For the longest time I thought I needed to be more organized. Then I realized I just needed less stuff.
Feeling worn down? Stressed? Overwhelmed?
Fortunately, there is a legitimate cure: cutting away the excess! We, as God's precious daughters, need to learn to narrow our choices. How often do we choose things we think are absolutely essential in this life when they’re not? Few things the world tells us are mandatory actually are mandatory!
I'm guilty of ignoring calls on my iPhone. Sometimes I don't recognize the number, sometimes I'm busy at work, sometimes I'm with someone else... Often it's a legitimate reason, but a handful of times I've simply been too tired/overwhelmed to answer.
"For if you keep quiet at this time... you and your father’s house will be destroyed. You likely became queen for such an opportune time as this!" Esther 4:14
God has a divine calling on your specific life; a call to love, serve, laugh, play, and work... the very things Jesus did during His 33 years as a man. God places each of us into a particular situation (through our family, circumstances, country) culminating into our sphere of influence. We can all reach a different people group, be it our friends, neighbors, parents, etc.
Life = seasons of change.
Currently, I find myself in one of these seasons. I have just moved to a new state (Iowa), I am about to embark on a new journey through doctoral school, and essentially everything is new here in Iowa. I have found this unsettling feeling of being foreign is isolating and challenging. I would be lying if I said that I wasn’t feeling the familiar pang of homesickness in my new “home.”
I’ve always enjoyed games. I mean, who doesn’t?! Monopoly. Settlers of Catan. Chutes and ladders. Code Names. Charades. Spicy Uno. The options are endless! Growing up, my personal favorite game was Hide n’ Seek, with an added element… in the dark.
“Again Jesus said, ‘Peace be with you, as the Father is sending me, I am sending you.’” John 20:22
When I was a little girl, my family used to gather in Palm Springs every Easter. It was a fun-filled time of hunting for eggs with my cousins, enjoying brunch at the country club, and joyful reflection on Christ’s resurrection.
Am I strong? Beautiful? Am I good enough? Ever ask these questions? We live in a world that tears us down. A world that tells us we will never be skinny enough, smart enough, or good enough. If we let the world define us, we will always be let down. Instead, we have to be defined by the Cross.
Minimalism is a practice that’s trending right now, born out of an opposition to the rampant materialism and consumerism that seems to devour our American lives.
Minimalism goes something like this: if an object doesn’t bring you joy, throw it out. You need less to survive (and thrive) than you think you do. Edit the objects that make their way into your life and home. Travel through life lightly. Set yourself free from your possessions.
The morning I almost missed the bus was when it hit me. No, not the bus, thankfully. It was God’s promise that hit me in a new way. As I sat in D.C.