Contentment with godliness

Thanks to Michael Spencer for his thoughts. Internet Monk Radio Podcast #85 he addressed the idea of contentment. 

I had talked in  my blog "Midlife transitions" about learning to live on less and desiring less "stuff. The verse I quoted was "a devout life does bring wealth, but its the rich simplicity of being yourself before God." 

I have always read that verse to mean my "stuff", to learn how not to want more "stuff". What I had not considered is that it can also refer to my relationship with God; where I am with God.

Contentment in my relationship with God is knowing I am approved of by God, and not "having" to be anything else or do anything else to win God's love and resting in that knowledge. Like any relationship there is a desire for closeness and intimacy. And that encourages me to move closer to love, in desire, not concerned about what others think. I can enjoy the dance step with God and feel the love and approval that he showers on me.

Contentment is not complacency. It is not quitting. There are things I need in my life. I need food. I might not need as much food as I eat. I need a place to live. A car is helpful to get me where I need to be.

I think back to the guilt I felt for not for not being what I was told God wanted me to be, or doing what my spiritual leaders demanded I do to achieve a "holy" life. Thoughts that I haven't been doing enough or being "godly" enough have hounded me for years. Stepping out of line in a congregation usually has people in the church pointing out my failures as well as the road back to congregational acceptance.

Contentment is lost when I think I need more external or superficial things to win favor from others, or from God. I desire him because I love him and I want more of him, not because I behave in a way that makes me look "more spiritual" to others. I can rest in his love, and learn to love him more. It is focused on my relationship with God, and not focused on those around me.

I love God because he first loved me. I am as loved as I will ever be from him, and in that I work hard to be content.