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We went to church this past weekend and I seriously feel like the Lord was speaking directly to me.  Don’t you love it when that happens?  I sure do!  These past few weeks I have been struggling with being content in life.  Really it affects every aspect of life.

For example: Right now I’m not content with how our house is set up to do school so I needed to change things around…again  :).  Or maybe you aren’t content with the way your bathroom looks so you go out and buy new curtains and towels to “freshen” it up.  Or  you see your friends getting a new “thing” and instantly you want that!  You can’t see how you can live without it until you get it.  I was at Target grocery shopping yesterday and I was overhearing a couple discussing a box of “Auntie Annes” pretzels.  The wife was kicking herself for mentioning it to her husband because all I heard was “So you are saying that I shouldn’t have said anything at all?”  And he replied with “No, no you shouldn’t because now I really want it and will be really frustrated if we can’t have it.”  All over a pre made mix of Auntie Anne’s pretzels.

At church, I loved some of the quotes that I wrote down from the sermon that spoke about being content.  I’d like to share some of them with you….

1. “If you are never satisfied with what you have… You will never be satisfied with what you want.”
–Pastor, Greg Laurie–

How true is that above statement!  You see something new and then you absolutely have to have it.  Even though my TV works perfectly fine, I MUST have the new, bigger TV that makes things just a little bit easier.  I just get so frustrated at the way our mindsets are these days.  Bigger is better, and I have to have it now!  I remember growing up… you didn’t replace anything until it was busted beyond repair.  And even when you replaced it, it wasn’t new.  It was used.  I need to learn to be satisfied with what God has given me, because I certainly have been blessed with a ton of stuff that I just take for granted every day!

2. “Contentment isn’t the state of your bank account.  It’s the state of your heart.”

I tend to find myself feeling bad when we are struggling.  I tend to find myself desiring more when we are blessed.  In Philippians 4:12 & 13 it says “I know what it’s like not to have what I need.  I also know what it’s like to have more than I need.  I have learned the secret of being content no matter what happens.  I am content whether I am well fed or hungry.  I am content whether I have more that enough or not enough.  I can do everything by the power of Christ.  He gives me strength.”  I want to make sure that I am honoring God in all circumstances that I find myself in.  I want my desire for Him to be bigger than my desire for more stuff.  I want people to be able to see that my faith in God was bigger than my struggle.  When I don’t feel happy or joyful in a particular period of time, I need to lean on God and ask him to fill me with HIS joy.

3. “MORE is like a black hole because “more” is never enough.”

I don’t know how many times we fall into this trap.  We go out and get the “more” that we wanted and  are content for about a week, until we realize that we now need to get even more stuff to feel content. We need to LEARN how to be content.  We are not born as a content being, we are born wanting more and more and more.  I want to be able to teach my kids that having “more” doesn’t always lead to happiness.  A lot of times it leads to feeling more empty and frustrated.  I want to teach my kids to thank God for what they do have before they feel like “more” stuff needs to be added to their lives.  I want to breathe 1 Timothy 6:6-8 into their lives “You gain a lot when you live a godly life.  But you must be happy with what you have.  We didn’t bring anything into the world.  We can’t take anything out of it.  If we have food and clothing, we will be happy with that.”  I want them (and myself) to be happy with the things we have.  If it was all taken away from me tomorrow, and all I had left was my family and the clothes on my back I will be joyful.  Because in the end what really matters?  Is it all the stuff that I have purchased that is now gone, or is it my family?  I want to break that trap of “more” and teach my children to find true happiness in Christ.  In relationships.

So my challenge to you is to find time to thank God for what you do have.  Grab a piece of paper or a notebook and just start writing!

Many Blessings,
Heather C.