I have a love/hate relationship with this word. When I was single, it was so easy to live a life a simplicity - debt free living, giving back to the community and working as a teacher in a non-profit school. I was only making decisions for myself that were accountable to God. I furnished my condo sparsely and ate simple meals. My big splurge each month was going out after our young adult prayer meeting. Life was simple and beautiful.
When I met my husband, we shared the same values. It was so refreshing. We married. Then the simpleness of our lives changed. We had children. I tried to keep things simple. Really, I did. Voices echoed in my head. "But you need the Diaper Genie." "You have to have the wipe warmer for those cold nights." "You don't want the Euro Glider XL92?" I didn't want/need any of those things. People thought otherwise and lovingly bestowed baby equipment, clothes, etc. upon our simple home. Often, the items were unsolicited. I ended up making Goodwill runs to empty out our basement. Life was now complex and beautiful.
My babies are no longer babies. I'm no longer making decisions for myself. My husband and I are making decisions for our family. We feel stronger than ever that we are accountable to God. We're striving for simplicity in this complex world of school, meetings and sports. We're saying "No" to things that are good things but things that make life a bit more complex, a bit more stressful because we're trying to fit it in our schedule. This is why I hate simplicity as much as I love it. I have to work hard at yet another thing - being simple. I have to continually declutter my life, home, calendar and free time, in order to have simplicity.
Through it all, I'm seeing the fruit of this constant cleansing. As I continue to say "No" to unnecessary but good things, I'm finding that I'm able to hear God's voice clearer. I'm able to now say "Yes" to where God is calling me to be in my prayer life and where He wants my family to be. Life is simply complex and beautiful.
3 comments:
what a wonderful post - thank you
I remember all the stuff I thougth was necessary for my first baby... 12 years later with my last baby, all I wanted was a new sheet for the hand-me-down crib his 5 older siblings slept in.
Thank you for the reminder that it is not bad to say no to good if that good is not really necessary for the family's good.
God Bless
=) Love it. Esp. the diaper genie. Never had one & did just fine w/o it.
The constant runs to Goodwill and needing to keep up with the cleansing is just how I have been feeling lately. How much to save for the next child? How much to let go and to feel lighter as a result.
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