The world thrives on the accumulation of stuff, positions, and titles. Parents hear their children clamor for the new shiny toys. Amazon personalizes potential buys for individuals and even discounts monthly purchases. Retailers deliver goods to doorsteps, allowing discontentment to develop from the comfort of the couch.
Christians agree that contentment is a good discipline to have in their lives. Agreement and practice, however, are not the same thing. Contentment in the Christian’s life is not simply a matter of personality, upbringing, or present socio-economic status. It’s a matter of obedience to Christ. It is exhibited through practicing generosity, living based on eternal values, and developing a community of gratitude.
The Puritans thought and wrote much about this area of godly living. Two short Puritan books on Christian contentment are worth the time to read and to apply: Jeremiah Burrow’s The Rare Jewel of Christian Contentment and Thomas Jacomb’s How Christians May Learn in Every State to Be Content. Both can be purchased via Amazon (the irony is not lost on the author).
As you wait for those classics to be delivered at your doorstep, below is a beginners guide for cultivating contentment.
Repent of the Sin of Discontentment
Discontentment, complaining, greed, and envy are sins against God. God gives good gifts, including jobs, homes, transportation, food, and relationships. A heart that is poisoned with discontent is in rebellion against God who gives gifts generously, purposefully, and continuously to His children. Christians who find themselves in a lifestyle of grumbling and discontent must first repent of their sinful attitude. Excuses of “mid-life crisis” or special circumstances are a failed masking of high-handed revolt against a holy and gracious heavenly Father. Developing contentment starts with repenting of discontentment.
Verbalize Thankfulness
While repentance is the starting place, a second necessary step to grow in biblical contentment is to verbalizing thankfulness. Proverbs tells us that life and death are in the power of the tongue (Prov 18:21). The believer’s words should bring grace to the hearers (Eph 4:29). The Apostle Paul practices this at the beginning of many of his letters with long lists of thanksgiving (eg. Phil 1:3–11). Or as the hymn writer wisely wrote, “Count your blessings, name them one by one.” Battling discontentment and developing gratitude involves verbalizing the blessings to bring joy, health, and thankfulness to those around us.
Practice Generosity
A third way to combat dissatisfaction and grow in godly contentment is to practice generosity. Generosity moves the heart, mind, and attention away from self toward others. Generosity that produces contentment should not be limited to monetary gifts. Christian generosity extends beyond the wallet to time, skills, words, and hospitality. Sacrificing time to serve and help another believer helps foster contentment. Opening homes to shelter and welcome others develops a heart of kindness within our current surroundings. Being generous with gracious words is yet another way to kill the sin of discontentment and grow in godly contentment.
Mature Community
A fourth practice that builds contentment in the Christian life is to surround yourself with a mature church community. The author of Hebrews tells believers to not forsake gathering together but to look for ways to encourage one another on to love and good works (Heb 10:25ff). One of those good works is putting off the sins of greed, envy, and selfish desires and putting on Christlike contentment. Believers who have learned contentment should encourage other believers to practice contentment in the stage of life they find themselves. Mature Christians should correct discontentment in love and help others development healthy habits of gratitude.
Conclusion
Jeremiah Burrows called contentment a rare jewel. Indeed, even today, contentment is scarce. Christian contentment should be pursued as a jewel of great price by individual believers and local church communities. Contentment is not natural but must be practiced purposefully through continual repentance, vocal thankfulness, generosity, and within a maturing church body.
