If You Are Happy And You Know It Clap Your Hands!

May be you can remember the familiar children's song, "If you are happy and you know it, clap your hands, If you are happy and you know it clap your hands. If you are happy and you know it, then your face will surely show it, if you are happy and you know it, clap your hands." It then goes onto stomp your feet, shout 'AMEN', and finally do all three.

The theme for week 5 of my 10 week series on Living A Life of Balance and Harmony according to God's plan is on contentment. Wouldn't you agree that the world is driven by a restless desire called discontentment? The world tells us we are never good enough and we never have enough. We should always be striving for the next best thing to buy, promotion to earn, and the list can go on and on.

As I prepared for this blog today, I have to share that God has been working on me in a big way over the past 10 months on exactly this subject. I have struggled with identifying who I am in the career world, as a mom/wife, and as a woman in general. It has been a tough last year. I have had days of disappointment, anger and frustration. The major lesson I have learned through a lot of soul searching is contentment. I have never felt more content on who I am and where I am going then I do today! I still have many unanswered questions. I still don't know exactly what my plan is. I still have identified areas of continued personal growth.

However the last 10 months have taught me that contentment is knowing that God's plan is perfect. Contentment is realizing that I don't need to have all the answers by tomorrow. Contentment in knowing that I am right here in the present, living a life seeking God's heart and character, which is my number one mission in life. Contentment is realizing that when I leave this earth it will not be about the position in my career, how big my retirement fund was, what kind of house I lived in, but it will be about how I did growing my relationship to God and with those around me. All those 'extras' as I like to view them are just 'icing on the cake' if God blesses me with such.

In fact in the mist of my career/identity challenges, in April we found out that Milo's position at work was being eliminated. A friend asked me just the other day, how things were going and I very calmly stated, 'GREAT'. She indicated that perhaps the past few months have been extra stressful in our household and I could honestly say not one bit. Both Milo and I have been growing so strongly in our faith, that we both know that God has a plan and that plan is always perfect, whether for our good or to teach us a lesson that will mature and grow us.

Even the dictionary definition of contentment suggests a spiritual challenge to pursue; happy with what one has or is, not desiring some thing more or different.

As Paul was nearing the end of his life he wrote the book Philippians where in chapter 4:10 - 14 he shares on contentment.

"I'm glad in God, far happier than you would ever guess—happy that you're again showing such strong concern for me. Not that you ever quit praying and thinking about me. You just had no chance to show it. Actually, I don't have a sense of needing anything personally. I've learned by now to be quite content whatever my circumstances. I'm just as happy with little as with much, with much as with little. I've found the recipe for being happy whether full or hungry, hands full or hands empty. Whatever I have, wherever I am, I can make it through anything in the One who makes me who I am.

Just last night, as Milo and I were drifting to sleep he rolled over and said, 'I LOVE MY LIFE.' We both smiled and knew that we could clap our hands, stomp our feet, and shout AMEN all at the same time!

Blessings,

Jill