Dearest sisters, may I share something with you that too many of you are just completely and utterly unaware of?  I have come to the conclusion that there are just too many women who are so very naive to the concept that I am about to share with you here and now.  How can women embrace a concept with all their hearts, souls and minds when they are completely blind to it?    

Did you know dear ladies that contentment and joy go hand and hand with each other?   You truly cannot have one without the other.  You must choose to be content just like you must choose to be joyful.  Contentment is NOT based on our circumstances just as joy is NOT based on our circumstances!   Contentment is determined by our choice to be content, it is NOT determined by those around us   It is so sad to see that so many women of today are not content with their lives and they fail to be content in their roles as wives and mothers the very purpose they were created for.  Satan tricks them into thinking that they are missing out on something in life.  That there has to be more to life than being a wife and mother.  But that is so untrue ladies.  How much more content and joyful can one be then when they are fulfilling the very purpose in which they were created for.  How is it that satan has gotten such a stronghold in the lives of our women of today?  Dearest ladies choosing contentment is something we must be willing to do.  There are many reasons we must do this.  Will you dear ladies allow me to share the reasons why contentment is an absolute must in your life?

^{1 Timothy 6:6-8}But godliness with contentment is great gain. ⁷For we brought nothing into this world, and it is certain we can carry nothing out. ⁸And having food and raiment let us be therewith content.

Do you ladies see that the Lord instructs us to be content for the mere reason that we have food and raiment (attire/clothing)?  He also tells us that being godly with contentment will bring us great gains (benefits/rewards).  What more can we ask for dear women?   So many of you are saying right now, “Why should I be content”?  She has no idea the things I have to endure in my life. She has no idea what my life is truly like.  My husband is unloving, uncaring, and selfish.  My children are unruly, ill-mannered, selfish, they bicker, whine and are just plain lazy.  Dearest ladies, I understand all these things and I can see your frustration.  But I still must stand on the grounds that you MUST be content in your present circumstances regardless of your situations.  The situation regarding your children can change but it must first start with you.  The situation with your husband can be brought to the Lord in prayer.  But neither one of them are excuses to ignore Gods instruction in His Word.  Being content and being joyful is what God instructs us to do.  Rejoice in the Lord always and again I say rejoice!  Who are we to argue with God?  God does not tell us to be content only if your life is a bed of roses.  NO ladies He tells us to be content for the mere fact that we have food and clothing.  In Gods eyes that is enough of a reason for us to be content.  He tells us that we will gain great rewards for following His instructions. 

When we choose contentment and joy for our lives dear ladies you will be absolutely amazed at all the things that will follow with time dear sisters.  We must never allow our circumstances to determine how we will feel, ever.  Emotions can and will ruin us if we let them dear ladies.  I believe that is why God instructs us to be joyful and content by choice and not due to what is going on in our lives and how our emotions may be feeling at any given moment.  Our moods change too fast and what kind of life would that be if everybody lived by how they were feeling at that moment?  When we choose JOY we will be CONTENT.  When we choose to be CONTENT we will find JOY.  Do you see how these two things correlate with each other dear ladies?  Do you see why they must go hand in hand?  When we allow ourselves to be content, regardless of what life deals us, we will find true happiness.  We will be filled with JOY.  You will be amazed and astonished at just how happy you can and will truly be! 

We must realize that we will have our good days and we will have our bad days.  That is just real life dear ladies.  We must learn to go with the flow dear ones but going with the flow doesn’t mean that the flow determines where we will go. Oh no ladies that is not the case at all.  Does that make sense dear ladies?  The stream that flows is doing nothing more than following the path that God has determined for it to follow.  If the stream tried to flow in a different direction than where God created it to flow it would not be successful, it is only going to succeed if it goes in the direction it was made to go.  We can learn so many lessons just by watching the nature that God has placed around us dear sisters.  Remember that it is important for us to choose to be content even when the chips are down.  As long as we follow the direction God has for us we will always be capable of obtaining contentment and joyfulness in our life.  It is when we fight Gods ways that we will be disappointed, unhappy and full of discontent. 

The best way, dear ladies, to get you to see what I am talking about is for you to allow me to give you some examples to observe.  Let’s start with how you feel when your man comes home from work and it seems as though he is snapping at you?  How does that make you feel dear ladies?  I am sure many of you are thinking YEAH, that is exactly how my man is and I can definitely tell you that I do not like it at all when he does that.  I think it is wrong for him to take his bad day out on his family, and especially on me.  Well ladies even though that may very well be true, you must remember that this is between your man and God. This does not give you a wild card to be discontented.  If you yourself don’t like to be treated a certain way then why in the world would you behave in that manner yourself?  If you don’t like your man taking his bad day out on you then maybe you shouldn’t take your bad days out on others.  Dearest ladies can’t you see that this is exactly what you are doing when you choose to be discontent.  You are allowing your day to rule your feelings and your behavior which in turn causes you to take things out on those around you.  When you choose to be anything other than CONTENT or JOYFUL you are choosing to disobey God and you are choosing to allow your emotions to rule you in life.  That is not fair to your children or your husband dear ladies.  If you do this then you are doing the very thing that you complain about when it comes to your man.

 How about your children dear mothers?  What do you do when you see your children being discontent dear ladies?  Would you agree with me ladies that it looks bad?  Does it cause you to not want to be around your children?  Are you sure to take the time to correct them dearest mothers and tell them that it is wrong for them to be discontent and that it is unacceptable behavior?  If you do not correct them dearest mothers you are doing your children a great injustice.  You are literally causing them harm.  Teach your children, while they are still young, to NEVER let their emotions rule them regardless of what life brings their way, dearest mothers.  Instead give them a tool for life.  Teach your children that the Word of God instructs us all to be content for no other reason than the mere fact that we have food and clothing.  Isn’t that enough reason ladies?  Too many of us take the simple things of life for granted a little too often!  I believe that we should each teach our children to appreciate all the things that God has given to each and every one of us regardless of whether they are big or small.  But that is another post for another day.

May I share something very humbling with you dear ladies?  It is not always easy for me to catch a fault of my own dear ones until that same fault is revealed through one of my own children’s attitudes or behaviors.  We all have blind spots and that is why we must be willing to have loved ones, like our husbands, point out our blind spots to us in love.  Sometimes I may hear one of my children say something and I will stop and think now where on earth did they get that from?  Oh dear ladies how naïve and blind I realize I can be when it comes to me seeing my own faults and weaknesses.  But unfortunately by then it is already too late because my child has now already learned this poor attitude/behavior from me.  Yes, it is true, that you can retrain a child dear ones but wouldn’t we be giving our children so much more if we were able to just follow Gods Word and obey his commands on what we should and should not do? My children would never learn to be discontent if they never would have seen me be discontent.  Do you see my point here ladies?  So when I see these faults in my children I stop and I ask the Lord, “Lord, where on earth did my child get this poor attitude or behavior from”?  It is then that the Lord reveals to me that they got this fault from watching me.  After the Lord reveals these things to me, it is then that I am then able to take off my blinders and catch myself in the act if and when I happen to make that same mistake again.  Whenever I fail my heart just sinks and I immediately stop what I am doing and ask God and my children to please forgive me for my sin and to please help me change that sin in my life.   When you behave a certain way ladies the best way to evaluate if this attitude is a proper is one you must first ask yourself would I want my man or my children behaving the way I am behaving right now?  Is what I am doing displaying true contentment or true joy?  Would I behave this way if Jesus was standing right beside me (which He is but we tend to forget that since we cannot see Him).  Lastly would I be doing this if an acquaintance or someone I was trying to impress were to be standing right beside me at this very moment?   These are the best self checks you can do ladies.  Who you are is who you are when NOBODY is looking dear ladies!  Did you hear that dear mothers?  If you were in the middle of yelling at your child and the phone rang or somebody came to the door, I can guarantee you ladies, that most if not all of you would stop at that very moment and you would choose to behave in an appropriate manner towards your child and towards the person you just encountered.  That just proves that you are completely capable of CHOOSING Contentment and Joy because of the fact that you were able to stop and change your attitude within a split seconds time.  Isn’t that proof enough ladies that your attitude is a truly a choice?!  Unfortunately too many ladies only choose to behave appropriately when they know others are watching.  But let us not forget ladies that our Heavenly Father is watching us at all times and what He sees and thinks is all that matters nobody else determines our eternity!  The problem is ladies that most of us CHOOSE to NOT be Content or Joyful.  But if you are able to do it for the sake of appearance then that proves you are capable of doing it on a regular basis dear ladies.  It is a choice that God instructs us to make and you must remember that He instructs us to do so for our own good dear ladies!  God only wants what is best for us!  Do you believe that dear mothers?  Do you believe that your Heavenly Father wants what is best for you?  Think about it dear ladies, don’t you want what is best for the dear children that the Lord has entrusted to you?  You wish them no harm, you want only what is for their own good!  When you tell them to do something you are telling them for their own good.  You are telling them because you know it is best for them and you know that they will benefit from it. Teaching our children from a young age as I said will only bring Gods best for them that much sooner in life. 

My children are so very Content and Joyful.  Let me share an example with you dear ladies.  My twins play in a play yard that is always right by us.  We do this in order to keep their funnel small and appropriate for their age.  When a child has too much freedom it brings insecurity into their lives.  Now we allow them out of this play yard and we spend time training them.  But we like to keep their playing area small for the sake of keeping their boundaries in a confined area.  If they are not in this play yard they are on a blanket, a rug or in a chair.  There are times we will let them walk around but only for a short period of time.  Anyway that topic is another post for another day.  When my twins watch me take out their other sibling but leave them in the play yard that does not cause them to be discontent.  They are content and joyful as they happily watch the other one, who is being held by me, or by someone else have fun with us.  They interact with us all from right where they are at.  They watch their sibling walk around or being played with by me or by their other siblings.  Sometimes they try to join in from in the play yard and sometimes they just go about playing by themselves.  They will smile at us all and they are completely content right where they are at.  Do you know why this is so ladies?  The reason is because we don’t allow them to behave otherwise. They know it is their siblings turn to be out of the play yard and to be with us and that their turn will come after their siblings or maybe not until another time. They know that to whine and complain will only get them nothing and it may even cause them to lose their turn completely.  Sometimes I will put the one I am holding down and then automatically get the other one.  I will not do that, dear ladies, if my children show discontent or a lack of joy.  Another example is birthdays or times of no occasion at all.  If I buy something for one child or it is one child’s birthday we all rejoice with that child.  Each child is excited and full of joy for their sibling who got the gift.  Never will you see them jealous, envious or discontent that they didn’t get something themselves.  The reason for that is because they are happy for their siblings and they know they will get their turn when their birthday comes.  The reason they feel this way ladies is because my husband and I have taught our children to be CONTENT and JOYFUL! 

So my question is dear ladies what are you demonstrating in your home?  Are you Content and Joyful dear mothers or are you discontent and lack joy in your life?  Read my post on Joy ladies and apply it along with this post regarding Contentment in your life and watch your life transform before your family and your own eyes dear mothers.  Forbid your children to model anything other than contentment or joyfulness.  Forbid the same things for yourself!  You can be Content ladies!  You can be joyful too!  You can and you must dear ones and I would love to help those of you that need some guidance in getting there! 

Dearest mothers wouldn’t you rather be content than discontent?  Wouldn’t you rather be joyful than lacking joy in your life?  What do you gain when you are discontent dear ladies?  Maybe you get an ulcer; does it cause headaches, heartache, depression, frustration, anger, lack of peace, bitterness, lack of patience, and so much more?  But when we are content mothers we experience joy, peace, patience, cheerfulness, health, a joyful heart, meekness, a quiet heart and so much more.  Which would you want to choose ladies when you see it presented in the manner I just presented it?  How and why would you be discontent when you see all the damage it causes in our lives?  But when you see the great gains the Lord speaks of by choosing to be content doesn’t it spark your desire to want to obey His command?  When you see what it has to offer why in the world would you choose anything other than obedience to Him and His ways dearest sisters?   

Contentment is a choice dear ones!!!  Joy is a choice!  May I challenge you dear ladies to repeat these two phrases all throughout your day?  Every time you desire to be discontent or lack joy remind yourself that contentment and joy are a choice and you must choose them for yourself!  Remind yourself if this was my child how would I want them to behave right now?  I will be honest with you ladies, as I always am.  These changes will not happen over night.  It surely could if the Lord chose to make it that easy for you.  But for most of you it will not happen over night.  It will take time and work on your part.  Anything worth having takes time and effort ladies and you must remind yourself of that concept over and over.  You can do this and you must!  I believe in each and every one of you!  I trust and believe that you are all capable of doing this and that you will all succeed in doing so.  Don’t give up before trying just because it seems too hard dear sisters.  There will always be hard things we must do in our lives dear sisters.  What would you tell your child if they were faced with a situation like this and they had to make a choice.  How would you direct them dear mothers?  Making the choice to be content and joyful will be one of the best most amazing decisions you will ever make in your life.  This choice holds your future dear ones.  Don’t you want to be around to see your children grow up ladies and to also watch your grandchildren come into the world and also grow up?  Well there is a good chance you won’t be around for all those things if you destroy your health by choosing to be discontent and lacking joy dear mothers.  What will you choose for your own life starting now?  Let us choose to be content and watch how you will reap what you sow!  Choose life dear sisters!  Be who you were created to be!  Embrace your role as wife and mother!  Embrace contentment and joyfulness!  Embrace life and love it with all your might!   All things are possible with God ladies but we will not succeed if we try to do things on our own!  We must allow God to change us from the inside out if we truly want to be successful!  It will be a slow process but worth every minute it takes to change.  Remember this ladies for it is easy to fall into the devils trap and to try and succeed on our own.  But we will fail and with God we shall be successful!  Now get on your content and joyful shawls ladies and let’s take back what the devil has stolen!  Remember ladies our children grow up so fast.  Don’t be one of those ladies that looks back and regrets her life and the decisions she makes.  The devil will try to guilt you and he will try to cause you to live with guilt for all your mistakes.  That is why it is important to not let him win.  Take hold of what he is trying to steal from you now and rub your content and joyful heart in his face.  The devil tricks us into doing wrong things.  He makes them seem so enticing and rewarding at that very moment.  But he is also the first one to rub our nose in our mistakes the moment we make them.  So don’t be a victim of the devils destructive ploys anymore dear sisters!  NO LADIES be a successful content, joyful wife, mother and servant of God!  You can do this sisters!  I am cheering for you!  If I can help I am here for you!  You are not alone in this journey of finding contentment and joy!

Mark 10:27 ²⁷And Jesus looking upon them saith, With men it is impossible, but not with God: for with God all things are possible.

Philippians 4:13 ¹³I can do all things through Christ which strengtheneth me.

Dearest Lord,

I pray for each and every one of these women who need and want contentment and joy in their lives!  They need you Lord; they need your strength and your guidance in reaching and obtaining this goal that you have given to us in your Word.  Lord you would never give us more than we can handle.  So the fact that you instruct us in your Word to be content and joyful means that it is obtainable.  There are so many times dearest Father that it seems so hard to obtain that content and joyful heart.  When we feel discouraged that is nothing more than the devil trying to trick us Lord and steal the very thing you want us to have.  Please dearest Lord be with each and every lady here. Help them to become all you intended for them to be.  Help them set the tone in each of their homes Lord and help them be the amazing wives, mothers and servants you intend for each and every one of them to be.  I thank you Lord for your love and for you guidance!  In Jesus name I pray Amen!