This phrase has recently shifted my perspective in a very interesting season. 2021 has already been full of so many emotions and surprises. Getting laid off from a job I felt called to and went to school for was the kick start to the year followed by a short season of being unemployed, then starting a new job that I never would have seen myself at. In every stage I have had moments of great joy! Joy in a season of ending, a season of beginning, and a season of waiting. Those moments of joy are awesome, and were only found when I was listening to the Lord. I wish I could tell you that's the whole too, but it it not. The joy I found and am still seeking has come with many tears, worries, and anxious thoughts. I did not start out in a place of contentment with these changes. Cause boy oh boy do I struggle with change.
My sweet girls, Kate and Alexis, know I have been struggling with all the recent changes and sent me a package full of letters of encouragement and contentment devotional journal. Last year Kate’s word of the year was contentment as well so she had filled it out and underlined all the things that mean a lot to her. If you know me I love things for the personal touch and this definitely hit the nail on the head! As I opened the book I read the words encouragement about being content where God has placed it. The thing that stood out to me the most like the Lord was speaking directly to me what’s the challenge to pray
“Lord help me to want the things I already have.”
That sounds so simple but it was so life-changing to me. I have been so filled with discontentment., an unsettling in my heart, a lack of peace, a lack of joy! I struggle to find joy even a smile in a place that I really don’t want to be. A season of life I did not ask for. Yet, I have so much. Over and over I have lifted my voice to heaven when my " I want more" mindset creeps in. Laying in my bed, driving down the road, brushing my teeth, and million times in between I have had to beg God to change my heart to want the things I already have. It makes me feel so guilty not to be content. Especially since I choose content as my word of the year. Yet, in my weakness I get to see God's strength.
Sometimes I wonder how I got into the pattern of wanting more and not trusting God for what He's going to do where I'm at. The lies of the devil are real and they will trick you! They will you leave you empty thinking what God has given you is not enough. God alone is enough! Where He has put you is good enough. It is His plan. When I get super stressed out and worried about what I’m gonna do next, or my anxiety goes through the roof, I still must cling to the truth that God is in control. I have to choose to hold fast to His promises instead of my worrying nature!
Contentment is a challenge that God has had on my heart for months. At some point we have all struggled with the idea of being content with what we have right now.
To be content at the job you’re in.
To be content with the family you have.
To be content with the relationship you’re in.
To be content with the body God gave you.
To be content with the house God gave you.
To be content with the man God gave you.
Overall to be content with the answers to your prayers. I find it so funny that even once we get the answer we prayed for we still want more. Be honest, you've been there. I know I have. I seem to always want more.
I want more.
I want out.
I want change.
I want to stay.
I want love.
I want purpose.
Do you ever not want the answers anymore to the things you once prayed for? Yes, everything is for a season. And sometimes answered prayers are just for a season and then it is time to have something else. But do I spend enough time in a spirit of gratitude for the things that God has given me? Do I spend enough time praising His name for answering my small and big request? No. I don’t. Honestly I just don’t.
God is still working on me!
Here are a few verses to meditate on:
"But godliness with contentment is great gain, for we brought nothing into the world, and we cannot take anything out of the world. But if we have food and clothing, with these we will be content." 1 Timothy 6:6-8 ESV
"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." Philippians 4:12 ESV
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