The Faces of Hope

Their names are ordinary. Names like Herbert, Pearl, Ron, Bryan, Joe, Lola, Winnie, yet their stories are anything but. Each face comes with a story, a history of tragedy, pain, fear, and loss.  They are the remnant of a land torn apart by war and disease.  They are the orphans of West Africa.

You wouldn’t know their past by simply looking in their eyes. They are not filled with tears, but with beams of light.  Nor would you gather that some of these children have suffered a lifetime of sadness in their few short years by watching their actions.  They sing.  They dance.  They laugh.  They giggle with a joy that the world cannot give and the world surely cannot take away.

They understand the feelings of abandonment.  Some of these little ones were left at the hospital just hours after their birth, while others, lost their entire families, their mothers and fathers, sisters

The Perspective of Contentment

The happiest people aren’t necessarily the ones with the most toys. That’s not the message we are hit with on a daily basis through media and propaganda, but it’s true. The happiest people I know are those who have learned the secret taught by the Apostle Paul in the book of 1 Timothy chapter 6 in the Bible. The happiest people are those who have learned that “godliness with contentment is great gain”.

How is this so? Contented people have a different perspective than those caught up in the rat-race of materialism. When you find your value and identity in what you possess you are never satisfied. As soon as you feel you have arrived at a place where you can rest and catch your breath, your neighbor will pull up in a new, shinier model than the one you own, or your buddy will pull out the newest electronic gizmo that makes yours look like yesterday’s leftovers. When you look to things to give you meaning and purpose it is like filling a bucket that has no bottom, it stays empty.

Judging yourself based on money or possessions leads to a life of discontentment. A good definition of discontentment is…”when we are no longer satisfied having what we have.”