Catching Contentment

If anyone has a right to feel angry with life, then the author is a strong candidate. Having battled with lung disease from a young age, suffered at the hands of bullies, and, reluctantly, given up her much-loved teaching job, she has plenty to complain about. But she has made a point of exploring contentment. She has drawn particularly on Paul's letter to the Philippians. 'Contentment is something we can all catch hold of,' she believes, 'whatever circumstances we find ourselves in.' This is a message which we need to hear, whether we are lifelong sufferers, like the author, or facing deprivation or injustice of another sort. Or we may simply have fallen into bad habits. We cannot fail to be uplifted, and hopefully transformed, by the author's discoveries as we learn to buck trends within society and the church. Introduction Confident contentment 1 Confident in our faith 2 Confident in our meaning and purpose 3 Confident in our identity and calling 4 Confident in our future Courageous contentment 5 Courage is active 6 Courage is acceptance 7 Courageous is brokenness 8 Courage in the Word 9 Courageous disappointment 10 Courageous lament 11 Courage is pressing on 12 Courageous contentment in action Captivated contentment 13 Captivated by glory 14 Captivated by surrender 15 Captivated satisfaction 16 Captivated by yearning 17 Captivated by infinite love 18 Captivated by discipline 19 Captivated in the dark night Contagious contentment 20 Contagious unity 21 Jesus - the greatest example of contagious contentment