What is contentment?

Contentment is to decide to be happy under all circumstances.

“¹¹Not that I am implying that I was in any personal want, for I have learned how to be content (satisfied to the point where I am not disturbed or disquieted) in whatever state I am. ¹²…I have learned the secret of being content in any and every situation.”

Philippians 4:11-12 (partial free translation)

Contentment arises from an attitude of appreciation. It is of great value to protect us against errors of judgement, for instance, not pursuing wealth. Contentment should not be influenced by a strive for more or better.

“⁴Enter into His gates with thanksgiving and a thank offering and into His courts with praise! Be thankful and say so to Him, bless and affectionately praise His name! ⁵For the Lord is good; His mercy and loving-kindness are everlasting, His faithfulness and truth endure to all generations.”

Psalm 100:4-5

Praise is a mighty weapon against discontentment. To worship and praise God is a command, and it allows us to proclaim our appreciation for God’s endless goodness. Contentment brings deep rest to your soul.

Because the Israelites often complained and grumbled against God, only two people, Joshua and Caleb, could enter the Promised Land with the new generation.

“²³Surely they shall not see the land which I swore to give to their fathers; nor shall any who provoked (spurned, despised) Me see it…. ²⁹Your dead bodies shall fall in this wilderness–of all who were numbered of you, from twenty years old and upward, who have murmured against Me…” 

Numbers 14:23, 29

In the well-loved Afrikaans song by Koos du Plessis called “Gebed” (in English: “Prayer”) he expresses his desire for God to take him to His peaceful waters. It is freely translated as follows:

What I am is only by grace. What I have is only borrowed.

I am yearning for Your peaceful waters.

Lord, lead me there.

Contentment can only be found in God.

All scripture references are from the Amplified Bible, Classic Edition unless otherwise stated