Godly Discontent

Father says:

I have placed discontent in your heart.  It is designed to move you from complacency to action.  Only when you find yourself in that place where you no longer can abide circumstances as they are, will you be motivated to step into the destiny I designed for you.  I so loved the world I SENT. Holy Discontent has caused ME to reveal a new level for you.  Greater than you can think or imagine.  Don't allow complacency be misidentified as contentment.  Start again.  It is a new day.

From This website
Our society holds an ideal of satisfaction that portrays an unrealistic, idyllic, and utopic view of life that quite simply is not true. Satisfaction does not mean that we strive to live in a Corona commercial. It means that we enter into the human condition of pain and disorientation with a sense of purpose, rootedness, and peace. We do so with the knowledge that we are ambassadors of a God who has accomplished the ultimate sacrifice of redemption for us! Satisfaction means that we know and believe the reality of the Gospel in our lives in the midst of a world steeped in hurt and tumult.


Satisfaction is a two headed coin. On the one side is peace. And on the other is what I call holy discontentment. This means that we feel the weight of our world’s brokenness, including our own, with eyes wide open. I am not content with the status quo. My heart breaks for those who live on a self-destructive path. I yearn for the day when God will end the suffering and hurt of our world and set all things within it back to right. This thought alone gives me proper confidence. That knowledge sets me heart at ease. This definition of holy discontentment drives me forward in faith fueled by the truth of the Gospel. And where our lives intersect with this two headed coin of satisfaction: joy and holy discontentment, therein lies our call.

Such an argument could lead one to feel woefully discontent, the type that Jesus warns against. I offer two suggestions for how you may live your life according to a holy discontentment perspective:

1. Know your identity. You are saved by Christ and Christ alone. He is King. You have been redeemed by God so that you may be a witness of this new reality to others. This is your foundation. This is your identity. Living with holy discontentment is a precarious way to live life. Always remember the joy of your call! Holy discontentment is an important driver, but it is not your identity.

2. You are not God. A holy discontentment perspective posses the potential of leading one to think that he or she is the savior of the world. Nothing could be further from the truth. When we live our lives according to Gospel satisfaction, only then will we see the world through the lens of Jesus – through holy discontentment. This view ought to spurn us on toward good works… within our finite, limited capacities. It is not our job to save anyone. Rather, all we can do is let our call and ability be a delightful thorn in our side for the sake of advancing the message of Jesus to those who need to hear it!

May you revel in holy discontentment, for you have been saved by grace and called to the good work of Jesus in the world.

It's a new day.