Cultivating Contentment in a World of Stuff

I once read about a missionary family who were facing difficulties and had limited provisions. Worry, discouragement and unhappiness plagued them. Until one day when their young son prayed before lunch.

“Thank you Lord,” he prayed. “Thank you for everything we have. Thank you for our family, for our house, for our clothes, for this good food. And for our beds, and the table and the chairs, and the dishes and the glasses…”

His parents, thinking that he was messing about, were about to stop him. Until they realized that he was praying from a sincere heart that was overflowing with gratitude. That simple heartfelt prayer reminded his parents of how much they had. And it restored their contentment, trust, and gratitude.

Contentment is elusive

Contentment is often defined as: being happy with your life situation. So, since most of us here in the developed world have everything we really need, and more, we should be oozing with it. Yet, we seem to be perpetually discontent.

Contentment is such a simple thing, yet so difficult to achieve. A. W. Tozer, in the following quote, gets at the root of the problem.

There is within the human heart a tough fibrous root of fallen life whose nature is to possess, always to possess. It covets “things” with a deep and fierce passion.

A. W. Tozer, The Pursuit of God

Contentment does not come automatically because of our innate desire for things. True contentment must be cultivated — but we often lack the necessary tools for doing so.

“The pronouns “my” and “mine” look innocent enough in print,” Tozer continued, “but their constant and universal use is significant. They express the real nature of the old Adamic man better than a thousand volumes of theology could do. They are verbal symptoms of our deep disease. The roots of our hearts have grown down into things, and we dare not pull up one rootlet lest we die. Things have become necessary to us, a development never originally intended. God’s gifts now take the place of God, and the whole course of nature is upset by the monstrous substitution.”

However, with God’s help we can uproot these desires and learn to cultivate deep abiding contentment. So let’s uncover some basic tools for achieving this!

Six basic tools for cultivating contentment:

1. Count your blessings.

This may seem trite, because we’ve heard it so many times before. However, remembering how much we already can help us realize that we don’t need more. Especially because many of us have so much stuff that we can’t keep up with it or even keep track of it all!

2. Don’t take things for granted.

Like that discouraged family, we often take too much for granted. Our soft beds, our bulging wardrobes, our ticking hearts, and even the air we breathe. We often assume these things will be there and fail to recognize them as wonderful provisions.

3. Realign your core values.

Contentment is challenging in a world of constant hype. However, with healthy values in place we begin to see that everything involves some kind of trade-off. Shopping requires longer working hours. More possessions mean more cleaning and care. Added activities lead to less rest and sleep. More technology means spending less time with loved ones. And so on. Having more or better things does not necessarily improve quality of life.

4. Understand that ‘enough’ really is enough.

Resisting all the sales and marketing is a constant challenge. Advertising makes things seem enticing, valuable, and necessary. But if our homes, wardrobes, and cupboards are already full to bursting, why buy more? Wanting everything we need to live a decent, dignified and purposeful life is healthy and normal. However, if our happiness depends on acquiring more and more, it may indicate that our priorities are misaligned.

5. Pursue generosity.

Christ teaches us to be generous not only because helping others is the right thing to do, but also because it opens our hearts. The things we allow into our lives capture our hearts to some extent. By giving things up and sharing them with others, our hearts are freed to soar towards better and higher things.

6. Set your priorities straight.

We all need material things in this life, and we always will, but they cannot bring true or lasting happiness. If they could, then millionaires and business moguls would be the happiest people on the planet, but often they are not. Instead of seeking material things, strive to live a purposeful life and make a difference in the world however small.

Nothing in this world can bring true, lasting contentment. We are created in God’s image, and we will never be fully satisfied by earthly things.

The things we allow into our lives have captured our hearts to some degree. Letting them go frees our heart to soar toward better and higher things.

Signora Sheila

📷 Image credits: watering can; flowers in vase | flowers on graphic