Contentment Through Walking With God


Many people say, “We can’t find goodness anywhere." Shine the light of your face on us, Lord!
- Psalm 4:6

The key to happiness is walking with God.  Knowing God ought to be the goal of everyone.  We live in a world of discontentment, but God's plan was always contentment, through relationship with him.

We want things, but we need God.  Only God satisfies.  God gives us good things and satisfies us with them, but the key is the giver, not the gift.  Our thanksgiving flows back to the giver of good gifts and that is part of the relationship to God.  Gifts are meaningful because of who gave them.

As we receive and enjoy God's gifts, our love flows back to God.  If God alone is the main Gift, knowing God, being loved by God, serving God, and worshiping God; then the other stuff is not as important and we can be very happy with our without it.

Small things are good because of God, because we are already in an ongoing relationship with God, where it is settled that God is good.  Small things are not good for the one who is not in an ongoing relationship with God.  In fact, all good things will not satisfy if one is not in relationship with God.

For the believer in adversity, or facing a dry time, negative thinking can creep in; and we might entertain the words of the most cynical people who don't even know God.  We might be tempted to join the chorus of unbelievers who say, "we can't find goodness anywhere!"

But we know better.  We know that God is good and good to us, no matter what we are facing.  If we can just have God's face turned towards us, we know we will be alright.  Asking God to shine the light of his face on us means that we are asking for God make us know that he is watching us.

Like a child doing something challenging, if we know our loving parent is watching, it makes a difference.  We know that God is able to see everything.  But we are asking God to make us know he is watching and change us, affect us, by his presence.

It's not enough to just know that God sees everything.  We who know God want him to shine upon us, to make us blessed and kept, and to give us peace.  This is the secret of contentment.  Practicing the presence of God.  We want more of God's presence, but the world says you need more of everything else.

What if the foundation of everything in life is being in the presence of God, having the light of God's face shined upon you?  You will be truly content and you might become a better person.

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