Whether This, Whether That

"Therefore my brothers and sister .... stand firm in the Lord this way!
... I have learned to be content in any circumstances. I know what it is to be in need, and I know what it is to have plenty. I have learned the secret to being content in any and every situation, whether well-fed or hungry, whether living in plenty or in wait. I can do all this through Him who gives me strength."
(Philippians 4).

It's been a long week. Rather, a long month. Sometimes the hits just keep on coming and my first reaction is "how could I live life better? How could I be a better version of myself? Maybe then my bank account wouldn't bounce, I wouldn't experience emotional pain, and my life would be blissfully without worry or pinch."
Well, that's crap.
Truth is, no matter how well I play it and how well-prepared I am sometimes unexpected expenses just blow out my bank account and I couldn't have done a better job. Or, I have to learn a lesson of emotional depth and tears are sometimes just a part of relationship. Sometimes, often times, being a three-dimensional person means living a three-dimensional life.
So when I get done whining and spinning and trying to intellectualize it and finally just sit down in front of God, He reminds me of Paul.
Paul was an interesting character, wasn't he? He didn't seem to take the time to navel-gaze and worry about how all of the terrible things that were happening to him were going to affect him. He wrote to encourage the Corinthians and the Philippians. Now, I don't pretend to be a Biblical scholar or be able to pull it all into context but if this guy could focus on the church while he was imprisoned he is pretty cool in my book.
And he speaks to me on a day like today. A day when my entire life feels like a logistical nightmare....and says "I have had much and I have had little and you know what? Either way it doesn't matter."

Whether this, or whether that.

Whether rich or poor. Whether educated or not. Whether employed or not. The point is that the foundation is not "whether this or whether that." The foundation is God.
It is so simple.
Ok -I'm not saying that I do this well. In fact, today I feel like a faith loser. I freaked out over something manageable by people. What if I had been faced by something manageable by only God?

 But, I can always go back to Philippians 4 and know where the truth lies.

The truth lies in God. Not "whether this or whether that."
Breathe out. Good thing, huh?