268 - 11 Wins from the Contentment Challenge
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Show Notes:
Do you know what I don’t talk about enough? My Contentment Challenge. It has become a regular part of my life every year now, but it continues to be one of the best things that I do. Today, I’m going to share eleven benefits that I experience every single time I do the Contentment Challenge and my unique approach to it this year.
For the full episode, hit play above or read through below.
Okay, before I jump into the contentment challenge… Guys, May is for Mamas is around the corner. Yes, I have not forgotten about May is for Mamas. It's coming up. I've got some great episodes. I'm definitely in the thick of the little baby days of motherhood and some of my episodes reflect that. I’ve got some other episodes coming. I'm excited! I love May is for Mamas. So just remember it's coming up. I'm gonna have some special promotions going on for the legacy photo system. You're not gonna want to miss it.
Alright, let's jump into the Contentment Challenge. I have been doing the Contentment Challenge for 13 years. Doesn't that blow your mind? It blows my mind. I still gain so much from doing it spiritually, financially, relationally, emotionally, every single time I do it. It has just become a regular rhythm of my life.
If you don't know what the Contentment Challenge is, it's where I give up shopping for anything extra in life. Anything that I want, but maybe don't really need for a short period of time, usually three months. Of course I can buy groceries. Of course I can get gas in my car. Of course I can, you know, get the things that we need, but I really try to just not shop for any clothes, any household decor items, any fun wants that I see on Amazon. No buying, you know, trying new whatever Instagram ad that is served to me. I don't know, you fill in the blank. You know how it goes. You're just always being bombarded with all these new things that you all of a sudden have to have. Well, on the Contentment Challenge, you just say no to all of it. You only buy food and absolute necessities. Medicine if you need it. That kind of thing. This year, I am kind of taking a fresh look at it or experiencing it in a new way, which I'll tell you about.
But I do want to say, if you want the whole story of how the Contentment Challenge came to be, you can go to my third podcast episode ever. Nancyray.com/podcast/3 and you can listen to it there. I think most podcast platforms only host like the last hundred episodes of your podcast. So it's kind of expired now in the podcast platform, but you can always go to my website to listen to old podcasts. Nancyray.com/podcast/3 and it will tell you the backstory, which is very interesting because this is a challenge that I feel like I did not come up with on my own. I feel like the Lord gave it to me. I fought him on it. I did not want to do it. He just did not let me go. He just called me to do it and I said, “Okay, finally, finally, fine. Yes, I will do this. I'm going to give up shopping for three months.”
The unique thing about it… He actually asked me to do that right after we became completely debt free. I was like ready to not be on a budget and I was ready to spend. He just said, “No, stuff is never ever, ever going to satisfy. Only I will satisfy you.” Relationships, experiences, those things are so much greater than stuff. So it's really neat how the whole thing came to be. If you want to listen to the whole story, go back to that episode. I'm like a brand new little podcaster in the episode, but it is cool.
I'm just so thankful for God's faithfulness in writing that into my story. I thought that it was going to be a one-time thing. Just like I thought getting out of debt was like, “Hey, I'm done. Now I can spend what I want.” The Lord's like, “No, now here's a Contentment Challenge. I want you to really see where contentment comes from.” Since then, it's like He has just gently led me to do it every single year since and now it's this habit that I crave. I love it. I love doing it and there's so many good things about it.
So these are eleven things. Why eleven? Because when I started writing about it, that's the number that I came up with. It was going to be ten; now it's eleven, and I don't even think I'm going to be able to keep up with numbering them all. I’m just going to tell you all about them and you can follow along. But I'll tell you what, this Contentment Challenge has been one of the greatest things in my life. It is a fast that anchors me to the Lord. It's just so good. I'm going to stop telling you about it. I'm going to go ahead and jump into the eleven things.
1) It opens my eyes to all that I have
The first thing. Every time I say, “Today's the day I start. I'm not doing the Contentment Challenge anymore”, it immediately opens my eyes to all that I have. It's amazing how much we have in America. It's amazing the things that we accumulate in our homes. It's wild, right? Instead of focusing on the things that I don't have, I see everything in my house that I do have.
I love this quote by Oprah Winfrey. She says, “Be thankful for what you have, you'll end up having more. If you concentrate on what you don't have, you'll never ever have enough.” As soon as I stop spending, it almost feels like the stuff in my house doubles. I just realize how much I have and I become so grateful for it.
2) I focus on the simple experiences
Number two, it focuses me on the simple experiences that make me happy. Like not buying a new outfit kind of experience, but I relish walking in nature, hiking, finishing a good book, writing in my journal, listening to worship music, worshiping at church. Just enjoying the good stuff of life.
I begin to focus on experiences way more than material things. While I'm on the Contentment Challenge, I recently went to a Jess Ray/Sky Peterson concert and it was so good. I was able to be there and present and I enjoyed it so much knowing that I wasn't out there to buy the stuff or do anything. I was truly there to enjoy every single word that was sung and every note that was played. I feel like, for some reason when I'm on the contentment challenge, I enjoy those experiences more. I think it's because I just formed this habit of being really present with wherever I am and whatever I am doing. Worship especially, whether it's at a concert like that or in church, it just becomes so vibrant to me. Playing worship music in my car. For whatever reason, music and nature and things just become more beautiful than ever because I'm enjoying them 100% for what it is and I know that it's not a material thing that's gonna make me happy.
3) I use clothes in my closet to their fullest
Number three, I use the clothes that I have in my closet to their fullest. The first time I did the Contentment Challenge, I remember I had this event coming up. Now this is the hardest part, okay? If you like to go clothes shopping and you have a wedding you're going to or a baby shower or an event that you have, the default is just to buy a new outfit for this event in your life. The first time I did the Contentment Challenge, I had this speaking engagement. I was gonna be in front of a crowd of people at this conference and I just said, “You know what? I'm not buying anything. I am going to figure out some outfits, (cause it was like a two day thing) that I'm gonna wear over the course of those days, I've got plenty of stuff.”
It was hard for me though, but I put together the cutest outfits. I had never put those combinations of my own clothes together before. I was like, this feels like a new outfit. It was great. Even just recently, the concert I was just talking about, I immediately just got a skirt that was like five years old and a borrowed t-shirt and just went to the show and didn't think a thing of it. It's almost like my default now is just to shop my closet. I'm already shopping my closet for my brother's wedding that's coming up later this summer. It's just really sweet to have that kind of as my mode instead of going to the store as my mode.
That is something I feel like I'm gonna take with me the rest of my life. Do I still wanna buy something new? Occasionally, yeah, of course. Will I buy something new for my brother's wedding at the end of the summer? Maybe. I won't be doing the Contentment Challenge anymore. Who knows? I'm still postpartum body. I might want something new and that's great. That's fine, but it's really sweet to have the default be, “Hey, let me look in my closet first. Let me see what I can come up with here first that will make me feel very beautiful.”
4) I become so resourceful
This one honestly might be my favorite thing about the Contentment Challenge. There's a lot of things, but this one might be my favorite one. I become so resourceful. So resourceful. I usually, if we need something in life, we search Amazon and click “add to cart” and just solve the problem. It's easy to do that. When you're on the Contentment Challenge, you can't do that. So you start to look in your home for things that you already have that can work.
For example, a few years back when I was doing the Contentment Challenge… I usually do it in January, February, and March every year. This year is a little different, but usually I started in January because I'm just so over Christmas and the material culture and all that. So I remember I had this print that I got for Christmas and I really wanted it framed and hung before the Contentment Challenge started. Well, I dragged my feet. I didn't buy the frame. The Contentment Challenge started because I always have a set date in my calendar. I was like, “Man, I guess I'm just going to have to wait for three months before I can hang this picture.” Then I was like, “No, it's fine. It's a Christmas gift. I'm just going to go ahead and buy the frame. You know, it might be cheating a little, but it's fine because I wanted this thing, right?” This is a Christmas gift. It's part of Christmas. Then I just said, “No, let me just wait. Let me just see if I can figure this out.” So I started digging through closets and I found this really cool frame that I ended up using for this print that I love. It is still that to this day. I was about to buy an $80 custom frame and instead, I am still using this frame that I love that I found literally in the bottom of one of my closets. I was so proud of that.
Another story. This year, this time, the last few weeks… Okay, I was getting on the Contentment Challenge. Running out of facial moisturizer. I love A’del Cosmetics. I love what they do and I have this very specific Blue Lagoon Balm face moisturizer I use that I love and it was getting low. I was like, “You know what? This is kind of a need. I'm just going to buy this on the Contentment Challenge. It’s fine.” Then I said, “Well, let me just wait. Let me see if I have any other facial moisturizers that I can use just to get me through the next few months and then I'll buy a new one.”
Listen to this. I found three. This is kind of embarrassing. Three containers of moisturizers in my drawer in my bathroom. I have since used up two of them. I'm on the third one. As I'm coming to the end of that one, I found a facial moisturizing stick that I got in my stocking for Christmas that I had forgotten about.
Guys, I would have just added that thing to my cart and bought it and started using it; not even realizing that I had four face moisturizers that are just sitting in my bathroom. Now, they're all gonna be used up. I'll have more space in my drawer and I'll be getting fresh moisturizer, knowing that I've used everything else that I already have. That's just a good feeling. I would have never made myself look for other resources if I wasn't on the Contentment Challenge. So I love the way that it challenges me to be more resourceful with the things that I have.
5) I see my shopping habits for what they are
Okay, number five. I see my shopping habits for what they are. This is a tough one and a good one. Like I've said, Amazon, it's a quick fix. Target pickup is so easy. But when I take those things off the plate as an option, I still find my thumb finding its way to the “add to cart button”, right? I still search for things that I want, but instead of buying it, here's what I do. I add it to the cart and I stare at it for a few days and then I'll click the “save for later” button and then I might add it to a note in my phone to see if I still really want it. By the end of the Contentment Challenge, I have a very curated specific list of things that I actually want to buy and I know that I want to buy. Most of the things that I have added to that list get deleted off the list because I don't actually want them or need them, but they just would have been those impulse buys, which leads me to number six.
6) I become a much more intentional shopper
I become a much more intentional shopper and this is something that I take with me throughout the year. Like, I really think about what I want, I know what I want, and I'm intentional about buying it.
7) It cuts down on the clutter problem
Number seven. The contentment challenge cuts down on the clutter problem. I say “the clutter problem” because I know it's not just me. I know you've got closets full of stuff, stuff shoved underneath the bed, clothes you need to get rid of, stuff, just stuff, just stuff. There's just so much stuff. Do you feel like you are drowning in it a little bit? I saw this reel that's like, “It's amazing the amount of effort it takes just to show up places late and have a messy house all the time.” I'm like, yes, there is just stuff. There's stuff. It's so much to manage.
Here's the thing about the Contentment Challenge that we don't talk about enough. We always talk about decluttering, cleaning out, getting rid of stuff. That's good. The clutter problem happens on the front end. When we're buying all the time, with the add to cart button that's at our fingertips, literally all the time. That's where the clutter begins. It's our spending problems, which leads me to number eight.
8) It inspires me to clean out
It inspires me to clean out like nothing else. There's something about stopping shopping that makes you want to clean everything out. I don't know what it is. It doesn't make sense, but just trust me, it really works that way.
9) It draws me closer to the Lord
Number nine, every time I cut out spending, this unnecessary spending (this actually is my favorite thing about it), it draws me closer to the Lord and I see Him at work in ways that I wouldn't normally see him. That has happened very specifically for me this time.
Okay, let me just pause and tell you how I'm approaching the Contentment Challenge this time. This time I'm doing it for Lent, which is not my normal three months, right? It's the 40 days leading up to Easter. Then I'm planning to do it again in the fall. So I'm kind of breaking it up and doing two different Contentment Challenges this year. But here's the thing. As a pregnant breastfeeding mom,I can't fast from food or drink right now. I've got to nourish my body, nourish my baby. But I count this as a fast. Like a spiritual fast. This is what I did this year for Lent. I just can’t explain it. The Lord has been showing up in ways I just did not expect and it has been so sweet. It's amazing.
There's a spiritual side to it, I think, because we don't realize. Really, our spending habits are connected to our heart. Any habit in our life shows us a reflection of who we are in our hearts. It’s amazing how beautiful God has used this in my life over and over again to draw me closer to Him. All I can say is you’ve got to try it to see for yourself. It's really good.
10) It saves me time
Okay, number ten. It saves me time. I remember this being such a revelation the very first time I did it because I just unsubscribed from any email marketing newsletter that I got. Get an email from Anthropologie? Unsubscribe. J.Crew? Unsubscribe. Target? Unsubscribe. An ad on Instagram? Scroll by. I don't give it the time of day. Do I wanna pull in to shop at a store right now? Nope, keep driving. These decisions are already made for me. That is such a gift because I don't spend time browsing like I normally would.
11) It helps with my wallet/budget
Lastly, number eleven, which ties in to all of this and is very obvious. One of the greatest benefits of the Contentment Challenge is what it can do for you financially. When you stop the spending, it helps your wallet. It just helps your budget. It helps you so much. So yes, it's all these heart things that are happening, which are really beautiful. But then there's this obvious benefit that it helps financially. I'm not spending as much money, which is always a gift.
So I'm doing the Contentment Challenge a little differently. Those are the eleven benefits. I'm doing it for Lent this year. A couple of things and you can always tweak it if you need to, depending on the season of your life, but I have been okay with shopping for my kids this time. I'm not shopping for myself, you know, unless it is a gift that is given to me. But I'm not spending my money shopping for me. I am spending money on shopping for my kids. I just had my fifth baby. I want to buy things for her. We gave away a lot of girls' clothes so I just got her a bunch of things, but I'm not shopping anything for me.
I have done the Contentment Challenge in the past where I have not done anything new for even my kids. I bought them stuff ahead of time and no shopping at all. It just depends on the season you're in. So anyway, just wanted to share that to say that every year is different for me. I tweak it a little depending on where I am, but every year it is such a gift.
You can always learn about it by going to nancyray.com/contentmentchallenge. If you want, you can actually buy a little course that I've made for $30 that has challenges for every week, some encouraging words. It's nothing huge or fancy, but I tell you what, it is so nice to have the solidarity and accountability of someone who's done this before. I have scripture memory verses for you to focus on. I have book recommendations for you to read. I have tips on how to prepare for the Contentment Challenge before you start, what to do when you finish. It's really great and I hope that you consider it. If you think about it, $30 to not spend anything for three months is pretty great. But you can learn all about that by going back and listening to that third podcast episode or heading to nancyray.com/contentmentchallenge.
I just encourage you, whether or not you buy that. Listen, you don't have to buy my course to do the Contentment Challenge. You can just do it at any point. You just do it, right? You just stop your spending. I would just encourage youtube journal through it, pray through it and see how God shows up in your life. It's just really, really special every time I do it, which is why I just can't get enough of it. It's just part of my life now and I'm so grateful.
Thanks so much for listening to episode 268 of Work and Play with Nancy Ray, all about the Contentment Challenge this year and what it looks like for me. All of these things I've mentioned and resources can be found in the podcast show notes at nancyray.com/podcast/268. You can always find me over @nancyray on Instagram.
I want to close with this quote by Shana Niequist when she says,
“How we live matters and what you choose to own will shape your life, whether you choose to admit it or not. Let's live lightly, freely, courageously, surrounded only by what brings joy, simplicity and beauty.”
Thanks for listening and I'll catch you next time.
