Our call, as God’s children, is to be content with what we have. In the book of Hebrews, God tells us to keep ourselves free from the love of money and be content with what we have, for He Himself has promised never to leave us or forsake us. (See Hebrews 13:5) He also says we can learn contentment as Paul testifies. (See Philippians 4)
Contentment.
That evasive place we are called to, but spend our lives trying to find.
Living in the moment.
Being satisfied with what we have.
Being satisfied that the abundant life we are promised is found in relationship with God Himself.
So why is this such an evasive place to find and abide in?
Comparing myself to…everything
In my world, there are constant advertisements, social media moments, and people telling me there is more and more money to spend on things and experiences. The voices tell me that what I have, who I am, and how I am living are not enough. I find myself thinking that I am not enough.
Let’s be honest with ourselves. How many times do you or I compare ourselves to others? How many of us even know we are doing it?
We see the perfect lives of people on facebook or other social media outlets. They are on vacation, at the museum, buying a new car, moving into a big home, all with their good looking, perfect husbands and children.
We then look back at our own lives. I look back at mine. I am not skinny like she is. I am not aging as gracefully. I fight with my husband. My children don’t know what to do with their lives. I drive a 10-year-old car. My life starts turning into a miserable country music song. I see the lives of others and I look a little too long at what others have and I become dissatisfied.
Looking back at Egypt
The Israelites suffered from this greatly when they left Egypt and kept looking back. A spirit of complaint arose within them when they longed for the food of Egypt. Even though it was a life of slavery, the longing for what they had in Egypt eclipsed what God was providing for miraculously. If you read the verses in 1 Corinthians 10, we are given warnings not to fall as the Israelites had fallen, for when they complained it destroyed them. (see verse 10).
So what do we need to do to walk in contentment and satisfaction?
Put on the Blinders
Horses have peripheral vision, so this means they can end up going off course unless they can stay focused on the track ahead. Blinders – or small squares of firm leather placed at the side of the horse’s head – help horses stay focused. Horses wear blinders when racing, plowing, and pulling wagons to keep them headed in one direction without getting distracted or going off course. Blinders reduce the chances of the horse being spooked and making a run for it.
Just like horses, we need blinders. We need to remain focused, NOT looking to the lives of others: their stuff, finances, bodies, or lifestyles. Blinders that keep us from comparing ourselves to others are exactly what we need.
What are these blinders made of?
Prayer and New Sight
Asking God for His sight blinds us to “the other side of the fence”. As I seek God and focus on His love, His ways and His life, I begin to understand that despite how inadequate I feel, He tells me that I am His. I may not be enough for others or for the circumstances, but He is. It is not about me being more, or having more. It is about being with Him. A recent and beautiful devotional by Sharon Jaynes says it like this:
Whatever positive characteristic we feel we are not, God is. Whatever we need, God is. He is the God who fills in our gaps; He is I AM who fills in our blanks.
When we say, “I’m not strong enough,” God says, “I AM.”
When we say, “I’m not smart enough,” God says, “I AM.”
When we say, “I’m not good enough,” God says, “I AM.”
(https://proverbs31.org/read/devotions/full-post/2018/04/02/when-you-feel-youre-not-enough, April 2, 2018).
I am enough in Christ. I need His sight to see this, so that I may remain focused on my relationship with Him – who He is and who I am – not on the lives of others. It is then I can be content with what I have, because I have the God of the universe and He has me. Knowing that He is enough in me to meet every challenge and be in every relationship brings me to contentment.
Gratitude and living in the moment
Blinders are also made of gratitude. Learning contentment comes from practicing gratitude, where I find I live and stay “in the moment”. Look at your life, and just say thank you. Say thanks to God, to family, to friends. Thank God that He makes you enough because He is enough.
The other morning while the ice rain fell and the calendar said April 16, when it should have been warmer and we were experiencing winter in spring for what seemed to be the 105th day of January, I stopped to listen.
I had been bustling and thinking and planning. But I stopped. I sat and listened to the crashing sound of the ice falling from the branches. It was beautiful. It was meditative, and I found gratitude rolling up from my heart out of my mouth. In the midst of it all, the crashing ice brought peace. And I lived in that one moment with thankfulness.
I found contentment.
God says we can learn contentment. No matter where we walk or how we walk there, contentment can be found.
So put the blinders on, spend time with Your Creator and ask for new sight, and say thanks. This fruit will bring more to your life than comparing ever could.
Rebecca van Noppen is Communications Director at More Than Enough. She is also a teacher, home educator, writer, and woman who loves to pray. She works alongside her husband, Financial Coach David van Noppen, to help others find hope and freedom in Christ on their financial journeys.