Devotional for an Organized Life

Devotional for an Organized Life

Part 3: The Simplicity in Christ

But I fear, lest by any means, as the serpent beguiled Eve through his subtlety, so your minds should be corrupted from the simplicity that is in Christ. ~2 Corinthians 11:3

The phrase, “the simplicity that is in Christ” is well known, but the dream of simplicity manifesting into our every day life seems so unattainable. Have you ever wondered how more enjoyable your life might be if you lived more simply?  Your schedule is jam-packed and you’re always running late. The hangers in your closet are fighting for space.  And it takes you 20 minutes to find your keys. What’s missing? The peace that comes from the simplicity in Christ.

A problem as old as time- Adam, Eve, the serpent and the forbidden fruit.

From the beginning of time, outside voices have seduced and dazzled us; all with subtlety. Our culture has slowly and subtly seduced us into thinking we need to have the latest “this” and sign up for the latest “that”.  Eve didn’t realize that her life was already complete and what she had was enough.

We buy things, keep things and hoard things. . . just in case.  Your handbag is so heavy you can hardly lift it. Why do you have so much stuff in there? “Just in case”.  You probably aren’t aware that you are responding to life’s circumstances that push you away from a life of simplicity in Christ.

The joy of living simply

They way God teaches us to respond to life’s circumstance and the way the world does have nothing in common. Claire Josefine wrote in The Spiritual Art of Being Organized,

“Organization is not what you see on glossy magazines or on TV, despite the messages perpetrated therein it is not mastered by color-coordinated containers, prepackaged filing systems or someone coming in to do a “clean-sweep” on our clutter, just so we can go out and buy more stuff and have somewhere to put it. It‘s not about products or quick fixes.

Organization is about…

• living simply
• paying attention to our actions
• making conscious choices
• simplifying our lives
• restoring balance and meaning
• feeling connected

These are the core of being organized. This sense of connection and meaning is what we hunger for and mistakenly try to fill with things.”

The root word of organizing and organic is the same …whole, complete, one.  When you organize God’s way, you don’t need to fill your time or space with things to simply fill a void.  Your life can be complete in simplicity, in Christ.

The Benefits of Living Simply

In The Rewards of Simplicity, Pam Pierce talks about the purpose of simplicity. “It’s not to prune away the things that bring your joy and enrich your life. It streamlines your life so you have more room, time, and energy for the pursuits and people that God ordains for you”.

Organizer Peter Walsh, teaches that it’s impossible to make your best decisions, your most enlightened, spiritually rich, emotionally stable choices in a cluttered and disorganized home. It just can’t happen. He says,  “Time and time again, I have seen that when you open the space you create the opportunity for amazing things to flow into that space.”

Start Your Lifestyle Transformation To Simplicity

Step 1: Prayer is the First Step

Simplicity begins with prayer. There is an intrinsic relationship between simplicity and prayer, and at the center of the prayer is trust.

• Trust that God will hear
• Trust that He will bring about the outcome according to what is His perfect will for your life.
• Trust in your prayer life moves us closer to understanding the complexities of living simply.

Without a spirit of trust you will find it impossible to live on the basis of “our daily bread”; a “just in case” mentality would only rear its ugly head once more.

Step 2:  Get your family and/or church to adopt a simpler mindset.

Achieving a simpler lifestyle on your own is especially hard. Without the support of others, maintaining your decisions is like swimming upstream. Simplicity involves a consciously chosen course of actions involving both your individual and group life.

“Have no anxiety about anything, but in everything by prayer and supplication with thanksgiving. Let your requests be known to God” – Philippians 4:6

TODAY’S DEVOTION:

1. There’s a misconception about organizing. It is not just a clearing out and cleaning up process. It is “mindful decisions about your life.” But in order to make meaningful decisions, you need to ask yourself meaningful questions that will lead you to why you think the way you think.

• What is my definition of “just enough”?
• What areas of my home/life need decreasing?
• Examine the motivation behind my buying habits.
• By decreasing, how do I see my life increasing?

2. Simplicity looks like different things to different people.

• Look around your living space and decide what you haven’t touched in a year or longer. Which items might be useful to someone else? Gather up what you no longer use and donate it.
• You might want to simplify your time instead of buying habits. What can you start saying “No” to?

For more information about Organize His Way and simplifying your life, visit Eileen Koff Ministries.