Sometimes I wonder if anyone is content with anything. There is always something more, something better, something faster, something newer.
Multitudes of dating websites advertise “We can find that perfect person for you. Maybe you should dump the current one and check this out. The new one will be better.” The commercialization of life and prolific advertising creates a constant hunger for another life, different relationships, and more possessions—but all at a price.
It was Charles Spurgeon who said a 120 years ago,“It is a very rare thing to meet with people who say that they have enough.”
At the core of discontent is an unsatisfied soul, a soul out of touch with God.
I’ve been discontented many times in life. I’ve often realized too late that the new thing quickly became the old, and that nagging discontent came back. It never was about anything tangible. It was always rooted in a defective relationship with God.
Why did Jesus encourage his followers to give up everything—including their own life—to follow Him? Because He knew that only then would we have the greatest contentment of all—great treasure in heaven.
Contentment does not mean you never make any changes or improve something in your life. I am speaking of a core discontent that is like a nagging feeling which never goes away.
Jesus said, “I am the bread of life. He who comes to me will not hunger.” He will never have that nagging feeling that something in this life is not enough. Jesus is what the heart needs to be satisfied! Really, the message of Jesus is simple. “I am all that you need to be happy and contented.” That’s what He taught.
Why did Jesus encourage his followers to give up everything—including their own life—to follow Him? Because He knew that only then would we have the greatest contentment of all—great treasure in heaven.
Most discontent is a heart issue. My heart is not at rest. Some over-spiritualize and say, “The Lord is stirring me up.” Is He? Looking at their life you see a pattern of a life that is anything but led by the Spirit. The fruit of it is small because they are roving, restless, unsettled, unsatisfied.
Rabbi Hyman Schachtel said, “Happiness is not having what you want. It is wanting what you have.”
Jesus said it with a greater punch. “What profit will you get from life if you gain the whole world and yet lose your own soul?”
Don’t blame your discontent on advertising, on defective fellow humans, on your need for bigger/better/newer stuff or opportunities. The addicting need for “more” is spiritual. All matters of the heart can only be settled at the feet of Jesus. That is the place of contentment in life. That is enough. He is enough.
**The featured photo was generated by AI at freepik.com
