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Contentment: The Sacred Path to Loving the Life You Have
From a fifth-generation preacher and pastor and acclaimed author of Finding The Lost Art of Empathy comes a moving and inspirational exploration of the true meaning of contentment and how we can incorporate it into our lives.
Through her own personal experiences and years of focused Bible study, Tracy Wilde investigates one of the greatest mysteries of modern Christian contentment. She reveals that contentment differs from happiness, and is not something you can implement in a day—it takes time, practice, and an awareness of the draining distractions that rob us of joy, satisfaction, gratitude, and trust.
In this book, Tracy explores the life of Paul the Apostle to show how we can live a life of fulfillment no matter the circumstances. Using the Biblical book of Philippians, Tracy presents contentment as a crucial practice for all followers of Jesus. She distinguishes the differences between happiness (shallow and short term) and contentment (deep and lasting), examines our tendency toward entitlement, and acknowledges the fear and anxiety when life gets tough.
With her lyrical prose, profound insight, and “heart for people” (Lisa Bevere, New York Times bestselling author), Tracy offers encouragement and confidence as she helps you learn the secret of contentment and helps you focus on all that is good and true and beautiful so you can see your life anew.
Through her own personal experiences and years of focused Bible study, Tracy Wilde investigates one of the greatest mysteries of modern Christian contentment. She reveals that contentment differs from happiness, and is not something you can implement in a day—it takes time, practice, and an awareness of the draining distractions that rob us of joy, satisfaction, gratitude, and trust.
In this book, Tracy explores the life of Paul the Apostle to show how we can live a life of fulfillment no matter the circumstances. Using the Biblical book of Philippians, Tracy presents contentment as a crucial practice for all followers of Jesus. She distinguishes the differences between happiness (shallow and short term) and contentment (deep and lasting), examines our tendency toward entitlement, and acknowledges the fear and anxiety when life gets tough.
With her lyrical prose, profound insight, and “heart for people” (Lisa Bevere, New York Times bestselling author), Tracy offers encouragement and confidence as she helps you learn the secret of contentment and helps you focus on all that is good and true and beautiful so you can see your life anew.
- GenresFaith
224 pages, Hardcover
Published June 8, 2021
3 people are currently reading
44 people want to read
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Displaying 1 - 4 of 4 reviews
June 23, 2023
I thought this was a good book about contentment, and there were a lot of good elements and principles. Her opinions on the virtue of Joy were really thought-provoking and Biblically sound, for example: Joy comes from the choice to replace the negative thoughts in your mind with the positive truth of the Bible. "Joy is what sets a Christian apart from the world"-p.51. Her instructions for Joy are what I have summarized here: 1. Choose to replace the negative thoughts in your mind with the truth of Bible 2. Have the humility to be selfless and accept God's plan for you in every circumstance, trusting in him and his promises, and devoting your life to him. Which I feel are really important, and she included somewhere in there that shame can be a hindrance to Joy and contentment, and you have to get rid of shame to access contentment. All in all, contentment comes from the insurpassable worth of knowing Christ.
Something I didn't like in this book was her writing style. It felt unfinished and informal, and she was targeting her audience and boxing them into only the female gender, which was hard to relate to in a lot of examples and analogies she brought up. If one is to write a book on a Christian virtue, I believe they should write it for all audiences, not just one gender.
Despite that, I thought this book was still a good book over this topic. However, I think there are better books that deal with contentment and Christian Joy than this one. This book only scraped the surface.
Something I didn't like in this book was her writing style. It felt unfinished and informal, and she was targeting her audience and boxing them into only the female gender, which was hard to relate to in a lot of examples and analogies she brought up. If one is to write a book on a Christian virtue, I believe they should write it for all audiences, not just one gender.
Despite that, I thought this book was still a good book over this topic. However, I think there are better books that deal with contentment and Christian Joy than this one. This book only scraped the surface.
June 7, 2021
"Contentment is not the means to the end of true happiness and joy. Contentment is the end".
What do you mean by being content? To be thankful for who you are, where you are in life? To be happy and full of the feeling that your life is enough as it is? Sure, that's some of it, and Tracy Wilde definitely addresses that part too, but she doesn't stop there. She stretches the understanding of contentment to issues we don't normally think we should be content with, such as fear, pain and waiting. It's not natural to talk about contentment in those contexts, but from a Christian perspective it makes sense, and she does a good job explaining why, using an easy conversational tone and a healthy blend of personal anecdotes, solid biblical hermeneutics and a variety of references from neuroscience psychology. She starts with Jesus and ends with heaven, so the book couldn't be better structured.
It's one of those books I will have to read once in a while to quiet my heart, until I get to the point she makes in the last chapter where "contentment is my home", not just something I do once in a while when needed. Looks like Tracy Wilde is on a mission to "make great again" human virtues (and Christian disciplines) that used to define other generations but have fallen out of favor in our modern fast-paced, over-achieving, over-stressed individualistic world. Empathy in the first book, contentment in the second. I can't wait for the next one.
What do you mean by being content? To be thankful for who you are, where you are in life? To be happy and full of the feeling that your life is enough as it is? Sure, that's some of it, and Tracy Wilde definitely addresses that part too, but she doesn't stop there. She stretches the understanding of contentment to issues we don't normally think we should be content with, such as fear, pain and waiting. It's not natural to talk about contentment in those contexts, but from a Christian perspective it makes sense, and she does a good job explaining why, using an easy conversational tone and a healthy blend of personal anecdotes, solid biblical hermeneutics and a variety of references from neuroscience psychology. She starts with Jesus and ends with heaven, so the book couldn't be better structured.
It's one of those books I will have to read once in a while to quiet my heart, until I get to the point she makes in the last chapter where "contentment is my home", not just something I do once in a while when needed. Looks like Tracy Wilde is on a mission to "make great again" human virtues (and Christian disciplines) that used to define other generations but have fallen out of favor in our modern fast-paced, over-achieving, over-stressed individualistic world. Empathy in the first book, contentment in the second. I can't wait for the next one.
December 30, 2021
I was really looking forward to reading this after reading her first book, "Finding the Lost Art of Empathy," which I absolutely loved. I have to be honest. This one missed the mark for me a little. Or maybe a better way to say it is I wish she would have gone a little deeper, as she left some aspects of this subject un-discussed.
For example, I agree that we all need to learn to be more content with what we have and be more patient with finding the right job, the right partner,etc. but I don't believe, as she says and many other Christians like to say, that we are always exactly where God wants us to be. Sometimes we're where we are because we've made bad decisions, we've been lazy, or we just haven't applied ourselves the way we should have. And what about situations where people are suffering horrific abuse, physical or emotional, at home or at work? I don't believe God "puts us" in those situations. Yes, God can help us get out of it and yes, we can use the experience to become stronger and help others, but I would not go so far as to say we're "in a season" and we just need to be content and patient. I think discontentment in certain situations has its place. Many people throughout history who have made significant strides in social change were led to do so because they were discontent in what was happening. We can be content in Christ's love to move us forward, but ths doesn't mean we need to stay in a bad or unsafe situation. She has an entire chapter on being content in risking our safety, but I don't think that is what she meant.
She does say God will never speak outside of His character, and since He does not condone abuse or mistreatment, maybe that's a disclaimer there. But as I said I wish she would have elaborated on this a little more so her message would not be misconstrued. All said, as long as it isn't taken out of context, this is still a pretty good read and can be a good source of encouragement for people who may feel like they're not where they should be personally or professionally. I look forward to more of her writings.
For example, I agree that we all need to learn to be more content with what we have and be more patient with finding the right job, the right partner,etc. but I don't believe, as she says and many other Christians like to say, that we are always exactly where God wants us to be. Sometimes we're where we are because we've made bad decisions, we've been lazy, or we just haven't applied ourselves the way we should have. And what about situations where people are suffering horrific abuse, physical or emotional, at home or at work? I don't believe God "puts us" in those situations. Yes, God can help us get out of it and yes, we can use the experience to become stronger and help others, but I would not go so far as to say we're "in a season" and we just need to be content and patient. I think discontentment in certain situations has its place. Many people throughout history who have made significant strides in social change were led to do so because they were discontent in what was happening. We can be content in Christ's love to move us forward, but ths doesn't mean we need to stay in a bad or unsafe situation. She has an entire chapter on being content in risking our safety, but I don't think that is what she meant.
She does say God will never speak outside of His character, and since He does not condone abuse or mistreatment, maybe that's a disclaimer there. But as I said I wish she would have elaborated on this a little more so her message would not be misconstrued. All said, as long as it isn't taken out of context, this is still a pretty good read and can be a good source of encouragement for people who may feel like they're not where they should be personally or professionally. I look forward to more of her writings.
December 19, 2021
While I am not one to seek out Christian lifestyle books (I think they are overall too “fluffy”) this one was incredibly timely and I think that’s why I enjoyed it so much. So many truths were spoken and truths I needed to be reminded of in the season I’m in.
Displaying 1 - 4 of 4 reviews