How To Find Contentment In Everyday Life

Many people struggle to find contentment and genuinely enjoy life. It took a trip overseas for me to realize what I had been missing, and what I discovered resonated with the Bible.

Parisian Lesson

The first time I visited Paris- well before smart phones-I found myself paused at a streetlight while my companion consulted a map, trying to figure out where we needed to go next. As I waited, something seemingly ordinary caught my eye-but it’s stayed with me for over thirty years.

Two well-dressed French business women stepped out of a McDonald’s of all places, holding their “to-go” lunches. They made their way to a nearby park bench and began what appeared to be a daily ritual. With quiet ease and precision, they laid out their lunch: the sandwich wrapper became a placemat, the fries and drink arranged just so. They sat facing each other, fully absorbed in conversation. The food was relished slowly as if it was the highest French cuisine. They took small bites, pausing often to talk, laugh, and connect. Ten minutes passed. I was still standing there watching as they were fully present, enjoying a simple lunch, unhurried and content. It wasn’t what they were doing or what they were consuming, their joy seemed to solely lie in their relationship- their friendship- and they were fully engaged, giving of their time and attention. That brief moment opened my eyes.

Contentment Can’t Be Found In Hustle Culture

Hustle culture is still at it’s peak in America. Wake up at 5 A.M., do your morning routine, get more done before noon than your neighbor. Breaks are for the weak. We must eat lunch at our desk or don’t eat at all- the work must get done.

What I noticed when I travel to other countries, is enjoyment of the everyday- especially connection around the table. It was later during the same trip in Paris, that my companion and had our hustle mindset illuminated.

Like typical Americans, we began eating the moment the first course arrived, forks clutched tightly until the plates were clean. A nearby Frenchwoman remarked with a knowing smile, “Look at those Americans, they hold on to their forks for dear life, always rushing.” My initial reaction was “We have places to go, exhibits to see!” But then it dawned on me, enjoying a meal anywhere should be an experience to be savored. We are blessed to have a meal, blessed to have someone to enjoy it with and blessed to have a break. Why aren’t Americans waking up to the insanity of it all? Time is not money. Time is life, and life should be lived by giving and receiving love- through connection, communication and time. We are commanded to “Love your neighbor as yourself” and yet we rush our interactions.

“Teacher, which is the greatest commandment in the Law?”

Jesus replied: “‘Love the Lord your God with all your heart and with all your soul and with all your mind.’ This is the first and greatest commandment. And the second is like it: ‘Love your neighbor as yourself.’ All the Law and the Prophets hang on these two commandments.” (Matt 22:36-40)

We simply cannot show love and kindness to another unless we slow down and take time. That intrusive comment by the French woman bothered me enough to stay with me. I began paying closer attention to the pace of life around me, not just in France but in every country we visited. I saw people strolling, not rushing and enjoying their families and friends. Small meals were savored, conversations lingered. Hotel rooms were tiny, yet embraced. Cars, apartments, even wardrobes were modest by American standards, but the lives seemed full of joy and civil. They had time, or rather, they took time to be content with what they had and to intentionally enjoy everyday life.

Nose To The Grindstone- The Best Way To Ruin Your Family

It seems that everyone’s nose is to the grindstone- as they say- pushing, working, and shuttling children to sports practices, squeezing in a load of laundry whenever a spare moment appears. Americans are always hustling. Even Sunday, the one day meant for rest and renewal, is increasingly consumed by out of town sport tournaments. Parents have little time to relax in the homes they worked so hard to purchase or enjoy their beautiful wardrobes. Instead, our oversized closets are filled with clothes we rarely wear, because comfort becomes the priority as we rush from one obligation to the next.

And do I even need to mention the family dinner hour? Many children don’t even know what that is anymore. Meals are eaten in the car between practices, or alone at the kitchen bar, whenever there’s a spare moment- often with one child eating by themselves while mom is driving a sibling to another activity.

Scripture paints a very different picture. God’s design for the family assumes shared, daily life. “These commandments that I give you today are to be on your hearts. Impress them on your children. Talk about them when you sit at home and when you walk along the road, when you lie down and when you get up.”(Deut 6:6-7 NIV) The table was meant to be a place of presence, teaching and unity. “Your children will be like olive shoots around your table.” (Ps 128:3)

This hurried, fragmented lifestyle is sad. It’s unbiblical. And it creates the perfect environment for fractured families.

The Choice

Later in my life I had a choice to make after I found myself single with two young daughters. Would I go back to work full time to keep up approximately the same lifestyle I had when married? My dream was to be mostly a stay at home mom while keeping my “big toe” in my profession until they were grown.

I decided, during one morning Bible study, to pose this question to the Lord: “Should I sign a contract to have a set paycheck?”

A contract would have required me to work at least three- 12 hour days per week and have no control over my schedule. I remember telling the Lord to make sure I knew His answer, I didn’t want to miss it!

As I opened the Bible my eyes turned to Luke 3:14 “Be content with your wages.” Wow! An exact verse for my question. I knew, that no matter what, God would provide for me as He has described in His Word.

“Look at the birds of the air; they do not sow or reap or store away in barns, and yet your heavenly Father feeds them. Are you not much more valuable than they? Can any one of you by worrying add a single hour to your life.”(Matt 6:26-27 NIV)

We Must Lose Our Life To Save It

As the years marched on and my expenses increased with the increasing need of my then, 16 year old high school daughter- a car, insurance, gas etc. I wondered again if I should work more. I once again posed the same question to the Lord and received the exact same Bible verse. This scenario was to be repeated about seven times as my P.R.N. status as a nurse anesthetist gave me very inconsistent work. Even during Covid, when I was out of work for a full 3 months WITHOUT PAY, (all contract employees continued to get a paycheck), I trusted the Lord to provide- at times trembling inside as I counted on the Lord’s provision.

“…work out your own salvation with fear and trembling”(Phil 2:12)

Salvation is not a one time event that happens when we die. The born again Christian is in the process of being sanctified. We learn how to live life as Jesus taught. The term “working out” in this verse implies perseverance in trusting God over our circumstances, living by faith not by sight. We may tremble at times because of uncertainty and lack of control but God is serious. All true followers must give up their life and follow Him.

“Then Jesus told his disciples, “If anyone would come after me, let him deny himself and take up his cross and follow me. For whoever would save his life will lose it, but whoever loses his life for my sake will find it. For what will it profit a man if he gains the whole world and forfeits his soul? Or what shall a man give in return for his soul?”(Matt 16:24-26)

I knew I was following the Lord at this point, and there was no turning back.

It was a very unsettling thing- at that time- to fully trust the Lord and not the wisdom of the world. Forget maximizing my savings for retirement in my 40’s and 50’s. I wasn’t privy to any matching program or health insurance and yet I did the best I could with the income I had. I knew that tithing to my church protected my income- it’s God’s law- therefore, to skip tithing during the sparse years was out of the question. God leads Christians to lean on Him and not their understanding. And when we do, He will step in.

“Trust in the Lord with all your heart and lean not on your own understanding; in all your ways submit to him, and he will make your paths straight.”(Prov 3:5-6)

The post Covid years has brought me more than enough work. At the same time, I maintain flexibility in my schedule because I chose to follow the Lord’s leading and not sign a contract. This allows me control over my schedule in order to step away when needed- such as when I am called on to watch my grandson. God provides, in His timing not ours.

The Road Less Traveled: Stepping Out of Hustle Culture

The road less traveled requires faith. God’s way is counterintuitive to the way the world operates. Humanity desires control, instant gratification, constant pleasure and self-sufficiency. But if we stop for a moment and look around, we see the futility of it all. Our soul is truly yearning for connection and love.

First, and foremost we yearn for the love of our heavenly Father- althought we may not know it. And His love can only be felt when we engage in a relationship with Him through His Word, meditation on His Word and prayer.

It may take observing a different culture when vacationing, it may take suffering, or loss; but eventually there will come a time when the Holy Spirit within us, gets through. Then our hearts will be open to His leading and realize what truly matters- a daily connection with our Savior first and foremost and then with our family. This aligns perfectly with His two greatest Commandments: Love the Lord your God with all your heart, soul and mind and love your neighbor as yourself. (Matt 22:37-39)

So if you haven’t yet, begin the journey of understanding who our Lord is, the promised blessings He won for us at the cross and how to avoid succumbing to the enemy’s lies of self sufficiency and hustle culture. We have a Savior and His name is Jesus Christ. And He promises us everything, if we seek first His Kingdom and His way of doing things.

“Seek first the kingdom of God and everything else shall be added unto you.” (Matt 6:33)

“I publicly proclaim bold promises. I do not whisper obscurities in some dark corner. I would not have told the people of Israel to seek me if I could not be found. I, the LORD, speak only what is true and declare only what is right.”(Is 45:19)

For more on this, read “Seven Ways To Be a Present Parent” here

Food For Thought,

Lisa