Thirteen years ago, after I’d just turned sixty, a friend asked me what I was going to do when I grew up? After a quick thought, I answered, “Well, the first twenty years of my life were pretty much all about me; then after a religious awakening in college, the focus of my second twenty years shifted, by grace, to Jesus Christ; and then, again by grace, the focus of my third twenty years have been about Jesus and His Church.” He then asked, “So, what are you going to do if the Lord gives you another twenty years?” I quipped, “I think it’s probably time for me to start living out all those things I’ve been preaching at others for the past forty-plus years!”

By the time I was twelve years into this next twenty, it seemed about time to start taking this off-handed “quip” a bit more seriously: what were all those things I’ve had the audacity to preach at others for the past fifty-plus years?

About the same time as my friend’s kind question, I had just published a book entitled Life from Our Land.

The book was not intended as a “how to” book on farming or homesteading, nor as a call to abandon the city and escape to the country, nor as a shout-out for modern environmentalism. Rather, my purpose was to share what we as a family had learned about life, and maybe more importantly, what we had discovered about how we ought to be living our lives, from having the privilege of living out here on our beautiful, mostly wooded land in the Southern Ohio Appalachian foothills.

It then struck me that of all the materials I’ve published over the years, it was that book, Life from Our Land, that most succinctly brought my convictions together. So, I began condensing the book, cutting away the sometimes “charming” but distracting homesteading anecdotes, down to what I considered the key points. This was intended only as a personal reflection, but in time, a friend suggested the list might be helpful to others. So, after some needed editing, rearranging, synthesizing, and simplification, along with the addition of a few new articles, Learning Contentment emerged.

Maybe because I’m looking back now in my twilight years, I found the thoughts coalescing under the theme of Learning Contentment, inspired by Saint Paul’s admission: “Not that I complain of want; for I have learned, in whatever state I am, to be content” (Phil 4:11). Regardless of whatever situation we might find ourselves in, how can we learn and find true contentment, so that we’re not endlessly tempted to “complain of want”? This short book contains just a few suggestions on where to begin, which I pray are as much of an encouragement to you as they continue to be a challenge to me.

You can examine the book and purchase it here. God bless!