Its 5 a.m. and I am in L&D waiting for a baby to make its appearance and I totally content. What are your thoughts on contentment? Perhaps you feel contentment as you watch a football game with your family after a big Thanksgiving dinner or when you watch your grandchildren excitedly race to find what Santa has left them on Christmas morning or when you take a walk on a crisp autumn day with colorful leaves wafting downward as they are sent on their earthbound journey by a gust of wind. One of my most contented moments was experienced when we were vacationing in Hawaii with my parents. Early one morning, I got up at the crack of dawn and walked out the back of the hotel and sat in the dark on the beach with the water gently lapping at my feet while I watched the sun rise over Diamond Head - such an awesome feeling came over me! Contentment means satisfaction, happiness, ease of mind. Yet so many people I see are far from being content. They tend to focus on what they dont have and on the bad things in their lives. Biblically speaking, we are told to be content in every situation (Phil 4:12-13). Paul remained content despite hardships and very painful circumstances because he knew God was ever present. Although I realize it is hard to feel contented when you have a mountain of debt over your head, have lost your job, have experienced the loss of a loved one, have lost your home, have been seriously injured, etc., there is great beauty in being content with what you have and who you are. I always have my eye on a goal but this does not mean I am not content. I am content with who I am, with what I have and with my life, but I just happen to be the type of person who is goal-oriented, who enjoys a challenge and who enjoys the journey. The goal is not the most important thing, but rather, the journey because this is ultimately what defines me and makes me who I am as I endure hardships and difficulties along the way. I stand on the promises of Isaiah 43:2 as I work my way through the valleys of my journeys. Contentment, then, is not a matter of being content with your situation in life and never trying to improve it. As humans, we will always try to improve things, regardless of how happy we are, because, if we dont, we have given up on life and cease in our pursuit of the journey. Aristotle said that Happiness is self-contentedness. You choose to be happy or unhappy. Unhappy folks tend to focus on the bad things in their lives (I call this the Eeyore complex). Dale Carnegie once said It isnt what you have or who you are or where you are that makes you happy or unhappy. It is what you think about. I think there are ways to achieve contentment in your life: (1) Count your blessings. The fact is, that, if you concentrate on what you dont have, you will never have enough! Dr. Seuss said it this way: Just tell yourself, Duckie, Youre really quite lucky! (2) When you are unhappy with someone, stop and remind yourself to be happy with that person for who they are, accepting their perceived faults as part of the whole package! (3) Take time to review and appreciate your life. (4) Show people you appreciate them! Think how good you feel when someone does something nice and totally unexpected for you?!? (5). Learn to enjoy the simple things. Gods gifts put mans best dreams to shame. (Elisabeth Barrett Browning) May blessings rain on each of you today. It appears Ill be spending my church time in labor and delivery today!
Posted on: Sun, 09 Mar 2014 10:08:11 +0000
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