"No place else I'd rather be, then here in your arms...." If there is one thing that I have found to be true these last few years, it is that Jesus never ceases to pursue me! He continues to do so even when I don't feel it or when I don't feel like I deserve to be pursued. He's really been after my heart this last month. My WHOLE heart, just not the parts that I chose to give to him and what a learning experience it has been.....
Contentment. Something that most single women my age struggle with. Something that is a daily struggle. Something that you may feel one week and the next week not in the slightest. An up and down battle of the heart that is, from experience, very exhausting. I found this in-between stage of life to be hard. There are days I am thankful I am exactly where I am in life, and there are days that I want so much more. The latter is where I become selfish and need to practice the patience that the Lord gives to me. I don't deserve anything that I want, especially when I want it. I don't even deserve the grace that God gives me when I demand those things that I want. I just hear "when will you be content with Me, with the joy that I give you, child?" Rom. 8:28 reminds us that "God works for the good of all those who love him." For now and forever this has to be and will be enough. So each day I will remind myself, "You are my Lord; apart from you I have no good thing....Lord, you have assigned me my portion and my cup...you will fill me with joy in your presence." Psalm 16.
Whether or not you are willing to admit it, most people, men included, have probably struggled with contentment even if it is not in a relationship sense. It is a culturally relevant topic in today's society. We are a society who wants everything bigger and better, and wants it as fast as we possibly can have it. If our fast food isn't given to us fast enough, we get irritated. If the person in front of us doesn't accelerate fast enough at a stop light, we get irritated. We are an addicted society, always searching for the thing that is going to satisfy the searching in our hearts. I think college students may be some of the most susceptible people to this discontentment issue. This is the time of discovery of who you are, where you are going, and all of a sudden you have so much freedom to do so. The decisions made on a daily basis are ultimately made to try to fill a void in a person's heart, or to compete with the person next to them. In such a technological age, there is always something new to try, but nothing satisfies. I have been there, and in different ways, still am. My heart hurts for this void to be filled for those around me. This is why I am here. A reminder on a daily basis as I look to those around me.
Jesus is not only the answer to discontentment of the heart in relationships, but also the answer to discontentment with life in general. "If anyone is thirsty, let him come to me and drink." John 7:37.
PS. sorry if this was a little scattered....
Good stuff, Keefer! I did a talk recently on this topic, too. We should grab coffee sometime, if you'd like. :)
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