How To Be Content
Did you know that in the midst of chaos and crisis, we could be content in the midst of it? No matter the circumstances, we can have a smile on our face and joy deep down in our hearts.
CONTENT - adj - a state of peaceful happiness
- verb - satisfy (someone)
- noun - a state of satisfaction
I am convinced that in a world full of self-gratification, instant solutions, and multiple choices, it is tough to even grasp that contentment is possible if we don't always have life our way.
I can recall a time in my life when I didn't have transportation. I was separated from my ex-husband and he came to get his car back. Guess what I had to do? Take the bus. I had never really taken the bus before. Growing up, there was always someone to give us a ride or moms had her car. Honestly, I am surprised that I made it through that season lol. I mean you know, buses aren't "ideal" because as people say: they're dirty, homeless people use them, "weirdos" ride the bus. But God is sooo good. I took it and was at least grateful. I HAD A RIDE TO WORK!
I would plug my headphones in everyday and play gospel music. It literally kept me lifted and high in the midst of my season. There are a few songs that bring me to tears today because I remember replaying them to keep my mind and tongue in a state of gratitude. I will share them with you: Trip Lee - Sweet Victory , Sevin- Everything , Benjah - Never Quit , just to name the top three!
It was tough! I worked at a Bank of America vault in downtown Nashville at the time and we had an irregular schedule. I would go in as early as 9am and wouldn't leave til about 7pm and sometimes later! The worst days were when the weather wasn't on my side. I had to take the bus in the rain, snow, storms, etc. I didn't have an option like everyone else, except a few times my coworker would give me a lift. And to add, the bus didn't take me to church. :( But I had joy down in my soul despite my circumstances! By God's grace the bus route was a straight shot, the bus stop was right across the street from my apartments and there was one right in front of my job. This was a plus for me because I'm a 'PYT' and I don't need to be walking all by lonesome when I had to leave work late. Oh yea, the pettiest thing happened too, the bus driver left me while I was walking to the door!!! I knew she was a pretty uptight lady, but c'mooonn, she was purposely petty that day. The next day she told me that I shouldn't have been looking at my phone.......... Man I wanted to &*%$# words I shouldn't say lol.
After a few months, my ex-husband came to Nashville to purchase a cash car for me, thank God. And it ended up breaking down after a month :( At this time in my season, I was struggling to remain content but God still provided for me. I had a new job with a better schedule and a few coworkers pitched in to help me get back and forth since the bus route wasn't possible for my new job. And then God made a way for me to get my first car! I always wanted a coupe, and it's blue, my favorite color.... well the papers say it's green but it's blue to me! lol blue-green is a color right?
There is no formula for being content, as God deals with each of us differently, but I will point out what helped me in these tough seasons:
Reading what the Word of God says about contentment. Philippians 4:11-12, Hebrews 13:5, 1 Timothy 6:6-8, Matthew 6
Listening to Gospel music. We need to be mindful of what we're feeding our brains and what is internalizing inside of our hearts. Proverbs 4:23 says out of our hearts flow the issues of our lives and then Jesus goes on to say in Matthew 15:18 that the words we speak all come from our heart and they are what defile us.
Writing down things you are thankful for. At work I would use the sticky notes application to post a note on my desktop with 10 Things I was thankful for. This really helped because every time I used my computer (which was all day) I would see it and it helped me not to complain on the job. Below is a photo I snapped before I quit, I knew it could minister to someone out there.
Can you think of 10 things you are thankful for? Post your TOP 3 in the comments and I challenge you to use sticky notes to pin the rest :)
#contentment #howtobecontent #Imgratefulfor #bethankful #godprovides