be content with such things as you have. Heb. 13:5a NKJV     

Holly is 15 years old and never been spanked until this morning. Why, now? Well, because she pushed her big head through fence wire forcing me to rearrange the fence line, not once but twice. On her third try, with open hand, I spanked her quite substantial bottom as many times as she had attempted to move to “greener pasture”.

It worked. She turned around. Funny thing is: her current space is far greener than the additional spaces she wanted to explore. Cattle are not the only animals who think the other side of the fence offers better prospects. My horses, Jack and Bebe, behave similarly. Puppies Stephen and Jude do likewise.

Humans are much the same. Often we are tempted to explore greener pastures: better job, better relationship, bigger and better houses…

But are they really better?

We can take a lesson from the Apostle Paul who said he could be content no matter his circumstance. We, too, can choose to appreciate what we have in this very moment and let go of hungering for something “out there”.  And with contentment comes peace, a peace that surpasses all understanding.