Surely I have calmed and quieted my soul, Like a weaned child with his mother; Like a weaned child is my soul within me. Psalm 131:2

David said he learned to be content regarding things he could not understand (v.1). He said that in the end, he was content like a weaned child with his mother. Notice he didn’t say like who just finished being nursed by his mother. That is a different kind of contentment—the kind that comes from getting what he wants. No, a weaned child is one who has been cut off from receiving what he wants. Weaning a child is an important part of a child’s development, both physically and emotionally.

Physically, it means learning to eat other food that is more difficult to eat and eventually more nutritious than mothers’ milk.

Emotionally, it is a first step in learning the responsibility to eat food and feed oneself, rather than simply being fed. Children often dislike being weaned, but mothers must insist on it for the child’s development.

David was speaking of the spiritual benefit of learning contentment by being denied what he wanted—not by his mother, but by God.

The pathway to contentment, as well as trusting God when we do not understand or like what He is doing, is to be denied what we otherwise desire—a sort of imposed fast. The key to learning the lesson is to resist being demanding or complaining, and simply trusting God.

We do not understand many of God’s ways. We can either demand and complain, to our detriment, or learn to trust God, which will mature us and glorify Him. Which path will you choose?