15 Ways to Live a Life of Contentment

Have you ever noticed someone who seems to have everything, the big house, new cars, lots of new “stuff” and plenty of money, yet they seem to be miserable?  Then you see people who are living very modestly or even poor and they seem to be the happiest people on the planet.  Why is that and what is the difference in these two types of people?  Well, I would say it has less to do with material possessions or circumstances and everything to do with their mindset.   Contentment doesn’t come naturally to human beings.  We have to learn ways to live a life of contentment.

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What is Contentment?

Contentment is a state of happiness and satisfaction.  In the Bible, the Apostle Paul realized contentment is an attitude we learn and not a thing we achieve.  Paul didn’t have an easy life.  He spent a lot of time in prison for preaching the gospel, yet he kept Christ central to his thinking.  He had a strong commitment to serve Jesus and he knew he was spiritually blessed.  Therefore, in the face of all this adversity, he was content (Ephesians 1:3).

Contentment is knowing God’s plan for you and believing that his peace is far greater than any problems your dealing with.  It’s an attitude of the heart.  Once it’s been transferred to God, contentment will naturally come.

There are several ways we can work on ourselves to try to attain a life of contentment.  In addition to asking for God’s help in prayer, we can try to change or adjust our attitudes.

We sometimes think bigger is better or the more we have, the better off we are.  This can’t be further from the truth.  Developing this kind of attitude will cause you to go broke.  In today’s society, we’ve become accustomed to being known or revered for what we own.  The sad part is, once we become accustomed to living a certain kind of lifestyle, it’s very hard to step down from it.  It’s why we have a crisis going on in this country, today with debt.  More and more people choose to chase after happiness and contentment with accumulating more stuff, only to find emptiness, unhappiness and discontent.

“Until you make peace with who you are, you will never be content with what you have.” ~Doris Mortman

In my own life, I have been guilty of being discontent, from time to time.  Not so much with material things, but with circumstance in family life.  I’ve caught myself thinking “If only he would do this or that” or “If she would’ve only listened”.  Like most people, I’ve caught myself trying to do too much, be too much or getting frustrated with myself when things don’t work out the way I had planned.

After a lot of soul searching and praying, I have come to realize that I am responsible for me.  My actions and my attitudes are mine alone and that’s all I’m responsible for.  When I catch myself falling into this mindset, it usually means I’m worrying about something that I have no control over or I’m trying to keep up with too much.  I have to remind myself that worry is a sin and I need to let God handle it.  And you know what?  When I do this, that feeling of contentment comes back and puts my mind at ease.

15 Ways to Live a Life of Contentment

So, I’ve given quite a bit of thought to this subject of contentment and have discovered the things that can help put us on the path to living a more contented, happier life.

Be Grateful

One of my favorite quotes is from Rachel Cruze.  She nailed it when she said “In a heart filled with gratitude, there is no room for discontentment”.

When your grateful, you can’t help but see all the blessings around you.  A grateful heart leads to happiness and peace.  This is what happens when we count our blessings.  Appreciate what you have and don’t dwell on what you don’t.

Stop Comparing

Comparing your life to someone else will always lead to discontentment.  So many of us get sucked into the world of social media. We see the highlight reels of others and wonder why our lives aren’t as seemingly perfect as theirs.  What we don’t see is what real life is like.  We always compare the worst of our lives to the best of what we assume others lives to be like, but what you see on Facebook or Instagram is not the whole picture.

We all need to remember that we are who we are.  Nothing’s going to change that.  What we can change though, is how we live our lives.  We can always strive to be better versions of ourselves instead of wishing we were someone else.  No one’s life is perfect.  Be thankful for what YOU have and who YOU are.

Live Life in the Here and Now

So many of us get stuck in the past or worry about what’s going to happen in the future.  I’m definitely guilty on the future thing.  I’ve had to have serious talks with myself over the years about obsessing about what might happen in the future.  Again…it’s called worry and it’s usually worry over something that I nor anyone else has any control over.

When I stop projecting into the future, imagining the worst and just deal with problems as they arise, life is much better.  Live one day at a time.

We can definitely learn from the past, but leave it there.  It’s gone…over…finished.  For the future, it’s perfectly fine and acceptable to set goals.  It’s what makes us want to get up in the morning.  It’s ok to look forward to things.  But what most important is to enjoy and cherish what you have now.  So many times, while we are living in the past or obsessing about the future, we miss what’s going on in the now and we lose sight of our blessings.  Be thankful.

Money Won’t Buy Happiness

So many times, we look to “things” to make us happy.  It’s a form of self medicating.  Sure, when you buy something that you want, you feel that feeling of euphoria.  Unfortunately, it is short lived, though.  It’s basically an illusion that money and wealth bring happiness.

Now don’t get me wrong.  Money can certainly make you more comfortable and make life a little easier, but true happiness and contentment run much deeper than that.  It comes from inside.  Things are just things.  If you’re life is not being fulfilled spiritually or emotionally, no amount of things is going to fill that void.

Simplify/Declutter

There are a dozen ways to simplify your life.  It’s a proven fact, when you simplify and declutter your life, you have less to stress about.  Well, how do you do this, you ask?  Well, first of all, if your living with too much stuff, it can be overwhelming, to say the least.  Sell, donate or throw away what you are truly not using.  Keeping stuff around because you may need it someday is not healthy for you emotionally or physically.

Try to eliminate what causes you stress in your day to day life.  Learn to say no if you are already over extended.  I started doing this many years ago and I was amazed at how much simpler and contented my life got!  It’s ok to do that, you know!

Does social media or the news stress you out?  Turn it off!  Again, I’ve had to do this.  I became so caught up in the news around election time, that I almost became non functional for a brief period.  Turning off the t.v. and getting offline can be a great way to destress and add sanity back into your life.

Do What You Love

Find your passion.  What would make you want to jump out of bed and get going with your day?  When you find what your passionate about, it will bring about contentment.  Whether it’s a hobby or your job (mine is decorative painting and now, blogging), find that certain thing that makes you happy.   I always told my children to find something they love doing, then try to figure out how to make a living at it.  I know sometimes that’s easier said than done, but when you love what you’re doing, all of the sudden, you don’t mind getting up and going to work. If it’s not your job that your passionate about, at least try to find hobbies that you can’t wait to participate in.

Say No To Perfection

Striving for perfection is one of the fastest routes to unhappiness and discontent.  Why?  Because there is no such thing as perfection.  Simply put, it’s an illusion.  When you try to be perfect, it’s a sure sign that you are worrying more about what people think of you, instead of just being who you are.

Perfection has a way of stopping you from living a contented life.  It stops you from making good things happen for fear of failing. Think about that.  If you’re a self proclaimed perfectionist, how many times have you stopped or refused to start something because you might fail at it?

Try to replace your pursuit of perfection with a pursuit of contentment and see what happens.  That’s not to say give up on making things happen in our lives.  That just means don’t go overboard and obsess if it doesn’t turn out exactly as you plan.

Connect With People

I know I keep repeating myself, but get off of social media and connect with people!  It’s a proven fact that having a social life makes you happier.  Having a solid circle of friends makes for a better quality of life.  Unfortunately, your Facebook friend count very seldom reflects a true total of your social circle.  A few close friends are worth way more than a hundred acquaintances.  Don’t neglect your true friends.

Surround Yourself With Happy People

We all know that happiness is contagious.   Surrounding yourself with happy, positive people can only lift your spirits and help you see the world in a better light.

There’s an old saying that you become like the company you keep.  Hanging out with negative people begets negativity.  Look at your friends and ask yourself if they are who you would like to be like or become?  If not, maybe you need to look a little further outside your circle of friends for inspiration.

Take Care of Yourself

So many times, we become nurturers and we forget about ourselves.  This can lead to resentment, depression and fatigue.  When we forget to take care of number one, everyone seems to suffer.  As a Mom, I’ve been guilty of this over the years.  You get so busy in making sure everyone else is taken care of, you either think that your needs are not as important or you put them off, never getting around to doing what makes you happy.

For some reason, we feel guilty if we take time for ourselves.  It shouldn’t be that way.  We’ve all heard the sayings “Happy wife, happy life” or “If momma ain’t happy, ain’t no one happy”.  Well guess what?  It’s true!  Not just for mommas’ but for everyone in general.

Be Prepared to Make Changes

If something isn’t working right in your life or if you find yourself unhappy more often then not, then you need to make some changes in your life.  If your discontent is related to your job, it may be time to look elsewhere for employment or possibly a career change.

Is your unhappiness relational?  Maybe seek marital counseling or a change in your relationship status.  Is it the people you’re hanging out with?  Seek a new circle of friends.

If your health isn’t what it should be, strive to change it, if possible.  Getting to the gym or starting some sort of fitness program can do wonders for the mind as well as the body.

Don’t get stuck in a rut and be fearful of changing what’s not working for you.  I know change can be scary, but most times the fear of change is far greater than the actual change, itself.

Have Goals

This one is so important.  As human beings, we all need goals.  Setting goals gives us a long term vision and fires us up with motivation.  Make sure your goals are clear, instead of vague.  “I want to lose weight” is a goal, but definitely a vague one.  Be clear and concise.  Make a plan of action for your goals, a blueprint of sorts and execute that plan.  Set your goals in bite size pieces and make them specific, measurable, achievable (very important) and time sensitive.  If you don’t set a time to complete your goal, chances are it won’t happen.  Don’t leave your goals open ended.

Help Others

When we help others, we take focus off of our own lives.  We feel a tremendous satisfaction in giving or helping people.  It just feels good!  It can give us a deep sense of happiness and contentment, which is also associated with living a longer, healthier life.  Not only is it healthy, it can boost our self esteem and change our perspective on our own situation.

Helping others is a way to promote a deeper sense of gratitude as we recognize more of what is already a blessing/gift/positive in our life.

Pray

Prayer is probably the best weapon we have against discontent.  It is, at least for me.  When I pray and turn my trouble over to God, it’s as if a burden is lifted off my shoulders.  I have faith that He is in control and has a plan for me each and every day.  Each day, we must choose to trust our Lord and choose to be grateful for all the things he has given to us.

 As Paul said, “I have learned in anything and everything to be content…because I can do ALL things through Christ who strengthens me..”

Contentment is a Choice

I’ve always said that the mind is a powerful thing.  Attitude is everything.  When you find yourself faced with adversity, you can choose to focus on the negative or you can choose to make the most of the situation.

Contentment may or may not change our circumstances and it’s not about getting what we want, but contentment will change our hearts and allow us to be grateful for what we have.

What about you?  Do you struggle with discontent?  What is keeping you from living a life of contentment and gratitude?  Can you come up with other ways to live a life of contentment?  I’d love to hear your comments.

Have you ever failed at trying to control another person?  You might like to read my post on that very subject.

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