We all know that being grateful for what you have, living in the moment, accepting and living life one day at a time are considered some of the paths to contentment.

And these are good ways to live. But it’s not always easy to put that advice into practice when we are truly suffering.

So I think for me the secret to contentment in very trying times has become ‘not trying to be content’. The harder you try to ignore pain, grief, trauma, frustration, the worse it can make you feel.

Instead, turn to God and cry out to Him. That’s what King David did frequently in the Psalms. By the end of his cries, he is praising God!

And I have found over and over that when I stop fighting and trying to ‘feel better’ in my own power and just go to God in prayer, He supernaturally changes my mood !

This is not a placebo effect. This is the power of prayer and the intervention of the Holy Spirit with your spirit. It’s ‘like magic’ but it’s better than magic. It’s God the Father comforting his child.

God loves me and you. He wants us to turn to Him when we are suffering. He knows we are weak and often under spiritual attack. He is not going to punish us for humbly seeking his help. He’s a good Father.

Turn to your loving Father today. You can trust Him. Amen.