Contentment can feel almost impossible in a world that constantly trains us to compare, complain, and chase after the next thing. In this episode of Missions Life: Navigating Life, Leadership, and Ministry Abroad, we talk with Erik Raymond, pastor in Boston and author of Chasing Contentment, about what true Christian contentment looks like and how believers can learn to rest in God in both blessing and hardship.

Erik helps us think biblically about grumbling, complaining, envy, hardship, church community, and the deeper battle taking place in the heart. We also talk about the difference between Stoic self-reliance and Christian contentment, which is rooted in the strength, goodness, and sufficiency of God.

In This Episode, We Cover:

✅ Where the idea for Chasing Contentment came from

✅ Why contentment is more than simply “being okay” with hard circumstances

✅ How grumbling and complaining reveal what we believe about God

✅ Why discontentment often comes from believing false promises

✅ How trials can become tools God uses to train us in godliness

✅ Why both blessing and affliction can expose our hearts

✅ How the church can move beyond superficial gathering and stir one another toward contentment

✅ How compassion, rather than envy, helps us respond when unbelievers prosper

Key Themes:

Spiritual Resilience & Personal Growth in Missions
Contentment is not passive resignation. It is a learned strength that grows as we trust God in the middle of real hardship, unanswered questions, and daily pressures.

Leadership & Team Dynamics
Grumbling and comparison can quietly shape the culture of a team, church, or ministry. Learning contentment helps leaders model trust, gratitude, and spiritual maturity.

Cross-Cultural Ministry & Adaptation
Missionary life often exposes discontentment through transition, loss, unmet expectations, and comparison. This conversation offers practical encouragement for resting in God when life and ministry do not look the way we expected.

Missionary Family Life & Marriage
Contentment affects how we respond to our spouse, children, teammates, churches, and circumstances. It shapes the tone of the home and the health of our relationships.

Episode Encouragement:

Christian contentment is not found by pretending life is easy. It is learned by seeing God clearly, trusting His goodness, and resting in His care even when circumstances are painful or confusing.

Erik Raymond is the pastor of Redeemer Fellowship Church in Boston. He is also the author of a number of books, including Chasing Contentment.

We want to hear from you!

Have a question, story, or idea for a future episode?

Send us a message at kfarran@abwe.org with the subject “Podcast” or connect with us on Instagram: @kyle.farran

Whether it’s a challenge you’re facing, a topic you’re curious about, or just a quick note to say hi—we’d love to hear it.

Your feedback and ideas help shape the future of Missions Life!

In this reposted interview, Richard Blackaby talks with Kyle about Godly Grit and the kind of resilience needed for life, leadership, and ministry. We explore why spiritual strength matters, how grit is formed through challenges, and what it looks like to keep moving forward with faith and endurance.

Show Notes and Links:

https://www.kylefarran.com/missionslife/34-richard-blackaby-interviews-kyle-on-godly-grit

View Godly Grit on Amazon

The Richard Blackaby Leadership Podcast

Godly Grit: Unshakable Resilience and Grit for Life and Leadership launches today—in this episode we’re talking about how to stay steady when life gets hard and bad news hits.

What if hard seasons didn’t have to shake you to the core?

In Psalm 112, God gives us a picture of the person who is steady, calm, and unafraid—even when bad news comes.

In this episode, we talk about how Godly Grit grows when we stop expecting life to be easy and start building our life on the One who never moves.

“In the world you will have tribulation.” (John 16:33).

“For the righteous will never be moved… He is not afraid of bad news; his heart is firm, trusting in the LORD. His heart is steady; he will not be afraid…” (Psalm 112:6–8).

“I have set the LORD always before me; because he is at my right hand, I shall not be shaken” (Psalm 16:8).

In This Episode, We Cover:

✅ Why expecting “easy” sets us up for discouragement and quitting

✅ What it means to be unshakable (and how resilience is different than being shaken)

✅ Psalm 112: the marks of a steady heart that doesn’t fear bad news

✅ How fear is often rooted in comfort, control, and wanting to know the plan

✅ Why real faith isn’t trusting a plan—it’s trusting a Person

✅ A story about a charging rhino (and what it taught us about trusting God)

✅ How your response to challenges can make God look big to the people watching

View Godly Grit on Amazon

Show notes and links:

https://www.kylefarran.com/missionslife/33-godly-grit-how-to-be-unshakable-when-bad-news-hits

We want to hear from you!
Have a question, story, or idea for a future episode?
Send us a message at kfarran@abwe.org with the subject “Podcast” or connect with us on Instagram: @kyle.farran

Whether it’s a challenge you’re facing, a topic you’re curious about, or just a quick note to say hi—we’d love to hear it.
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Your feedback and ideas help shape the future of Missions Life: Navigating Life, Leadership, and Ministry Abroad!