[Darris McNeely] I woke up earlier this week at my son's home while visiting, and my daughter-in-law had brought in a big bag full of really good donuts. We turned on the news, and we were watching and seeing at that time that Russia was beginning its invasion of taking over a few of the eastern provinces of Ukraine. And other headlines talked about the price of oil going up, and stock markets were going down at the news of all of this, and it was a pretty depressing day. So what did I do? I had a donut. And then I had a second donut.

Now, I don't need any diet advice necessarily on this. And I am not trying to really be flippant about a very serious world-shaking and changing event that, as we've talked about here, on Beyond Today, but you wake up to something that you knew it was coming, and you can't prevent it. The wisest, smartest people in the world can't prevent it. It happens and it impacts your life. Your next tank of gas is going to be more expensive, and other things as a result of this. And, you know, by my deciding, "Well, I'm going to have a donut, and then we'll figure all of this out," to me, at least was a statement that, hey, certain things as we watch and understand this world, as we react in a right way to it, there are things that we can't do, and life does go on. And it needs to go on always with a sobriety and a seriousness about the reality of the world we live in, Bible prophecy, and the suffering that comes from such an event.

But when it comes down to our daily lives, there are things that we must be able to then put in place to learn how to cope with so that we maintain a contentment with life, our peace with God, a peace with each other, and certainly in our deepest parts of ourselves an inner peace that helps us to have a confident faith that God is in charge.

Now, that donut didn't give that to me but I can tell you a scripture that does.

It's in Philippians 4, beginning in verse 11. Paul writes, "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 and any in every situation, whether fed or hungry, whether living in plenty or in want. And I can do all of this through Him, who gives me strength."

The key to contentment in life, whatever might be happening in our own personal life, or we turn on the news and find out something big is happening in a world far away from us is that relationship with God and having contentment there. I don't mean to make light of anything that is going on in Europe and between Ukraine and Russia at this time. But sometimes when we bring this down to our own individual level, we have to have the ability in place to cope with it to maintain our contentment and keeping a sane balance, and that comes with a grounding in Scripture and a relationship with God.

That's BT Daily. Join us next time.