contentment

recently, with a bit of time on my hands for some solitude, i have been doing quite a bit of thinking...am i content with life? with the status quo, so to speak...is this what i am happy doing with my life?

shall i push further, grab life more by the scruff of the neck and go all out...in all parts of my life? am i "envious" of others leading a more well-rounded life?

turning to the bible came not so naturally but early this morning, googled up a few phrases from the bible which i intend to take seriously...and also a very interesting sermon given by a preacher in 1860 (see HERE)...

in it, he says

"...contentment in all states is not a natural propensity of man. Ill weeds grow apace; covetousness, discontent, and murmuring, are as natural to man as thorns are to the soil"

and

"...contentment is one of the flowers of heaven, and if we would have it, it must be cultivated. It will not grow in us by nature; it is the new nature alone that can produce it, and even then we must be specially careful and watchful that we maintain and cultivate the grace which God has sown in it"

*thinking hard* *brain strain*

"A joyful heart is good medicine, but a broken spirit dries up the bones."
Proverbs 17:22

All the days of the afflicted are bad, but a cheerful heart has a continual feast."
Proverbs 15:15

"Godliness actually is a means of great gain when accompanied by contentment."
1 Timothy 6:6

"If they hear and serve Him, they will end their days in prosperity and their years in pleasures."
Job 36:11

"Rest in the LORD and wait patiently for Him; do not fret because of him who prospers in his way, because of the man who carries out wicked schemes. Cease from anger and forsake wrath; do not fret; it leads only to evildoing."
Psalm 37:7-8

"O satisfy us in the morning with Your lovingkindness, that we may sing for joy and be glad all our days."
Psalm 90:14

"For He has satisfied the thirsty soul, and the hungry soul He has filled with what is good."
Psalm 107:9

"The fear of the LORD leads to life, so that one may sleep satisfied, untouched by evil."
Proverbs 19:23

"Do not fret because of evildoers or be envious of the wicked."
Proverbs 24:19

"Why do you spend money for what is not bread, and your wages for what does not satisfy? Listen carefully to Me, and eat what is good, and delight yourself in abundance."
Isaiah 55:2

"Not that I speak from want, for I have learned to be content in whatever circumstances I am. I know how to get along with humble means, and I also know how to live in prosperity; in any and every circumstance I have learned the secret of being filled and going hungry, both of having abundance and suffering need."
Philippians 4:11-12

"If we have food and covering, with these we shall be content."
1 Timothy 6:8

"Make sure that your character is free from the love of money, being content with what you have; for He Himself has said, 'I will never desert you, nor will I ever forsake you.'"
Hebrews 13:5

"As for me, I shall behold Your face in righteousness; I will be satisfied with Your likeness when I awake."
Psalms 17:15

"The afflicted will eat and be satisfied; those who seek Him will praise the LORD. Let your heart live forever!"
Psalm 22:26

"With a long life I will satisfy him and let him see My salvation."
Psalms 91:16

"Who satisfies your years with good things, so that your youth is renewed like the eagle."
Psalms 103:5

"The soul of the sluggard craves and gets nothing, but the soul of the diligent is made fat."
Proverbs 13:4

"He will not accept any ransom, nor will he be satisfied though you give many gifts."
Proverbs 6:35

"Some soldiers were questioning him, saying, 'And what about us, what shall we do?' And he said to them, 'Do not take money from anyone by force, or accuse anyone falsely, and be content with your wages.'"
Luke 3:14

"Therefore I am well content with weaknesses, with insults, with distresses, with persecutions, with difficulties, for Christ's sake; for when I am weak, then I am strong."
2 Corinthians 12:10