Living without regret comes through realizing a higher purpose

There was a single woman, well advanced in years, who made an appointment with her lawyer to change her will. After several changes, she included one unique addition. She told her attorney, "At my funeral, there will be no male pallbearers."

He wrote down the request and then paused at the uniqueness of it. He said to her, "I do not mean to pry, but that seems like such a unique request. Can you tell my why you do not want any male pallbearers at your funeral?"

She looked him in the eyes and said, "No man would take me out when I was alive; they won't take me out when I'm dead."

Each of us is shaped by negative and positive experiences, yet those do not ultimately define who God is creating us to be. The greatest barrier to fending off bitterness is to learn to grow a spirit of contentment.

Paul in Philippians 4:11 writes, " ... I have learned the secret of being content ..." This from a brilliant man afforded the best education and incredible connections. When he met Jesus, Paul's brilliance remained, but all those whom he had known before shunned him. He set out to share Jesus with all who would listen, many of whom did not. In his travels he was arrested, beaten, shipwrecked, run out of many towns and left for dead.

He also had known abundance. He ran a profitable business, had new influences and was sought after for his understanding of scripture. God used his availability to deliver the majority of the New Testament. Paul was a man who new great highs and tremendous lows. In the mist of this he able to say, "I have learned the secret of being content.

Contentment can be learned. Contentment comes with knowing there is a greater purpose to your life than the moment of joy or struggle. Those who are content have learned that God has given you a purpose for his glory and our good. There is greatness beyond the mountain of celebration or the valley of death. Contentment is knowing and intentionally acting on a greater vision that is beyond yourself.

The secret of contentment is not that big of a secret. No matter who takes you out.