Contentment

Contentment -  satisfaction; ease of mind.

I could make this a 1 mile long blog post but I think I will chop it into segments.  LOTS to talk about on this subject and I don't want to start your Monday off by taking up too much of your time.

your welcome.

So, we heard an amazing message about "Contentment" this weekend, an hour lesson that should needs to be aired on the radio, shown on television, posted to the internet..heck tattooed on our arm as a constant reminder to be happy with what we have instead of always wanting more.

If you got this message in a fortune cookie, you'd think about it, so maybe cut & paste it, print it out and think about it now:

"It is better to be satisfied with what you have than to be always wanting something else." Ecclesiastes 6:9

The facts are the facts and unfortunately, we are all guilty of comparing ourselves to others and thinking we need more. It is our dang culture, the media, our own insecurities, it is natural...dang Adam and Eve had to go screw everything up...so don't beat yourself up about it too much. 

For us personally, it is a daily arm wrestle with the boys talking CONSTANTLY about who has what and how much it was and "knowing" that if they could have it...life would be so much better. Little do they understand that what they have is really so much more than they need and so so much more than most have...and shoot, living inside the "Orange Curtain" where "life" is portrayed on a Bravo realty show does not help.

DANG IT!...uggh...that is an entire different blog post.

Life is NOT about things...We might think that it is..but it is not.

We NEED to learn to enjoy what we have...instead of wishing for more.

Wanting brings causes more fatigue (yes, more than we already have from multiple games on multiple fields, carpool, laundry, working, more carpool, having teenagers, more games and still more laundry)

Wanting brings on more anxiety because the more you have, the more you worry, duh!  (I am happy that my car is older so that when the surfboards, boogies boards and 10 feet from 5 boys leave sand EVERYWHERE, I do not have to freak out. THEY just vacuum it out.  NO biggie. It doesn't mean that I don't have to take care of my car, it just means I do not have to stress out about it)

Wanting brings on expenses. We all have regular expenses to pay for..why add more to the pile??? I have NEVER shared our personal financial info here but will tell you that we are credit card free, usually broke after we pay what we need to pay for ( I am an artist, remember?) but credit free...and have been for MANY years. If we don't have the $$$ then we do not buy it. Plain and simple.  Can I shout Hallelujah???!!!!

Wanting causes conflict.  Seriously, if you don't have it to worry about..you won't fight about it either.

Wanting causes dissatisfaction and you can't buy happiness. amen. Some think you can, but you can't.

As I sat in church yesterday and listened to the message, I thought about where I was four years ago, driving through Sowato, in South Africa and how it changed my heart completely.

This is a photo I took as I walked on the opposite side of the street.  I felt guilty for taking the picture but I was just so stunned. It took my breath away.  

I am certain that this is contentment. They have dinner. Maybe even for two nights.

 
We have NO idea how blessed we are.

Seeing this picture again is going to make me stop complaining about how much laundry I have to do.

See, I told you this could go on for a mile....

Remember, life is not about things...Focus on what will last.

 
 

Comments

[Kendyl]

Amen and yeeaah baby!
What a great way to start the week....
Kendyl

[Debbie]

I love your doodlings! I pinned your 2 Corinthians verse on Pinterest with a link back to you.

[Jen Clark]

Oh, how I need this reminder over and over and over!! I TELL it to my kids, and with everything BUT my art supplies, I demonstrate it...but then I am ALWAYS wanting, wanting, wanting this new stamp set or that new stencil or Tim's latest Sizzix dies or these new whatever I learned how to use. Sigh. It's TERRIBLE. I waste ENTIRELY too many hours looking at things online that I *want* when I could be LIVING MY LIFE actually CREATING things with the things I *have*. Thank you for the wonderful, much needed reminder!