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Psalms 23:1-3 (3/4/21)
* “Not wanting is as good as having” - Seneca.
* When you want something, you can choose one of two things:
* 1) Get it.
* 2) Stop wanting it.
* #1 requires ambition.
* #2 requires contentment.
* #1 meets the external “felt” need.
* #2 meets the internal “true” need.
* Contentment is the path that David takes us on in this Psalm.
* Vs 1 - He essentially says, “With God as my guide, I am not in a state of continually wanting more and more stuff…”
* Famous quote - “Desire is a contract you make with yourself to be unhappy until you get what you want.”
* Vs 2-3 - a picture of contentment.
* A professional shepherd, Phillip Keller, wrote a book on Psalms 23. He said that in order for a sheep to lie down four things are requires:
* 1) They must be FULL.
* 2) They much be UNAFRAID.
* 3) They must be CONTENT.
* 4) They must be in UNITY (those around him need the first three things).
* Problem - if you don’t get vs 1 right, vs 2-3 aren’t possible.
* Want is like the magnifying glass on a piece of paper on the sidewalk in the Texas summer heat.
* It magnifies the sun’s light and intensifies its heat until the paper is burned up.
* What you focus on magnetizes in your mind and your longing for it intensifies until you’re burned up.
* EX: Jake w/every new thing - “dad, we need a boat!”
* The result is always emptiness - you get the thing but it doesn’t satisfy you like you thought it would.
* Here are three ideas on how you can want something less:
* 1) Acknowledge the cost - you may want a Ferari, but getting it means you have to pay the bill… and never parking in a normal spot again.
* You were free before you had it, but you give up your freedom to get it.
* Imagine every time you formed a new want, you drew up a contract detailing what you would give up in exchange for the thing.
* “I promise to be unhappy until I get _________.”
* Don’t put on the “golden handcuffs.”
* 2) Desire stacking - keep your bigger desire the focus, rather than the smaller desire.
* EX: I’ve always wanted a lifted truck. But that short-term desire took a backseat to my long-term desire of independent wealth.
* Prioritizing your desires helps you remain content.
* 3) Delay until expiry - don’t let yourself get something until you’ve delayed for a period of time.
* Purposeful delays often times makes the desire go away.
* EX: Give yourself a 30 day buffer before you buy your thing…
* Not wanting is as good as having.
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By David and Jason Benham* “Not wanting is as good as having” - Seneca.
* When you want something, you can choose one of two things:
* 1) Get it.
* 2) Stop wanting it.
* #1 requires ambition.
* #2 requires contentment.
* #1 meets the external “felt” need.
* #2 meets the internal “true” need.
* Contentment is the path that David takes us on in this Psalm.
* Vs 1 - He essentially says, “With God as my guide, I am not in a state of continually wanting more and more stuff…”
* Famous quote - “Desire is a contract you make with yourself to be unhappy until you get what you want.”
* Vs 2-3 - a picture of contentment.
* A professional shepherd, Phillip Keller, wrote a book on Psalms 23. He said that in order for a sheep to lie down four things are requires:
* 1) They must be FULL.
* 2) They much be UNAFRAID.
* 3) They must be CONTENT.
* 4) They must be in UNITY (those around him need the first three things).
* Problem - if you don’t get vs 1 right, vs 2-3 aren’t possible.
* Want is like the magnifying glass on a piece of paper on the sidewalk in the Texas summer heat.
* It magnifies the sun’s light and intensifies its heat until the paper is burned up.
* What you focus on magnetizes in your mind and your longing for it intensifies until you’re burned up.
* EX: Jake w/every new thing - “dad, we need a boat!”
* The result is always emptiness - you get the thing but it doesn’t satisfy you like you thought it would.
* Here are three ideas on how you can want something less:
* 1) Acknowledge the cost - you may want a Ferari, but getting it means you have to pay the bill… and never parking in a normal spot again.
* You were free before you had it, but you give up your freedom to get it.
* Imagine every time you formed a new want, you drew up a contract detailing what you would give up in exchange for the thing.
* “I promise to be unhappy until I get _________.”
* Don’t put on the “golden handcuffs.”
* 2) Desire stacking - keep your bigger desire the focus, rather than the smaller desire.
* EX: I’ve always wanted a lifted truck. But that short-term desire took a backseat to my long-term desire of independent wealth.
* Prioritizing your desires helps you remain content.
* 3) Delay until expiry - don’t let yourself get something until you’ve delayed for a period of time.
* Purposeful delays often times makes the desire go away.
* EX: Give yourself a 30 day buffer before you buy your thing…
* Not wanting is as good as having.