There I stood, in the middle of one of the most chaotic places in Thailand. I was
surrounded by crowds of tourists strolling up and down narrow aisles inside a dark, dingy building that is home to Bangkok’s largest flower market. As the foreigners browsed and snapped photos, hard working men pulling dolly cards stacked high with flowers and vegetables quickly navigated their way through the crowd to reach the delivery truck waiting outside. Standing in the blazing heat and humidity, they transferred their stack from the dolly cart onto the delivery pickup. The men pulling the dolly carts were only a small part of the well orchestrated process. Unfazed by the chaos was a man sitting on the hard cement up, preparing peppers, one by one, to be packaged for delivery. As I watched him work, so many thoughts crossed my mind. I wondered how he could even see what he was doing under the poor lighting, how his back was able to tolerate sitting on the hard cement all day, and how he wasn’t completely bored out of his mind. “Heck, I can’t even shuck a dozen ears of sweet corn without needing to crank up some Spice Girls music to jam out to,” I thought. Yet, this man walks into these poor working conditions to take on this mindless, repetitive task every single day. Naturally, I assumed he had to be completely miserable. The second this thought crossed my mind, he looked up, connected with my eyes, and smiled. No, not the forced smile you paste on your face when grandma tells you your new hair color is “nice”, but that she really loved your old color. The smile the man gave me was a smile from the heart. As he continued to work, I couldn’t help but think about how relaxed, peaceful, and content he seemed.
That afternoon at the market, I was reminded that the happiest people in this world are not necessarily the people with the highest paying jobs or the perfect body. The happiest people in the world are those that have learned to be content despite whatever bullets are flying their way. It may appear that those bullets always seem to miss them, but I believe the reality is that more often that we realize, the bullet hits them. The difference is that they are wearing a shield of contentment. This shield enables them to prevent the bullet from puncturing the skin and causing them to cry out in pain and misery.
If you think about it, discontentment was the root of what led Adam and Eve to eat the forbidden fruit. It makes you wonder how different things would be had they shielded themselves with contentment. They wouldn’t have even had the desire to see what that fruit was all about. What’s important to remember is that Adam and Eve were living in more perfect circumstances that we can even imagine, yet, they allowed themselves to be discontent. This teaches us that if we can’t learn to be content in our current circumstances, then likely, we won’t ever be able to find happiness.
The man from the flower market was a beautiful display of Paul’s message in Philippians 4:11: “For I have learned to be content, whatever the circumstances.” I think that anyone would have understood if Paul would have been bitter. He was living in a cold, dark jail cell, chains cutting into his wrists, and being unjustly accused. Yet, he praised the Lord and thanked Him. He not only accepted the predicament he was in, but he also acknowledged his many reasons to be thankful to God. That really is the key to being content, isn’t it? Acceptance and gratitude. It’s about saying “God, I know you’ll never leave my side, so I accept the bullet that just hit me. I’ll allow my eyes to be opened to what personal weaknesses are revealed in this situation. I am thankful for the opportunity this allows me to grow in my faith, but most importantly, I’m thankful that you sent your son to die on the cross for my sins so that I can spend eternity in heaven with you.”
Written by :: Sara Hansen
