Travel is a very relative thing. Relative to our friends and family we travel a lot, and the children have especially been on a lot of flights and road trips. Relative to the travel bloggers I follow, we’ve basically never left our house. ?

For me personally, when I read about families traveling or living abroad, I have to make sure I’m reading for inspiration and knowledge and entertainment. It’s too easy to compare my own travels and start to feel jealousy or discontent.

When these feelings crop up I’ve found a couple things that help.

• Recognize that my feelings are trending negative. If I’m not aware its happening, I’m obviously not doing anything to get it under control!
• Examine my motivations for traveling. For me, travel is a way to experience the incredible majesty and diversity of God’s creation and to introduce the children to his power and beauty. If travel has become something I want to check off my list or show off in Instagram, then my motivation is wrong.

• Count my blessings unrelated to travel. I have a loving husband who goes along with all my schemes and supports us, my daughter is so smart and observant and is turning into a hilarious and beautiful little girl, and my cute son is so caring, affectionate, and easy going. Our extended family is loving and supportive and fun and everyone is healthy.

• Count my blessings related to travel! We’ve traveled a lot! My memory is not great, so I review pictures of the wonderful trips we’ve taken and feel blessed.

• When all else fails, go outside! If comparison is the thief of joy, then my laptop/iphone are the getaway cars! We live in a beautiful world and God’s creation is all around us! For me at least, all discontentment fades away when I get into the woods or the mountains or step onto the beach.

Many people have been to more places then me, people have stayed for longer at the places I’ve been, people have stayed at nicer hotels or eaten at better restaurants, people travel more frequently then I do, but at the end of the day, what does that have to do with me?

1 Timothy 6:6-7 But godliness with contentment is great gain. For we brought nothing into the world, and we can take nothing out of it.