Day 13: Content with What We Have

Recently I noticed on Facebook that a group of folks from the US were bumming out that Ikea was discontinuing the selling of Swedish food in their US stores.  I seriously laughed out loud.  I could not imagine for a minute what anyone in America could possibly miss from the Ikea food shop! (Incidentally, Ikeas in Sweden don't sell those grocery items, grocery stores in Sweden do!)  I was thinking, "You live in America....land of the gigantic and overstocked grocery store!"  Because of course, at this time of year, I'm missing pecans (I've heard Ica, a Swedish grocery store not to be confused with Ikea had them, but I haven't spotted them yet), and peppermint ice cream, and hot fudge, and ziploc bags, etc.  I have a well stocked freezer full of Nestle's chocolate chips or else I'd be missing that too!  There's pepparkakor (Swedish ginger cookies) galore and of course, Glögg, (Sweden's hot wine) but I don't really love either one of those.  Give me a homemade sugar cookie any day over pepparkakor!  But this got me to thinking...maybe we just like the fantasy of what we don't have more than the reality of what we do have.
Sometimes reality is hard.  The fantasy is better.  Reality is well, real.  Fantasy is made up and wonderful and is often perfect.  Reality is not perfect.  Sometimes it's painful and full of things that we don't like or missing things that we really want.  But learning to be content in all things is a big part of what it means to trust God in the midst of uncertainty.  Sometimes we ask, why can't I have this or why do I have to have that?  Sometimes we find out why, other times, it remains a mystery.  But no matter your situation in life, the reality is that God journeys with you.  So while we aren't always content with our circumstances, we can always be content with who God is.  God's love for us remains the same...steadfast, unconditional, faithful.  His whims don't change.  So while your heart's desire may not be fully satisfied with just the thing you think it wants, God's love for you can always provide just what your heart needs.