Roots of Discontentment

1Timothy 6:6 - But godliness with contentment is great gain.

In his book, Kings Cross, Timothy Keller cites Cynthia Heimel as one who's known a fair amount of struggling artists become famous. But when these people actually got the fame they became not only arrogant but unhappier.

She said, "I pity celebrities. No, I do. Celebrities were once perfectly pleasant human beings... but now... their wrath is awful... More than any of us, they wanted fame. They worked, they pushed... The morning after... each of them became famous, the wanted to take an overdose... because that giant thing they were striving for, that fame thing that was going to make everything okay, that was going to make their lives bearable, that was going to provide them with personal fulfillment and ... happiness, had happened. And nothing changed. They were still them. The disillusionment turned them howling and insufferable."

I don't doubt all of this is true but, of course, to assume it wouldn't be true of me as well is misguided. I probably demonstrate that every week. I say I want contentment. But as Henry Nouwen has remarked, I easily become discontented with contentment. Take a breath. Slow down. Lord, help me.