Contentment

My favorite Shakespearean sonnet is #29.  I'll let you find it and read it for yourself if you're interested, but the main idea is that the speaker is unhappy with his lot in life. He feels that other people are better looking, smarter, and more skilled. He claims that even God isn't listening to him.

I think most of us have felt that way at some point in our lives. It's so easy to put ourselves down and notice how well others are coping, how well-adjusted their children are, how nicely their hair is done. I generally have a pretty good self image, but I can't help wishing, at times, to have "this [woman's] art and that [woman's] scope," as the Bard says. This is one reason I enjoy the poem; it's so completely universal.

But it gets better. The speaker, in the midst of his gloom, happens to remember someone who loves him, and it completely changes his mood. He likens his situation to that of birds singing and says he wouldn't change places with kings.

What a blessing to have someone who can make that kind of difference. But what if you live alone? What if your family won't talk to you? What if you have no friends?

While it's hard to imagine that there isn't one single person who raises your spirit this way--a person who cares for you and would love to hear from you--it is possible that you feel completely alone. Hebrews 13:5 says this: " . . .be content with what you have, for He has said, 'I will never leave you nor forsake you.'" It's true that the context in Hebrews is speaking primarily about being content with the money you have, but the reason for this contentment extends to every area of life: God will never leave you.

I Timothy 6:6 says that "godliness with contentment is great gain." Contentment. Not wishing to be someone else, have someone's else's job, house, kids, husband, wardrobe. This kind of life is priceless.

I hope you have a great week, but in those rare moments when discontent begins to creep in, I pray you remember One who loves you. He is the one who gives you all good things, and He knows best.

--Sherry Poff