Manion - Satisfied: discovering contentment in a world of consumption: study guide, six sessions

Satisfied is an invitation to be free... to shake off the stuff that smothers us and live like the lilies and the sparrows. A thoughtful reminder to share the stuff we own before it owns us, and to get money out of our hands before it makes its way into our hearts. It is a call to laugh at the lie of our culture that tells us happiness has a price tag.

SHANE CLAIBORNE, author, activist, and recovering consumer www.thesimpleway.org

Jeff Manions voice is such a wise, clear, helpful voice, and Im so thankful for the timely and challenging invitation he has issued in these pages. Im inspired to live more richly with fewer things, and to pursue gratitude and generosity with more intention.

SHAUNA NIEQUIST, author of Bread & Wine

Some books can be skimmed, others read, and some should be chewed on slowly and digested fully. This book falls into the third category. As you savor this book, God will speak deeply and transform your life in surprising ways.

REV. KEVIN G. HARNEY (www.kevingharney.com), lead pastor of Shoreline Church in Monterey, CA, and author of Reckless Faith and the Organic Outreach Series.

Comparison kills contentment. But when is enough, enough? In Satisfied, Jeff Manion shows how having less is a gift that leads to freedom.

BOB MERRITT, pastor of Eagle Brook Church in St. Paul, MN, and author of When Lifes Not Working

My friend Jeff Manion is offering Satisfied to everyone who struggles with the angst of joy. As joy gushes, they wonder at their ongoing discontent. Is it OK to be happy if others arent? Should I get used to this? Will I lose this joy if I share it? How do I find more of this; does it come from what happens in me, or to me? Manions winsome style makes Satisfied more than a great read and a phenomenal Small Group resource; it helps people take steps into a satisfied and joy-filled life.

DR. MARK BEESON, founding pastor of Granger Community Church in Granger, IN

Being satisfied seems more like a process than a result this book is a great tool for the process!

BRAD FORMSMA, creator of www.Ilikegiving.com and author of I like Giving

In a debt-ridden and consumer driven society, few people are experiencing true contentment, freedom, and joy in their financial lives. Jeff Manions outstanding book Satified will help you learn how to do just that. It offers engaging and practical insights that are life changing because they are based on Gods word. I heartily recommend it!

HOWARD DAYTON, founder, Compass finances Gods way

Jeff is a master storyteller, and you will see yourself on every page. Get Satisfied and get contentment, Gods way!

CLARE DE GRAAF, author of The 10-Second Rule

See the authors webpage at: jeffmanion.org. Twitter: manionjeff

ZONDERVAN

Satisfied

Copyright 2013 by Jeff Manion

This title is also available as a Zondervan ebook. Visit www.zondervan.com/ebooks.

Requests for information should be addressed to:

Zondervan, Grand Rapids, Michigan 49530

EPub Edition DECEMBER, 2013: ISBN 978-0-310-32835-7

Library of Congress Cataloging-in-Publication Data

Manion, Jeff, 1962

Satisfied / Jeff Manion

p. cm.

Includes bibliographical references and index

ISBN 9780310328353 (softcover)

1. Contentment Religious aspects Christianity. 2. Satisfaction Religious aspects Christianity. 3. Consumption (Economics) Religious aspects Christianity. I. Title.

BV4647.C7M365 2014

241'.68 dc23

2013026571

All Scripture quotations, unless otherwise indicated, are taken from the Holy Bible, New International Version, NIV Copyright 1973, 1978, 1984, 2011 by Biblica, Inc. Used by permission of Zondervan. All rights reserved worldwide.

Any Internet addresses (websites, blogs, etc.) and telephone numbers in this book are offered as a resource. They are not intended in any way to be or imply an endorsement by Zondervan, nor does Zondervan vouch for the content of these sites and numbers for the life of this book.

All rights reserved. No part of this publication may be reproduced, stored in a retrieval system, or transmitted in any form or by any means electronic, mechanical, photocopy, recording, or any other except for brief quotations in printed reviews, without the prior permission of the publisher.

Cover design: Dual Identity
Cover photography: Shutterstock
Interior illustration: Part art, Beth Shagene
Interior design: Beth Shagene

Printed in the United States of America

13 14 15 16 17 18 19 /DCI/ 22 21 20 19 18 17 16 15 14 13 12 11 10 9 8 7 6 5 4 3 2 1

Contents

In his classic monologue, comedian George Carlin riffed on the mountain of stuff we compile. His assertion is that a house is just a pile of stuff with a cover on it.

So when you get right down to it, your house is nothing more than a place to keep your stuff... while you go out and get... more stuff. Cause thats what this country is all about. Trying to get more stuff. Stuff you dont want, stuff you dont need, stuff thats poorly made, stuff thats overpriced. Even stuff you cant afford! Gotta keep on getting more stuff.

So you keep gettin more and more stuff, and puttin it in different places. In the closets, in the attic, in the basement, in the garage.... So now you got a houseful of stuff. And, even though you might like your house, you gotta move. Gotta get a bigger house. Why? Too much stuff!

Brain Droppings, 37, 38

Carlins social commentary, cloaked in comedic humor, hits close to home. The piece connects with audiences so well because we detect the reality that lies behind the laughter. We are addicted to amassing stuff.

Awakening

If we are fortunate, we awaken to our surplus. While on a brief trip to a childrens hospital in the Dominican Republic, a woman visits a family whose child will soon undergo surgery. Their cinderblock house is windowless. Six people reside in the space roughly the size of a one-stall garage. An ensemble of plastic molded chairs comprises the furniture. Then there is the flight home and reentrance to her own world and house the house she felt was simple and modest just eight days before. Suddenly she awakens to the opulence of her simplicity. The trip does not induce guilt as much as offer a healthy reality check.

Excursions like this provide the opportunity to recast our categories for wealth, simplicity, and shortage. A door is opened, allowing us to see our stuff in a new light and to wonder what motivations drive us to amass the things that pile up around us.

Rethinking

Then we encounter the teachings of Jesus his rather straightforward comments directed at our propensity to define our lives by what we own.

Life does not consist in an abundance of possessions.

Where your treasure is, there your heart will be also.

You cannot serve both God and money.

Watch out! Be on your guard against all kinds of greed.

I have come that they may have life, and have it to the full.

I find his words piercing. As a professing Christian, I have the responsibility to consider my buying habits, not simply as a middle-class American, but as a Jesus follower. Personally, I feel stalked by some pretty convicting questions. As one who allegedly follows the Christ, what claims does Jesus have on my wallet? What does it mean to think Christianly about the stuff that fills my closet, garage, and basement? How does the one I call Lord intend to reshape my attitudes toward spending, accumulating, and giving?