't always mean that I have to walk through fire for Jesus. Most of the time it simply means "renewing my mind" according to Romans 12:2, which explains that our thought processes must be changed to conform to God's Word rather than the prevailing trends and mindsets of the world.
………………….. the renewing of our minds has to go deeper than a simple assent to the fact that those acts (any sins) are wrong. God deals with the heart. His desire is to take our lifelong attitudes and gently but firmly begin to reshape and remold them into a worldview that reflects His values and His righteousness.

In the middle of all that comes an appreciation for the season we're in—be that summer in the desert or winter in Alaska, the early married years with children and bills or the senior years with arthritis and wrinkles. *in my case, oh well masa2 “susah” di jepang, or musim semi ketika gak ada masalah, or masa badai2 saat ini*
To some extent, of course, that proved to be true, and the next season was a bit easier—in some ways. However, I also learned that I was really just trading the difficulties of one season for new ones in the next. And along with leaving those particular difficulties behind, I left some of the joys as well.
True, I have pictures and memories that transport me back to those times, and I smile at the images they bring to mind. But sometimes a tear trickles down my cheek, even as I smile, because I know those very special moments are gone forever, swept away with the passing of time—the changing of seasons. The Spring and Summer of my earthly life are over, and Fall is quickly fading into Winter.
Should I bemoan the loss, giving myself over to living in the past? Many do, particularly if they have no promise of eternity with the Father. But I'm a Christian, a born-again believer whose eternal existence is assured. If my mind has been renewed by the reading and applying of the Scriptures, then there's no place for regret or sorrow as I face the winter of my life.

Each season of our lives, regardless of the "state" or circumstances that accompany it, can be times of rejoicing if we choose to make them so, as the Apostle Paul did. We can choose to be content, whether we have an abundance of this world's riches or scarcely enough to get by. We can choose to be content, whether our health is perfect or less than we'd like it to be. We can choose to be content, whether the world is singing our praises or condemning our every word and action. *i can choose to be content though my heart is aching, di tengah situasi tidak mengenakkan dan melelahkan -eyn-*

The important thing is to remember that Paul said his contentment in every situation was a learned process. When I became a believer I understood that I had to change my way of thinking from that of the world to that of the One who spoke the world into existence, but it didn't happen overnight. It was a learning process—a long one, which will continue until I step from the winter of my temporal life into the eternal season of God's presence.

God intends for Christians to flourish in all seasons, regardless of our situations, and we will only do that as we renew our minds to think as He thinks, to live as He lives, and to love as He loves. We can't do it in our own strength or wisdom, for apart from Him we have none. But the One who is omnipotent and omniscient stands ready to impart His strength and wisdom to us so that we might rejoice in the season we're in today, even as we anticipate the one to come.
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My dear Lord…who has been faithful to me through all the seasons in my life… again, kali ini Dia ajarku to be content! I have learned to be content dalam kekuranganku, sehingga saat ini ketika aku menghadapi kekurangan “lagi”, to be honest, I am super content!
Tapi dalam season baru saat ini dalam hidupku, kondisi yg belum pernah kuhadapi sebelumnya… again… God taught me again to be content! or at least, to choose to be content, to enjoy the season! To have faith that season ini akan segera berlalu! To see this season from his point of view! To see this season as a learning process He's making me more beautiful each day! To be a joyful Christian in all seasons! 'tuk belajar seperti Rasul Paulus, supaya aku juga bisa berkata....
"Our hearts ache, but we always have joy............ We own nothing, and yet we have everything." 2 Cor 6:10

Be content!