Remaining Content in Occasions to be Discontent

Each day we wake knowing this is the day the Lord has made (Psalm 118:24). Days turn into weeks. Weeks into months. a Year is an accumulation of the individual days the Lord has made. Not all are good. Not all are bad. But, mixed we can count our many blessings and hopefully be content. And, wow, what a year, 2020 has been.

Reading the Scriptures Paul wrote from a dark, dreary, damp, dirty prison cell, I am amazed he would be content, and exuberate joy. He had his eyes fixed on Someone greater than his present circumstances.

“Not that I speak from [any personal] need, for I have learned to be content [and self-sufficient through Christ, satisfied to the point where I am not disturbed or uneasy] regardless of my circumstances. I know how to get along and live humbly [in difficult times], and I also know how to enjoy abundance and live in prosperity. In any and every circumstance I have learned the secret [of facing life], whether well-fed or going hungry, whether having an abundance or being in need. I can do all things [which He has called me to do] through Him who strengthens and empowers me [to fulfill His purpose—I am self-sufficient in Christ’s sufficiency; I am ready for anything and equal to anything through Him who infuses me with inner strength and confident peace]” (Philippians 4:11-13, AMP, Emphasis mine).

I like what my friend, Cullen Chrestman, mentioned in one of his messages to my local church, “Some of the things that frustrate us the most are sent directly from God to impact us the most.”

Nick Batzig in “A Marathon Mentality for Ministry” blog post said, “Contentment in ministry is the secret of endurance in ministry. Pastors must learn to be content with what hand God has dealt them.”

A famous violinist, Itzhak Perlman, with a broken string in the middle of the concert continued on, “You know, sometimes it is the artist’s task to find out how much music you can still make with what you have left.”

He is also attributed to saying, “It is my gift and my joy to make music with what remains.”

Remember contentment is an attitude. I try to remember any time I become discontent with what others have, and I don’t, it is bordering on envy.  I don’t want that in my life…at all. Praise God for the blessings He is giving to others.

Here are a few other tidbits of advice:

• Resist fear.
• Trust God.
• Develop an attitude of gratitude.
• Count your blessings.
• Take advantage of the time and seasons.
• Embark on a new project or two. Doing something nice for someone else will hopefully lift your spirit.
• Find joy in what you already have.
• Seek God.
• Study God’s Word.

Someone has said, “A contented heart is a calm sea in the midst of all storms.”