Discontentment is such a hard thing to move past, especially as a woman. We become discontent in our clothes, our hair, our looks, our house, our furnishings, our decor, and so much more! Isn’t it awful when you see the long list?
I am so guilty at being discontent. With our recent move/PCS (permanent change of station), I found myself growing discontent with some of the wall pieces my husband and I already had in our possession. We had purchased these pieces at a big neighborhood garage sale last year when we were very tight on money but wanted something in our house to make it feel a little more homey. They’re nice pieces, but not exactly what I had in mind.
But I knew I was wrong in being discontent. After all, it was God who provided for us in the first place to spend a little money on some pieces to fill our white wall space. And He himself tells us in Philippians 4:11 and Hebrews 13:5 to be content with what we have. Such a simple thing to follow. But when we’re already in the hole of discontentment, it’s hard to get out!
Start by recognizing the root of your discontentment
So I decided to figure out a way to be content with what God gave us. I started by recognizing that it’s a deep desire of mine to have a home that feels warm and welcoming, not just to those who visit, but also to my husband and I. But I’m also cheap. I don’t want to spend a ton of money to satisfy my discontentment. So I got a little creative with one particular piece that was driving me nuts.
Let me tell you why it was causing discontentment. The back is held on by some duct tape, the front accent pieces were broken and chipped, the white board in the middle was scratched and smudgy, and the only two colors were brown and white.
Part of me wanted to just give it away (as we only paid $5 for it at the garage sale), but I couldn’t bring myself to do it. It was one of the first items for our house that my husband and I bought after we got married and it served us well in our previous house. And believe it or not, when I saw it at the garage sale, I fell in love with it, even though it was chipped and broken (the $5 price further added to my enjoyment of purchasing it). But after this move, I just couldn’t get past how ‘bleh’ it was.
Revamp it up without spending a fortune!
I wanted to find contentment in this piece that God provided for us. So I decided to give it a little tlc and revamp it. Like I said though, I’m cheap. So I found some different colors of paint at Michaels that cost 70 cents each:D I already had some leftover chalk spray paint, so I decided to use that. I ended up taking out the accent pieces; they weren’t necessary. With a little tape and a few hours of painting, I finally felt that discontentment melt away.
Deep down, I truly enjoyed the structure of the piece, but I was struggling with the color and the brokenness of it. I wanted to fix it and make it look nice. But I wanted to do so in a way that wasn’t spending a tremendous amount of money and frustration over it. And thank the Lord I was able to do so!
Does it bring you joy?
I want you to be able to get rid of the discontentment that you may have with certain things in your home. Remember, at one point you loved it enough to buy it. But if it’s something that you can’t revamp or add to or brighten to ease your discontentment, then get rid of it. Because it’s better for you to diminish the thing that is causing you frustration every time you look at it than to hold onto it and deepen your discontentment. A tip that I was taught growing up is this, “does it bring you joy?” If not, either do something about it to rekindle that joy or simply get rid of it.
at one point you loved it enough to buy it
But I want to encourage you to first try and rekindle the joy that you found in that little something in your home. Sometimes it’s very easy to do so, such as the wall piece that was driving me nuts. God has given it to you and He wants you to “be content with what you have” (Hebrews 13:5).
I would love to see your before and after projects of something you once loved, then grew discontent with, and are now finding joy in it again!