Simplicity

It's a theme my heart often goes back to.  

It's a topic I often find myself pondering or writing about.

"I am beginning to learn that it is the sweet, simple things of life which are the real ones after all."

Laura Ingalls Wilder

I once again recalled that quote as I watched my daughter snuggled up next the window on a cool afternoon, reading her very first chapter of Little House In The Big Woods.

Last weekend I was blessed to attend the Women of Faith conference for the 8th year in a row.  I am always spiritually enriched by this weekend, and I also look forward to bringing home new Bible study materials each year.  This year one of the books in the study trio was titled Choosing Simplicity: Embracing the Benefits of a Simpler Life.  I have been working on some of the lessons this week and have been drinking in the wisdom in this study along with my morning coffee.  

The first lesson talked about Gideon's army.  How God narrowed his enormous army down to a mere 300 men.  And how God worked through that simplicity, and showed Himself great.

The second lesson talked about David.  How when he faced Goliath, the coat of armor was just too big and cumbersome, so he simply took that sling and those 5 stones.  And how God once again was shown mighty and strong to defeat the enemy through a small boy with simple ammunition.  

The third lesson talked about the simplicity of the greatest commandment.  When asked what it was, Jesus summed it up in such basic terms - love God, love people.  It sounds so simple, but it is so profound and all-encompassing.  

The fourth lesson talked about relying on daily bread, something I have written about before.  And the fifth lesson talked about God moments; how He sometimes appears and speaks to us in the simplest moments, when we least expect.

I have a faraway friend named Janet.  For a season we both lived in Maryland; now I am in Florida and she is actually in England!  But we keep in touch and recently sent me this post written by a missionary in Indonesia.  She said she knew I would love it, which I did; and I had to stop for a moment and think of the wonders of the internet.  How neat that the hearts and souls of women literally around the world can connect via facebook, blogs, and other avenues!  It's astounding, really.  But that post and this Bible study I have been doing inspired me to put this together.

I made it entirely from items I had.  A leftover jar that earlier in the week held spaghetti sauce; a scrap of burlap; a scrapbooking sticker; some Scrabble tiles.  It reminded me of autumns I spent in Maryland and Virginia.   The changing colors of leaves have to be some of the greatest simple pleasures I have ever known.  And this little jar also reminds me of the simplicity I strive for.

Because I'm starting to believe that simplicity is a mindset.  A Biblical mindset, really.  It's being content with what you have; living with a grateful heart of thanksgiving; seeing each day, each breath as a gift from God and embracing it; not getting entangled in worry but casting your cares upon Him; enjoying every gift from above and the things God gives us to richly enjoy; living abundantly and freely; not storing up treasure here, but rather in Heaven; realizing this is just a temporary home, and living with purpose with eternity in mind.

I really think simplicity is not necessarily about what you have or don't have, or how you decorate, or what your schedule looks like, or what you do or don't do.  It's how you think.  It's when your heart is settled.  It's when your soul is uncluttered by the insanity of this world, and content in Christ alone.

I am beginning to understand that is what simplicity looks like.