I need less. Less stress, less things to do and less stuff to buy. If I am being honest, this consuming mentality of needing and doing is created by me (and a bit of media mixed in). Do I need another pair of jeans, no, but they are so cute! Do we have to fully book up our days, no, but look how much we get done. In the end, after the excitement of new jeans and checking off a to-do list wears off, it just leaves us tired.
What I really need less of is me. My need to do things “right”, to make everyone happy and to try to look like I fit in. (Yep, even at 45 I worry that I’ll show up looking frumpy, or someone will take a group photo and I’m on the end!). All of these day-to-day worries will never make an eternal difference in my life or in your life. In fact, they are most likely adding to our gray hairs coming in.
To counterbalance this madness I need more of Galatians 5:22. More love, joy, peace, patience, kindness, goodness, faithfulness, gentleness and self control. I need to get my eyes off myself and look up. I need to remind myself the goal is to live for an audience of One. Am I truly listening to Him? Are you? Are we leaving room in each day to help someone in need or are we too busy worrying, shopping and checking boxes?
Resources/Inspiration:
Facebook Group – Join us in “7 |An Experiment” as we journey through reducing all the unnecessary excess in our lives.
Verses
Hebrews 12:1 (ERV) – “We have all these great people around us as examples. Their lives tell us what faith means. So we, too, should run the race that is before us and never quit. We should remove from our lives anything that would slow us down and the sin that so often makes us fall.”
Galatians 5:22-23 (ERV) – “But the fruit that the Spirit produces in a person’s life is love, joy, peace, patience, kindness, goodness, faithfulness, gentleness, and self-control.”
Matthew 6:27 (NIV) – “Can any one of you by worrying add a single hour to your life?”
Songs
His Eye Is On the Sparrow by Lauryn Hill & Tanya Blount
Book
7: An experimental mutiny against excess by Jen Hatmaker
Great Blog post Nance! I agree. We could all learn a little from the “less is more experiment”. I too am guilty of having too much (as evidence by the boxes of stuff still in the boxes from my move two months ago). I have been just fine without all of the stuff in these boxes. Time to purge and stop buying. If only I didn’t love online shopping so much 🙂
Oh I hear ya girl!! I LOVE to shop 🙂 . Thank you so much for your kind comment. I love that we connect on all the same stuff. Great minds! Big hugs to you!