Faith and Contentment in Times of Uncertainty
- MHBPC Admin
- May 31
- 13 min read
Updated: Jun 4
Date: 1 June 2025, 9.30 am
Speaker: Dn Lee Pak Choon Sermon Text: Philippians 4:4-7, 10-13
Transcript
Good morning, everyone.
Thank you for giving me the privilege of sharing God Word with you. I will be speaking on the topic “Faith & Contentment in Times of Uncertainty “.
Before I start , let us go to God in prayer.
“Dear Heavenly Father , thank you for being our refuge and strength in uncertain times. May your spirit illuminate your Word to us and encourage us to live in faith and rest in contentment, knowing that you are sufficient in providing for all our needs. In Jesus’ name, we pray. Amen.”
We have just ended our General Election last month. Some of the key issues we heard from the election rallies were the rising cost of living and the uncertain future. High HDB prices, expensive medical costs, rising utilities bill and even the price of “chai peng” have caused many Singaporeans to worry about their finances and future. The news headlines these days do not make it better. They constantly remind us of rising cost, unstable markets and financial struggles. I hope I don’t sound like a political candidate at the rally. But the reality is we are living in pretty uncertain times.
This morning, I would like to invite you to explore how faith in God and godly contentment can broaden our outlook on these challenges. I will be touching on 2 key themes :
Faith in Uncertain Times
Contentment in Christ
Living in Uncertain Times
I work as a supply chain executive. Basically, my work is getting our suppliers to bring in materials at the right cost, right quality and on time delivery to our factory to make the products for our customers.
One of the biggest challenges in my work is the uncertainty in the supply of materials. It can be caused by various reasons such as natural disasters, wars , strikes and pandemics. We have been through Covid , and those days were just crazy. We scrambled for supply from multiple sources . When one supplier got hit by Covid lockdown, we have to look for another source. We were working from our homes to get all those work done. I couldn’t imagine we could manage through Covid , but somehow we did.
Today, the situation is very different. On Liberation Day Apr 2 as President Donald Trump called it , not one country was liberated. All countries were slapped with hefty tariffs by the US. Although one week later, US agreed to a pause for 90 days while keeping tariff at 10% for all countries except China.
China, for retaliating to the initial tariff of 34% was slapped with further rounds of tariff until it was 145%. A number that is more than the price of the good going into US from China. It doesn’t make any sense. In retaliation, China raised the tariff of US good imports to 125%. Again, it doesn't make any sense.
The latest update to the saga was that US and China had entered into a trade agreement in Geneva to lower the tariffs for 90 days. US reduced the China import tariff to 30% while China lowered the US import tariff to 10%. What happens after the 90 days is anybody’s guess. Hopefully, the tariffs stay, but the uncertainty still hangs in the air.
Due to uncertainty, many businesses are adopting a “wait and see” approach to investment.
My company which has a large market in China, is facing difficulties in getting customer orders. The dynamics is made even more challenging with rising cost and trade restrictions by US and China on critical materials needed to make our products.
Companies are downsizing. On April 23, Intel announced that they will cut over 21,000 jobs as part of a major restructuring. Microsoft announced on May 13 that they will be laying off about 6000 people globally.
This concern of uncertainty was also expressed by our PM Lawrence Wong in his speech at the S Rajaratnam Lecture on April 16 2025. He said that US China trade war pain will be felt everywhere. He acknowledged that we are living in very difficult times globally.
I quote “ The recent developments have made for a very uncertain outlook in the world , but we will do everything we can to make sure , despite the turbulence, despite the uncertainties, that Singapore will always remain a beacon of stability and harmony. “Unquote
We are very heartened to hear from our PM that our government will do their very best to keep Singapore economically stable and its people living in harmony. That gives us an assurance that they will help us weather through the storm ahead.
Nonetheless, as believers, we do have a greater assurance from God that we can find hope and peace in Him, even when the world seems uncertain.
As business owners, are you faced with rising cost, business uncertainty, declining revenues and profits?
As employees, are you faced with retrenchment or finding it hard to land a job ?
As individuals, are you faced with a serious illness and finding it hard to cope ?
How does the Word of God assure us as believers who face challenging times ?
Allow me to turn to the passage in Psalm 46 : verse 1 – 7 for our encouragement.
Shall we all read the passage together.
1 God is our refuge and strength, a very present help in trouble. 2 Therefore we will not fear though the earth gives way, though the mountains be moved into the heart of the sea, 3 though its waters roar and foam, though the mountains tremble at its swelling. 4 There is a river whose streams make glad the city of God, the holy habitation of the Most High. 5 God is in the midst of her; she shall not be moved; God will help her when morning dawns. 6 The nations rage, the kingdoms totter; he utters his voice, the earth melts. 7 The Lord of hosts is with us; the God of Jacob is our fortress.
Faith in Uncertain Times
Facing an unknown future
You know the story of Abraham. In Genesis 12, God called Abraham to leave his homeland and go to an unknown place that He would show him. He was told to leave his comfort zone. Abraham was already 75 years old when God called him. In today’s context, he is past retirement age. He could have told God.”
Lord, not me. I am too old to venture. Moreover, I do not even know where I am going.”
Uncertain times are like this. We can’t see the future. But what did Abraham do? He stepped out in faith, trust God to be his guide and went into the promised land of Canaan which God gave it to him and his descendants.
I believe we all face unknown future one time or another. Many years ago, when I was in my thirties , I lost my job. I remembered that I applied for countless jobs and had gone for interview after interview, but each time, I was rejected. The feeling of rejection was hard. Doubts filled my mind. I wondered about the future. As time went by, the financial burden started to bite as I did not have much savings then. I told myself to trust God since I had put my faith in Him. I prayed to God daily, read His Word and continue to wait upon Him. After about 4 months, God opened a door for me. I finally got a job offer and went on to work in the company for the next 8 years. To this day, I testify that God is truly my refuge and strength in uncertain times.
If you were facing career uncertainty, God is calling you to take Him at His Word. He is our refuge and strength, a very present help in trouble.
Facing a Serious Illness
One of the biggest fears we have in Singapore is getting seriously ill. There is a saying “We spent our health to earn money , then spend our money to earn our health back “
But truth be told , as much as we can do to keep ourselves healthy, no one can predict our health in the future. A serious illness can strike us and then the future looks uncertain.
In Mark 5, we read of the woman with the issue of blood. She had the illness for twelve years. She had spent all her money on doctors but instead of getting better, it got worse. She was in despair. When she heard about Jesus and what he did to the blind, the lame and the dumb, she believed He was sent of God and He has divine power to heal. So, she reached out in faith to touch Jesus’s garment in the crowd, believing she would be healed. Her faith led to her miraculous healing. Jesus said of her ,“Daughter, your faith has made you well; go in peace, and be healed of your disease.”
Here, Jesus not only healed her physically, but also restored her spiritually, calling her “Daughter”. To know that God addresses us as His beloved children, that He calls us “ Son and Daughter “ when we are sick is a great assurance of His peace and comfort for us.
God , our Heavenly Father, will not miss us out in the crowd because we are sick and isolated. As we seek Him, He responds to our faith by attending to us individually and personally. He is a Father to us all.
We , as His children, can trust in His faithful promise and sovereign plan for our lives.
What can we do to exercise faith in uncertain times ?
Let us turn to Philippians 4 : 6 – 7 . Let me read to you all.
4 Rejoice in the Lord always; again I will say, rejoice. 5 Let your reasonableness be known to everyone. The Lord is at hand; 6 do not be anxious about anything, but in everything by prayer and supplication with thanksgiving let your requests be made known to God. 7 And the peace of God, which surpasses all understanding, will guard your hearts and your minds in Christ Jesus.
There are 4 things we can do to exercise faith in uncertain times.
Rejoice in the Lord
When Paul says "Rejoice in the Lord", he is asking believers to find joy and delight in God. This joy does not depend on external circumstances but it comes from the assurance of God's love and promises.
It is easy to rejoice in the Lord when the sky is clear and the sun is shining. But when the winds are howling and the rain is beating on you, it is hard to even put a smile on your face. Paul himself faced many hardships and had really nothing to be happy about. Yet He chose to rejoice in the Lord. Like Paul, we can choose to find joy and delight in God regardless of our circumstances.
Let your reasonableness be known
I am always amazed by the wisdom of scripture. It is not easy in times of desperation to maintain a calm, gentle and gracious demeanour. Truth be told, it is more likely we will be rude and impatient when things don’t go our way. But because we choose to rejoice in the Lord , giving thanks to God for everything that happens to us, we can show reasonableness to all through God’s grace.
Do not be anxious
Why? The verse before says the Lord is at hand. He is very close to us. He is near and accessible. There is no need to worry when you know that our heavenly father is with us. We are not alone in our struggles. Therefore, do not be anxious.
By prayer and supplication with thanksgiving , let your requests be made known to God.
God loves to hear your prayer requests. He assures us that when we do all the above, he will grant us His peace which surpass all understanding. That peace will guard your hearts and minds in Christ Jesus and keep you away from fear and worry.
Contentment in Christ
The next theme that I will be touching on in relation to living in uncertain times is Contentment in Christ
For that, I will be using the text in Philippians 4 : 10 – 13
10 I rejoiced in the Lord greatly that now at length you have revived your concern for me. You were indeed concerned for me, but you had no opportunity. 11 Not that I am speaking of being in need, for I have learned in whatever situation I am to be content. 12 I know how to be brought low, and I know how to abound. In any and every circumstance, I have learned the secret of facing plenty and hunger, abundance and need. 13 I can do all things through him who strengthens me.
Understanding Biblical Contentment
You have heard the cliche “If you want to live happy, be content with what you have.” The trouble with most of us is “I don’t have what I should have.” That is where discontentment sets in.
So, what is contentment?
Is it having enough money or possessions? Or is it something deeper?
In Philippians 4:11-12, Paul shares a remarkable testimony: “I have learned to be content whatever the circumstances. I know what it is to be in need, and I know what it is to have plenty. I have learned the secret of being content in any and every situation”
You know, one can still be discontented even when one already have a lot of riches and possessions. An example in the Bible is King Ahab who wanted to have Naboth tiny plot of vineyard for his vegetable garden despite the vast lands that he already possessed.
Ecclesiastes 12: 5 says "The sleep of a laboring man is sweet, whether he eat little or much: but the abundance of the rich will not suffer him to sleep." Abundance does not necessarily bring contentment, but neither does poverty causes discontentment.
The poor, hardworking laborer enjoys a good rest because he is satisfied with his labor.
Paul says that true contentment is a secret, yet it can be learned. Once you learn true contentment, you will know that it is not tied to abundance or scarcity.
but to a enduring peace that is not shaken by your circumstances. This steadfast peace comes from a heart that is anchored in God.
Imagine your life is like a boat drifting on the sea. The waves and currents are the “riches” and “poverty”. The up wave is the riches and the down wave is poverty. Without an anchor, it is tossed by every wave and every current. But when anchored, it remains steady, regardless of the storm.
Paul reveals his secret of contentment in verse 13, " I can do all things through him who strengthens me.” The spiritual anchor is Christ.
I would like to take some time for us to reflect
Are we relying on possessions, promotions, or external comforts to feel satisfied
What happens when these things are taken away or fail to deliver the security we hoped for?
True contentment in Christ is to believe and act in faith that God is sufficient —that His strength enables us to do all things through Him regardless of our circumstances.
How do we practise biblical contentment?
Practise Gratitude. ( 1 Thessalonians 5 :18)
“ Give thanks in all circumstances; for this is the will of God in Christ Jesus for you.”
One way to develop biblical contentment is by counting the blessings we already have and recognizing God’s daily provisions. I would like us to think and reflect
• What are three blessings you can thank God for today?
• How has God provided for your needs in the past?
By cultivating gratitude, we embrace contentment, knowing that blessings and trials are all part and parcel of God’s perfect plan for our lives.
Finding Joy in Trials (2 Corinthians 12:9–10)
9 But he said to me, “My grace is sufficient for you, for my power is made perfect in weakness.” Therefore I will boast all the more gladly of my weaknesses, so that the power of Christ may rest upon me. 10 For the sake of Christ, then, I am content with weaknesses, insults, hardships, persecutions, and calamities. For when I am weak, then I am strong.
Paul's statement reflects a profound spiritual truth. It seems like an irony when he says “For when I am weak, then I am strong “, but Paul is highlighting that his weaknesses—whether physical or emotional—allow God's strength to shine through him.
When Paul acknowledges his own limitations, he relies more fully on God's grace and power. This dependence transforms his weakness into a source of strength, as it is no longer about his own abilities but about God's work in and through him.
So, instead of complaining about our circumstances, let us be like Paul, depend wholly on God and take on the challenges , knowing that they strengthen our faith.
Living with Simplicity (1 Timothy 6:6–8)
6 But godliness with contentment is great gain, 7 for we brought nothing into the world, and[ we cannot take anything out of the world. 8 But if we have food and clothing, with these we will be content.
At first glance, you might think that Paul is advocating a minimalist lifestyle. Minimalist lifestyle focuses on the essentials and letting go of excess. Paul, however, is advocating for a “Godliness with contentment” lifestyle. There are some similarities between the two, but their motivations are not exactly the same.
Minimalist lifestyle is motivated by a personal desire to de-clutter. Biblical simplicity lifestyle, however, is motivated by faith in God; trusting in His sovereign provision and focusing on eternal treasures rather than pursuing earthly wealth, hence the principle of “Godliness with contentment is great gain.”
Many people chase success, money, and material possessions, believing that more will bring happiness. However, Paul reminds us that lasting peace comes from godliness and contentment—not from accumulating wealth.
Relying on God's Strength in Weakness (2 Corinthians 4:16–18)
16 So we do not lose heart. Though our outer self is wasting away, our inner self is being renewed day by day. 17 For this light momentary affliction is preparing for us an eternal weight of glory beyond all comparison, 18 as we look not to the things that are seen but to the things that are unseen. For the things that are seen are transient, but the things that are unseen are eternal.
Paul understood that eternal glory outweighs present struggles. He has his eyes fixed on God’s promises rather than temporary difficulties. It is adopting the perspective of living in the light of eternity. Having that outlook in life, one will rather pursue the spirituality of life, knowing that one day, all the sufferings will be gone and will stand joyously in the presence of God.
Paul’s life is a powerful example that contentment in life is not about having everything. It is simply trusting God in every situation, believing that He is sufficient to meet our needs whether in poverty or in abundance.
Closing Thoughts
As believers, our faith is tested in times of uncertainty. But it is also in times of uncertainty, faith and contentment shine brightest. As the saying goes , “The stars shine brightest when the night is at its darkest.”
No matter what lies ahead, we can walk forward with faith and assurance, knowing that God’s love will never fail us.
Let us live in faith, anchored on His promises, and let us rest in contentment, knowing that He is always sufficient.
May God bless this message to your hearts.
Thank You
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