Holy Discontentment: Seeking a Purposeful Life

“New Year, New You!”
“Page 1 of 365: Write a good one.”
“Everything happens for a reason.”
“Be the best version of yourself.”
“You are enough.”
“Follow your truth.”

Excuse me for a moment while I go gargle some mouthwash. I just vomited a little.

I’ve never had much tolerance for platitudes or toxic positivity. With 20+ years of experience in data analysis and data quality, I am skilled at spotting anomalies, identifying gaps, and flagging errors. Because I tend to see the “problems” and focus on issue identification, some might call me a pessimist.

However, I prefer to think of myself as an optimist fueled by holy discontentment. In everyday life, especially in ‘meaningful’ areas, I naturally notice the “errors”—not to focus on them, but to compare them with the biblical standard of what God intended. My optimism isn’t based on a naive hope that 2026 will be simpler; it is a firm conviction that the best is genuinely yet to come. I am discontent with “missing out” on the life that God has planned for us, and I want the “more” of the abundant life Jesus provides. I am anchored in the hope of future glorification and the beauty of becoming more like Christ.

From Information to Transformation

We often hold ourselves back by prioritizing comfort, wealth, or status. Lately, I’ve been asking myself some “what if” questions to help me align with what matters most:

• What if I didn’t just increase my biblical knowledge or sharpen my doctrinal precision, but actually let those truths affect my heart?
• What if life wasn’t about the mindless consumption of information (or infotainment), but about real transformation?
• What if I learned about the needs of my neighbor and actually cared for them, rather than offering a hollow “be warm and well fed” (James 2:15-16)?
• What if I stopped curating an image to impress others and instead cultivated a heart that seeks to glorify God and value others above myself?
• What if I acted (and thought) less like a judgmental Pharisee and more like Jesus, the Man of Sorrows, who humbled Himself, served others selflessly, and sacrificed His life to save us from our sins?

As my favorite band, Switchfoot, aptly put it: “We were meant to live for so much more.”

The Danger of Being “Easily Pleased”

Too often, we become our own worst enemies, sacrificing real vision for unrealistic dreams and failing to dedicate ourselves to our true goals and values. C.S. Lewis famously captured this internal struggle:

“Our desires are not too strong, but too weak. We are half-hearted creatures, fooling about with drink and sex and ambition when infinite joy is offered us, like an ignorant child who wants to go on making mud pies in a slum because he cannot imagine what is meant by the offer of a holiday at the sea. We are far too easily pleased.”

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A New Internal Posture

I am glad to leave 2025 behind. There were some truly wonderful and beautiful things in this last year. And it was also a really hard year, filled with grief and many trials. I have no illusions that 2026 will be circumstantially easier, but I am choosing a different internal posture. This year, by God’s grace, I am committing to:

• Curiosity over judgment: Asking “What led them to this thinking or behavior?” rather than assuming they’re just “wrong” and condemning them inwardly.
• Assuming the best of others: Giving others the benefit of the doubt.
• Extending grace to myself: Offering myself the same kindness I offer my friends.

Most importantly, I’m practicing the art of resting in Christ’s sufficiency—listening for the Holy Spirit to direct my paths for His Name’s sake. Trusting His work and His perfect strength, where my own efforts and energy fall short.

The Peace of the Misfit

I often feel like a misfit, but I’m learning that it’s okay to be different. I don’t neatly fit into most people’s categorical boxes. I’ve heard many times over the years, “I just can’t figure you out.” I like it that way, but it can also feel pretty lonely at times. I am learning to ask myself: “How has God uniquely equipped me with gifts, talents, relationships, and experiences so I can offer something to others that no one else can?” I wonder the same for you.

I might feel a sense of holy discontentment with the world (and my own life) as it is, but I also feel true peace. It is the peace that comes from knowing my hope and joy aren’t tied to my circumstances or any particular outcomes. They are anchored in something much deeper.

Looking Ahead

This year, I am meditating on the promise that in His presence there is “fullness of joy” and at His right hand are “pleasures forevermore” (Psalm 16:11). Even when I cannot see the road ahead, I can believe in Him and rejoice with a “joy that is inexpressible and filled with glory” (1 Peter 1:8–9).

My prayer for us this year is for an awakening—that many would see and savor Jesus Christ as Lord of all, putting our hope in Him, and living now into the more that awaits us. I want the lost to be found. I want the found to be healed and whole. I pray that “Christ may dwell in your hearts through faith—that you, being rooted and grounded in love, may have strength to comprehend with all the saints what is the breadth and length and height and depth, and to know the love of Christ that surpasses knowledge, that you may be filled with all the fullness of God” (Ephesians 3:17-19).

“May the God of hope fill you with all joy and peace in believing, so that by the power of the Holy Spirit you may abound in hope.” — Romans 15:13