A couple weeks ago, I shared one of the lessons God has been teaching me lately: that I don’t have to allow someone else’s emergency to become my own. Today, I want to share a second lesson God has been teaching me, and it’s all about discontentment.

The Real Cause of Discontentment: When What You Have Isn’t Enough

For some reason, this past year, I’ve battled discontentment a lot. It seems like even though my husband and I are both working now, finances are still tight. Granted, neither of us work at high-paying jobs. But still…I think I assumed that if I went back to work, our finances would loosen up.

I assumed that when I went back to work, we would have more freedom financially…more chances to eat out like it seems everyone around us does…more chances to buy things without having to worry about the cost.

But the truth is, we still live on a very tight budget. Some of that is by choice. We are choosing to fund our retirement. We are choosing to save for emergencies. We are choosing to not have credit card debt. These choices – even on a dual income – require a budget. And living on a budget isn’t a bad thing. Not at all.

But it can be discouraging when you’re surrounded by people who don’t seem to have the same restrictions financially that you have.

Then again, what God has been teaching me lately is this:

Discontentment isn’t necessarily an issue of how much or how little you have. Discontentment is an issue of your heart. 

I could have the nicer house I want with the wood floors and the extra bedroom (instead of the small house with the frayed carpet and the small bedrooms) and still be discontent. I could have the nicer car and still be discontent. I could have the better paying job and still be discontent.

Discontentment isn’t about what you have. It’s about how you feel about  what you have. 

The truth is, if we are going to compare ourselves to those who have more than us (or who seem to have more), than we should also compare ourselves to those who have less.

Because really, we are rich. (Maybe not by American standards, but certainly by the world’s standards).

If you’re going to compare yourself to those with a lot, you’d better also compare yourself to those who have little.

This past year, God has helped me understand that I will only be content in this life if I start choosing to be content.

Just as I mentioned in my last post that it’s my choice to be stressed or not, it’s also my choice to be content or not.

It’s my choice because I get to choose what to focus on.

I can focus on what I don’t have and on what others do have. In so doing, I choose discontentment. Or, I can focus on the blessings in my own life, and choose contentment.

Discontentment stems from a heart that’s focused on the wrong things: a heart that’s focused on what you DON’T have and on what others DO have.

Contentment, on the other hand, stems from a heart that chooses gratitude: a heart that realizes that even if you don’t have a lot, you still have enough.