“What I am anxious to see in Christian believers is a beautiful paradox. I want to see in them the joy of finding God while at the same time they are blessedly pursuing Him. I want to see in them the great joy of having God yet always wanting Him.” – A.W. Tozer
Doesn’t that just hit you, tough girl? A beautiful paradox of content yet discontent. Of joy yet longing for joy.
Jesus. You can’t get enough of Him.
The thing is you know all about discontentment, don’t you? You know what it is to long and to want. To be consumed with the desire for something. Maybe it’s something new. Maybe it’s a change in circumstances. Maybe it’s wanting that new season of life. Whatever it is, we all identify with that feeling of wanting more.
Unfortunately, when it comes to contentment, we are typically content with far less than we should be. It could be contentment with average grades or a kinda clean room. You’re content with being just alright with your parents.
Worse is being content with our relationship with Jesus. Being content with a lukewarm faith or one that is moving at a snail’s pace. You figure it’s okay just going to church and reading your Bible every once in a while. After all, it’s better than nothing.
But to take our understanding of contentment and discontentment and apply them to our spiritual walk – well, that’s another story. It’s running after God full force, every day following Him and experiencing Him through His Word and through fellowship. It’s finding a joy that surpasses all understanding and comes simply from knowing Him.
But you don’t stop there. It’s like getting a sip of the sweetest most satisfying drink in existence – and all you want is more. So you keep drinking and keep savoring, each taste filling you with complete satisfaction, yet leaving you thirsting for more.
That, tough girl, is true joy in Christ. It’s the joy of having every want and need met in Him. It’s being comforted, cherished, and loved. It’s being treasured, protected, and blessed. It’s the joy that comes from being content…so content that you want more. More peace. More relationship. More knowing and being known.
Do you know that joy? Don’t you want to?
“Until now you have asked nothing in my name. Ask, and you will receive, that your joy may be full.” – John 16:24
Question: Is your joy truly in Jesus, or Jesus and something else? What are you discontent about right now? What would your life look like if you were truly content in Christ and the only thing you were discontent with was wanting more of Him?
Related articles
- Lady In Waiting: Contentment – The Torture of Desire and The Capacity to Wait (girlfriendscoffeehour.com)
- Contentment (joequatronejr.wordpress.com)







