3 Ways to Fight Discontentment
Let your conversation be without covetousness; and be content with such
things as ye have: for he hath said, I will never leave thee, nor forsake thee.
-- Hebrews
13:5, KJV
Contentment is something I think everyone struggles
with. We aren’t content with our
situation in life. We aren’t content
with our job. We aren’t content with our
wardrobes. We aren’t content with our
food. We aren’t content with our
instruments (ouch!). Get the picture? We always seem to need more.
Struggle with discontentment?
You’re not alone. The Israelites
were discontent (Exodus 14:11-12, Numbers 21:5). Jonah was obviously discontent with his
calling (Jonah 1:2-3), and then again when God took away his shady plant
(4:6-9). Gideon was discontent with the
first sign God gave him, and asked for another (Judges 6:39). The disease of discontentment is not rare.
Contentment does not come naturally. We have to make a choice each day to be
content. And although it is difficult,
it is not impossible. Here are 3 ways to
fight against the temptation to be discontent…
1 --- Count
your blessings. The truth is, God
has given us above and beyond what we
need (Ephesians 3:20). And not only does
He provide for your basic needs (food, water, clothing, shelter), but He also
gives you so many extra little blessings!
Raindrops, sunsets, cool breezes, fresh air, the warmth of the sun,
shade, laughter, family… He has blessed us with SO much! He loves us and delights in showering us with
blessings. If you’re feeling discontent,
I challenge you to go sit outside in God’s creation, with a journal and pen,
and list all of the blessings you can think of that God has given you. I hope you come to the conclusion that you
have a wonderful, gracious God who is so good to you!
2 --- Share
the burdens of the needy. We live in a
first-world country filled with the evidence of wealth. But sadly, abundance is not really
reality. There are millions of people
who struggle to merely get by. They live
in poverty, they are homeless, and they are hungry. Many of them don’t even know that God loves
them! Like the Proverbs 31 woman, extend
your hand to the needy. Help those
around you who are “less fortunate.” Put
yourselves in their shoes, and be humbly grateful for what God has given you.
3 --- Make
your time with God a priority.
So many young ladies struggle with contentment when they are of
marriageable age and Prince Charming isn’t anywhere on the horizon, but this point
applies to any area of discontentment, not just singleness. Make sure you are spending plenty of time
with the Lord each day. Fall in love
with Him, and you will find a God who is more than enough. You will find a God who is good and who has
the best plan for your life. You will
find a God who will never leave you or forsake you. You will find true, lasting contentment in
Him. That’s a promise.
Do you struggle with being content?
How do YOU fight against discontentment?
Thanks for this post, Grace. Actually, this week contentment has been on my mind, so this fit in well.
ReplyDeleteThank you Joy! I just love how God's timing is so perfect :)
DeleteThis post was so true. Contentment is something I struggle with too and the points you had really are so true. We live in such wealth and abundance, and yet we complain about how we want new clothes, when we have a whole closet of clothes we don't even wear for instance. Helping the poor and needy is a passion of mine, and it is easy to forget that here in the US there are homeless and people with no hope because they don't have Jesus. I watched a video about people when they have big events, all the food left over, they would call an organization and that organization would come and pick it up and distribute it to homeless people and people in situations like that in that area! I thought that was so wonderful, because so many times when I throw away food, I think of people who don't even have food... as the saying goes, you can't change the whole world, but you can change it for one person. That really inspires me, and even just smiling at someone, you never know what an impact that will have on them!
ReplyDeleteYes, spending time every day with our Savior is so important. Reading God's Word is reading His love letter to us, and He loves us so much! He died for us. So, anyways, I'm kinda off the topic of contentment, but it all centers around it! When we fight discontentment and live content in Christ, our eyes are open to the needs of others and are not centered on our silly wants. Thanks for the great post! =)
Great thoughts, Livy. Thank you for sharing! I think that's interesting how that one organization gives all the leftovers to homeless people. There are so many ways we can bless people with food!
DeleteAgreed -- spending time with God is ESSENTIAL!
I love how you put it: "silly wants." Because, that's essentially what they are! I know that I'm so often guilty with wanting more music/instruments (that's why I mentioned it in my post!) and although I am so very thankful for the music and instruments I already have, I know that the money I save for instruments could be put to a much better use somewhere else. I'm currently praying and waiting for God's direction on where He wants me to tithe/donate money to.
Wow, great post, Grace! This was so encouraging :) You've got a beautiful heart. I really appreciate you sharing it with all of us :)
ReplyDeleteAww thanks so much Bella! <3 I'm glad it was an encouragement. It was something I needed to remind myself of, too! ;)
DeleteSo true! I find myself struggling with discontentment so often! Even when we're satisfied we don't notice all of the little things God has given us, so when we're discontent, it's even worse! We'll never know every single little thing our amazing God does for us, so we might as well be content, especially since we have so much! More than we'll ever know! Thanks for sharing! This was so good!
ReplyDeleteYou're welcome, Grace. Thank you for sharing your thoughts! We are so blessed, beyond comprehension.
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