Being content is not talked about that much. There\u2019s not much profit in it. Companies want you to be discontent with your car so that you buy a new one. Major department stores want you to be discontent with your house so you buy things from them to fix it up. In short, if you are discontent, you tend to spend money.<\/p>\n
The other reason that being content is not talked about that much is that there is a common misconception that if you are content, you lose all ambition. No one wants to give up on their goals, dreams, and everything else they\u2019ve always wanted. That\u2019s just sad. But what if you could find a way to be content with your life where it is now and be content with yourself, while still working on making it better? It doesn\u2019t have to be an all-or-nothing scenario. <\/p>\n
Being Content Meaning<\/h2>\n
What does being content actually mean then, if it\u2019s not an all-or-nothing scenario? According to vocabulary.com,<\/a> contentment means \u201ca state of being happy or satisfied.\u201d But there\u2019s another\u00a0part that I think is more helpful. \u201cContentment isn\u2019t an excited kind of happy, it\u2019s more like a peaceful ease of mind. It\u2019s being satisfied with what you have, whatever that is.\u201d That\u2019s the essence of being content. <\/p>\n When I was starting my quest for contentment, I was reading my Bible and a certain being content scripture jumped out at me. It jumped out at me so much, it was one of the original taglines for this blog. <\/p>\n \u201cNot that I speak in respect of want; for I have learned, in whatsoever state I am therewith to be content.\u201d <\/em><\/p>\n Philippians 4:11 KJV<\/cite><\/p><\/blockquote>\n Wow! The words went right to my heart. But there was one word that seemed to scream at me. That word is \u201clearned.\u201d The Apostle Paul says he learned to be content in whatever state he was in. So, being content in your life is not because of what you have or what you don\u2019t have. It\u2019s not about the external circumstances that surround you. The Apostle Paul spent time in prison and under house arrest for preaching the gospel. That\u2019s not a very fun place or state to be in. But he still learned to be content. How was that?? He elaborates on that point in the next verses, ending with \u201cI can do all things through Christ which strengtheneth me.\u201d <\/em>(verse 13) <\/p>\n Do you know what else that means? It\u2019s possible for us (you and me!) to learn to be content as well, no matter our circumstances. When we set foot down that journey of being content, God will strengthen us. Not only is it something we can learn, but God will strengthen us while we are going through it! <\/p>\n If there\u2019s a big lesson in the Bible, it\u2019s usually in several different places. Here are some more Bible verses about being content.<\/p>\n \u201cBut godliness with contentment is great gain. For we brought nothing into this world, and it is certain we can carry nothing out. And having food and rainment let us be therewith content.\u201d <\/em><\/p>\n I Timothy 6: 6-8 KJV<\/cite><\/p><\/blockquote>\n \u201cLet your conversation be without covetoussness; and be content with such things as ye have: for he hath said, I will never leave thee, nor forsake thee.\u201d<\/em> <\/p>\n Hebrews 13:5<\/cite><\/p><\/blockquote>\n \u201cMy bretheren, count it all joy when ye fall into divers temptations; Knowing this, that the trying of your faith worketh patience. But let patience have her perfect work, that ye may be perfect and entire, wanting nothing.<\/em><\/p>\n James 1: 2-4<\/cite><\/p><\/blockquote>\n \u201cBetter is little with the fear of the Lord than great treasure and trouble therewith.\u201d <\/em><\/p>\n Proverbs 15:16<\/cite><\/p><\/blockquote>\n \u201cThe fear of the Lord tendeth to life: and he that hath it shall abide satisfied; he shall not be visited with evil.\u201d <\/em><\/p>\n Proverbs 19:23<\/cite><\/p><\/blockquote>\n When we first start questing for contentment in our lives, we start trying to fix what\u2019s wrong. I had a mental checklist of everything that I thought I needed to be happy. The trouble was\u2026 I had checked most of those boxes.<\/p>\n But I still wasn\u2019t happy.<\/em><\/p>\n Being content is not a checklist. It worked about as well as trying to have a mental checklist for \u201cWhy is my baby crying??\u201d (That doesn\u2019t work at all either, in case you are wondering. Sometimes they just cry and you don\u2019t know exactly why!)<\/p>\n Being content with your life is also not something that someone else can do. The other thing that I tried at first that didn\u2019t work was thinking that my husband could do something to make me happy. He tried \u2013 everything that he could think of- and we both ended up sad and frustrated.<\/p>\n If it\u2019s not a checklist or something that someone else can do for you how DO you start being content with life? It starts with cultivating self-awareness. <\/a>You can\u2019t fix problems if you don\u2019t know what they are. Self-awareness is characterized by wisdom, honesty, confidence, and humility. It will help you take a step back and look at how you react to things as well as what set you off. It\u2019s internal work that you do in your own mind. Sometimes it\u2019s downright messy and it involves a lot of stopping yourself. <\/p>\n There are different techniques to develop self-awareness<\/a>. Some of them involve journaling to reflect<\/a> or asking yourself personal development questions<\/a> while others involve actively listening to others<\/a>, observing your self-talk<\/a>, and becoming aware of your emotional triggers so you can respond instead of reacting<\/a>. <\/p>\n It\u2019s not easy, but it\u2019s worth it. Some days will be great and you will think you have it all figured out. Then something will happen and you\u2019ll feel like a monkey wrench has been thrown into all your hard work. It\u2019s picking yourself back up and trying again; going back in your mind and replaying things as you WISH it would have happened. It\u2019s reframing your thoughts to be more positive and focusing on the things that you can actually do something about. There are a lot of steps. I go through all of them in detail in quick little lessons in the Questing for Contentment Course. <\/a><\/p>\n Just like working out and exercising our natural bodies, all those little mental steps and work add up to big results, especially when you put them all together. <\/p>\n Absolutely not! Being content with your life does not mean that you totally stop, sit down and lose all ambition. How sad would that be?! Being content means that you still chase your dreams and pursue them, but you do not let them drive you to the point of discontent. It\u2019s a balancing act. You can be content with your life and still have goals, plans, and dreams. Being content does not mean that you stop moving forward; it just means that you are happy and peaceful along the way. <\/p>\n One of the common things that we try to do when we start our contentment quests is to try to fix it with stuff, which costs money. So we try to work harder to get more money so we can get more stuff, which leads to a vicious cycle of always wanting more money for more stuff. It never seems to be enough. So how do you start being content with what you have?<\/p>\n The first thing to do if you find yourself walking in a circle is to stop walking. This largely comes down to thinking through the consequences of your choices. <\/a>When you find yourself saying \u201cI need a new * fill in the blank *\u201d Ask yourself,<\/p>\n I\u2019ll give you an example \u2013 a while back, my van started giving me trouble. The check engine light came on and the diagnosis was it needs a new engine. A new engine is more than the van is worth at the moment. I could have taken it down to a dealership and traded it off right then and bought a new vehicle with new payments. But I didn\u2019t. I stopped and asked myself those four questions above.<\/p>\n I wanted to trade it off really badly, but my husband and I concluded that the van still works for the moment. We also have another vehicle, an old Honda Accord with 350K miles on it that we plan to use for our oldest son\u2019s first car. It burns some oil, but it\u2019s overall reliable. It\u2019s not going to win any beauty contests, but who am I trying to impress with my car? I can drive it to places I don\u2019t want to drive the van.<\/p>\n What\u2019s the purpose of a vehicle? To get you from point A to point B. Do both vehicles accomplish that task? Yes. Does it boost my ego to drive up in a car that\u2019s 15 years old? Nope. It\u2019s rather humbling and I\u2019m sure not impressing anyone with my vehicle. But both the van and the car are both functional. I didn\u2019t NEED a new car, I wanted a new car. (If I\u2019m being honest, I still want a new car, but I don\u2019t want the payments right now that come with one.)<\/p>\n So for now, I\u2019m content with what I have. I put my ego aside and I will enjoy driving a paid-for car that\u2019s fairly reliable. (It\u2019s 15 so it does have issues that pop up from time to time, but I have the other one to drive.) Do you know what else I discovered? That old car gets great gas mileage!<\/p>\n I will eventually get a new one when the time is right, but for now, I am content to wait. I thought through the consequences of my choices and I was mindful of my spending and what I\u2019d really rather have.<\/p>\n Being content is a feeling and state of mind. Are you going to maintain it perfectly? Nope. That\u2019s asking the impossible. You\u2019re going to slip up from time to time and that\u2019s just part of the journey. But You can certainly get better at it and be overall content with your life. I did it the hard way.<\/p>\n I first had to raise my self-awareness and figure out what the problems were. Then I researched them and found the answers and painstakingly applied each one. It\u2019s a lot of mental work that did not happen overnight. But while I was going through that I also had the thought of \u201cWhat if I\u2019m not the only one that struggling with this?\u201d If I ever get this figured out, I\u2019m going to share it!<\/p>\n It started with this blog, but more recently I put everything together into a course. Being content in every situation is a lot of small things all put together. Each one makes a tiny improvement, but the result of all those tiny steps is huge!<\/p>\n If you don\u2019t want to struggle like I did, I walk you through everything in the Questing for Contentment Course.<\/a> It\u2019s put together in bite-sized pieces so you can work on one thing at a time or binge-watch all the videos and put it together in less than half a day.<\/p>\n If you are in the same spot that I was a few years ago where you\u2019re sick and tired of not being content with your life, here are 5 things that you can do today to get you started. <\/p>\n I used to have a friend that told me \u201cYou worry too much.\u201d While I felt the truth of that statement, I didn\u2019t know how to fix it for a long time. At first I thought it was just affecting me. But I was wrong \u2013 my worrying was affecting my family too and how I interacted with just about everyone else. That\u2019s why this is one of my favorite lessons from the course. <\/p>\n I noticed that I always felt better after a walk outside and that it made me think better. There are many benefits to physical activity<\/a> as well as benefits to being in nature. It\u2019s calming, it helps reset our internal clocks, it helps release happiness hormones and a whole host of other things. If you find yourself needing a break, a walk outside is one of the best ways to restore yourself.<\/p>\n Speaking of walking\u2026. tell that mean inner critic of yours to take a hike too! We all talk to ourselves with an inner voice. Sometimes it\u2019s nice, but other times it\u2019s so mean! My inner critic would say things to me that I would NEVER tell anyone else. At times it would tell me I was fat, ugly, stupid, worthless, etc. No one deserves to be talked to that way \u2013 including you! Next time your inner critic comes up with that remember that it\u2019s a big fat liar fueled by insecurity. Intentionally tell yourself something nice instead with some evidence to back it up.<\/p>\n Ever feel like there are not enough hours in the day? Sometimes there aren\u2019t when we plan too much in one day and we don\u2019t prioritize what really needs to get done. Learning to manage your time and schedule well is a bit of a balancing act, but there are several ways that you can do this. That way you can feel accomplished and productive while still having time in your life to take care of yourself, and your family, pursue your hobbies, and just relax!<\/p>\n I don\u2019t know how to tell you about being more content with your life without God. He is my source of strength. I find when I take the time to spend some time with Him, reading my Bible, praying, and trying to think about what HE wants me to do and making the decisions that agree with his teachings my whole life is better. I\u2019m more content and happier. Everything is more peaceful. When God is first in your life, everything else falls into place.<\/p>\n \u201cContentment does not come from achievement.\u201d<\/em> \u2013\u00a0Paul Henderson<\/p>\n \u201cThere is no end of craving. Hence contentment alone is the best way to happiness. Therefore, acquire contentment.\u201d <\/em>\u2013\u00a0Swami Sivananda<\/p>\n \u201cIf there is any one thing that will bring peace and contentment into the human heart, and into the family, it is to live within our means.\u201d<\/em>\u2013\u00a0Heber J. Grant<\/p>\n \u201cHe who is not contented with what he has, would not be contented with what he would like to have.\u201d<\/em> \u2015\u00a0Socrates<\/p>\n \u201cHope combined with action is the only thing that will bring you contentment.\u201d<\/em> \u2015\u00a0Shannon L. Alder<\/p>\n Being content is not an exciting type of happiness. It\u2019s a peaceful state of being satisfied but it doesn\u2019t mean that you don\u2019t have dreams either. There are several Bible verses about being content and things that you can do to be more content with your life. I go over all of them in the Questing for Contentment Course, but the five that you can put into practice right now. They are to stop letting worry consume your life, spend time with God, go for a walk outside, tell your inner critic to take a hike while you\u2019re at it, and manage your time and schedule well so you have time for the things that recharge you. What\u2019s your best secret for being content? Leave a comment below! <\/p>\n Being content is not talked about that much. There\u2019s not much profit in it. Companies want you to be discontent with your car so that you buy a new one. Major department stores want you to be discontent with your house so you buy things from them to fix it up. In short, if you […]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":324975,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[151924,151925,151926,100359],"tags":[7222,3333,5454,8023],"dealstore":[],"offerexpiration":[],"class_list":["post-324974","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-being-content","category-contentment","category-more-content","category-personal-growth","tag-content","tag-life","tag-start","tag-ways"],"yoast_head":"\nBeing Content Scripture<\/h2>\n
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Bible Verses About Being Content with Yourself<\/h3>\n
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Being Content With Life is Not a Checklist or Something Someone Else Can Do<\/h2>\n
![\"Being](\"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/contentmentquesting.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2022\/12\/Being-content-lake.jpg?resize=1024%2C576&ssl=1\")
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How Do you Start Being Content With Life?<\/h2>\n
![\"Questing](\"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/contentmentquesting.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2021\/05\/Questing-for-Courses-2.jpg?resize=1024%2C576&ssl=1\")
<\/a><\/figure>\nDoes Being Content Mean that you Stop Chasing Your Goals and Dreams? <\/h2>\n
Being Content With What You Have<\/h2>\n
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An Example of Being Content With What You Have<\/h3>\n
![\"Being](\"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/contentmentquesting.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2022\/12\/Being-content-bench.jpg?resize=1024%2C576&ssl=1\")
<\/figure>\nBeing Content in Every Situation<\/h2>\n
5 Things You Can Do Today to Start Being More Content With Your Life<\/h2>\n
1. Stop Worrying too Much<\/h3>\n
2. Take a Walk Outside<\/a><\/h3>\n
3. Tell Your Inner Critic to Take a Hike<\/a><\/h3>\n
4. Manage Your Time and Schedule Well<\/h3>\n
5. Spending Time With God<\/h3>\n
Being Content Quotes<\/h2>\n
![\"Being](\"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/contentmentquesting.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2022\/12\/Being-Content-clouds.jpg?resize=1024%2C576&ssl=1\")
<\/figure>\nThe Last Thing You Need to Know About Being Content<\/h2>\n
Related<\/em><\/h3>\n<\/p><\/div>\n\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"