Woman to Woman Conference: Contentment

The first workshop I attended this last Saturday during the Woman to Woman Conference at Corban University was called Contentment, taught by Anne Jeffers. Here's a brief description of the breakout session from the brochure:

Often a student will say, "I can't wait until I graduate and begin really living." If it isn't graduation, retirement, vacation or the weekend, it is something else for which we are waiting. How can we learn to be content in the season of life in which we live? Contentment is a learned virtue, and this session will address the process.

Doesn't that "season of life" idea fit in so well with this blog? I met Mrs. Jeffers last semester when I went to a few of the Sunday School classes her husband teaches at Bethany Baptist Church. She is so sweet!

This was a fun workshop, and it was definitely pertinent to my life--contentment is something I really need to work on! It's not that I don't have plenty of things to be thankful for, because I most certainly do! But I have materialistic tendencies as well as a constant eagerness for future activities that hinder contentment.

Mrs. Jeffers shared a lot of wonderful verses, ideas, and quotes with us about contentment and all that it entails. Here are some of the notes I wrote down:

• Contentment--a willingness to be satisfied with God's provision.

• If I can get my wants closer to my needs, I'll be a rich woman.

• Note the connection between contentment, gratitude, and generosity.

• Hebrews 13:5
  

Here are some tips she shared for changing the way we think:

• Be aware of the snowball effect of your thinking. (In other words, how do you start your day? What do you think about the first thing in the morning, and how does that lead to other thoughts, whether negative or positive?)

• Do one thing at a time.
  

• Live this day as if it were your last.

Not necessarily easy things to do, but these are definitely good things to work on and to remember!

At the end of the session, Mrs. Jeffers gave us some journal pages so we could write down what we were thankful for. She also had us take some daily calendar pages with various ideas of what we can be grateful for. I have to say, of the two pages I took with lists on them, one of my favorites was:

officers in dress uniform

OK, is there any woman who isn't thankful for that? ;)

Overall I enjoyed the workshop, and it offered some great perspectives for me. Contentment can involve being content with the things we have been given, which are only temporary--something I hope the Contentment Reading Challenge will remind me of!

But contentment is an attitude that doesn't involve just things, but also circumstances. God has placed each one of us in a specific place in time while we are in this world, and only in the present can we do anything--the past is gone and (as Anne Jeffers noted) "tomorrow is God's, not ours."

May we grow in contentment and live each day and each moment He gives us for Him!

A Season for Learning

Fall marks the beginning of a new school year, a time of learning from books and teachers. But fall also marks an important time of learning in the "Seasons of Humility." That is to say, "fall" is the season of life I speak of in my poem (in the sidebar) when we feel the most confused, the most selfish. It is the time when we really need to be reminded to look to God and trust in His will--to be humble before Him.

Right now I really need this lesson. Some of you may remember the "Treasure Challenge" that I set up for myself this summer. Well, I followed it for the most part, although I know I could have done better, spending less on food, games at the fair, etc. I did also get a book at Borders this summer, although it was mostly part of a gift (long story with that one!).

Anyway, the point is that I know I have a problem with greed, which the "Treasure Challenge" was supposed to help with. I still want to buy more and I keep seeing more that I want. But it isn't just that. My selfishness has extended to impatience, as well. Not only do I want more, but I want it now. And that's a big problem!

From my comments on Goodreads to the thoughts within my mind, I keep desiring the "next" thing--the next book, etc.--and I keep missing out on what I already have. God has so richly blessed me, yet I haven't been content or shown my gratefulness nearly as much as I ought to. God has His own perfect timing for everything, and I know that His will is what I should seek.

Thanks to a post on author Tamera Alexander's blog, I started getting a "Verse of the Day" sent to my e-mail from CLASH entertainment every day. This is one of the recent ones I received, and it really was a verse I needed to read:


The verse is Ecclesiastes 5:10. What a fitting description of greed, and unfortunately, what a fitting description of my own poor attitude. I have had the wonderful opportunity to read so many new books this summer, many of them from blogging friends and publishing companies. I still have a great TBR stack, so why do I have to be thinking of what books will be coming next all the time? I really need to be able to appreciate what I have!

So with that in mind, I hope to have something similar to the "Treasure Challenge" going for the school year, or at least some way to remind myself to stop buying so much! I confess to buying something for myself today, though, since summer is pretty much over. I used an Amazon.com gift card to pay for part of the package: Courting Morrow Little and a DVD copy of North & South. For those of you who follow Laura Frantz' blog, you know why I'm calling this my "Laura Frantz" package. ;) I hope to find much enjoyment and encouragement from these items, but I hope that I will not let myself get carried away with buying more and more.

After reading this I'm sure you can see why I said I have a lot to learn! May the Lord help all of us to use the resources He has given us wisely and to exercise moderation. May the Lord help us to learn the beauty of contentment and the joy of gratefulness. And may the Lord help us to trust in His timing and in His plan, that we might rest in the hope of the coming springtime season of humility.