Simplify!

Don’t be obcessed by getting more material things. Be content with what you have. Since God assured us “I’ll never let you down, never walk off.” The Message Hebrews 13:5-6

It is feeling a lot like spring everywhere we go. The weather is warmer, the flowers are blooming, and the stores are displaying all the new spring fashions. When we think of spring, many of us begin to turn our minds toward “spring cleaning.” This is the annual event where we spruce up our homes inside and out after a long winter of the doldrums due to inactivity.

For most women, the spring season involves the annual “switch out the closet” event which is basically replacing winter pieces of clothing, shoes, jackets, etc., with spring ones. Sometimes this can consist of just moving clothes from one closet to the other, but this year, things are different. This year our church is participating in a program which allows us to simplify our closets while at the same time, make a donation to Must Ministries. The first step is to grab a garbage bag. The program asks us to take one item from our closet each day for the forty days of Lent and put it in the bag. The bags will then be collected and distributed after Easter Sunday.

This idea has worked well for me because it’s not done all in one day, but rather I have forty days to sort through things. However, clothing isn’t the only thing we need to work on! We all have a need to simplify many things, not just material things, in our lives. We are bombarded on a daily basis with emails, phone calls, responsibilites, pressures, schedules, obligations, TV ads, and the weight of everyday life. We need to simplify and drop some of the load we carry.

On a recent radio broadcast, Dennis Rainey talked about Double Eagle II, the first hot air balloon to cross the Atlantic Ocean. The men piloting the magnificent craft caught an air corridor that carried them all the way across the Atlantic, but when they were just on the coast of Ireland, they flew into heavy cloud clover and ice began to form on the balloon’s outer shell. They dropped from twenty thousand to ten thousand feet in a matter of hours. They did everything they could to save the balloon. They began to throw out cameras, food rations, even a glider with which they had planned to land. At about four thousand feet, they radioed their position and then threw the radio overboard. Finally, they descened low enough to catch the rays of the sun, the ice fell off, and they soared to France. We all need to simplify and lighten our load so we can soar through this life.

The scripture above was written to tell Christians to be content with what they have and be comforted in the fact that God will never leave them. Charles Shedd pastored a large church with many demands. He and his wife created a simplicity list to share with the congregation. It’s a perfect reminder for me.

First, remember why you are here. We simplify our lives by putting God’s will first. Then, drop useless goals. Next, make sure you need to simplify. Sometimes our problem is inertia because we don’t do enough! Then, remember you can’t do everything. If God had intended you to be six people, He would have divided you up. Leave some of the jobs to others. Live one day at a time. Plan and hope for the future, but don’t live there. “Each day has enough trouble of its own.” (Matt. 6:34) Live well today and tomorrow’s strength will come.

Then, wherever you are – be there! Stop thinking that happiness comes at a certain time every day or with certain people. Live in the present. Next, develop a hobby. A change of activity keeps you fresh. Time spent playing is time well spent. My personal favorite is, You can’t slow the world, so slow yourself. Learn to gear down. When you can’t alter the pace, alter yourself. Finally, adopt the perfect pattern. Follow Him as He lives a mighty life in quiet confidence.

Thoreau said, Our lives are frittered away by detail…simplify, simplify. I think he means that we should discard the unnecessary and embrace a simpler more intentional life. Don’t get bogged down with material possessions and life’s pressures. Let this mind be in you which was also in Christ Jesus. Phillippians 2:5

We all have garbage bags just waiting to be filled! Simplify!