The Simple Life

Friends (friend? blog reader?), I have been craving a simpler life. One with less stuff. Fewer things. Over the past 8 years, we have moved several times...from Minnesota to Pennsylvania to Lithuania, back to Pennsylvania, back to Minnesota. Some of the things that we packed several years ago are still in boxes...the same boxes. Some of the things that we unpack and then repack and then lug around are getting tiresome. Why. Why do we have and accumulate so much stuff? Some stuff we save for "just in case." Some stuff we are merely too busy to sort through and get rid of. Ugh.
Soon, we will be moving again (this time just a couple miles away), to a tiny little apartment. I am ok with living in a tiny little apartment, we have lived in far tinier (though having a toddler makes any place seem even smaller...oddly enough). And even though the task seems overwhelming (especially when I've been so busy re-watching the entire series of How I Met Your Mother), I really, really want to take this opportunity to sift through stuff. Downsize. Simplify. Do we really need so many mugs? Do we really need a closet and dresser full of clothes when we, if we are honest with ourselves, cycle through the same three outfits over and over?
When all is said and done, I'm sure we will still end up putting a lot of things in storage, for just in case, or for seasonal purposes. But my goal is to get rid of a lot of things. I don't want to be crammed into whatever living space we are in. I get anxious around the constant clutter of unused things.

In what ways do you simplify your own life?

Taking a break.

I have enjoyed trying to keep a daily blog since March. It has been challenging and good. But, it has started to feel like more of a duty than something that is enjoyable. So I am taking a break. I will likely return, but perhaps with not as much pressure on getting a daily blog post out.

Cheers!

April 20, 2014

Easter Sunday

Acts 10:34-43 or Jeremiah 31:1-6, Psalm 118:1-2, 14-24, Colossians 3:1-4 or Acts 10:34-43, John 20:1-18 or Matthew 28:1-10

April 19, 2014

Job 14:1-14 or Lamentations 3:1-9, 19-24, Psalm 31:1-4, 15-16, 1 Peter 4:1-8, Matthew 27:57-66 or John 19:38-42

April 18, 2014

Good Friday 

Isaiah 52:13—53:12, Psalm 22, Hebrews 10:16-25 or Hebrews 4:14-16; 5:7-9, John 18:1—19:42

April 17, 2014

Maundy Thursday 

Exodus 12:1-4 [5-10] 11-14, Psalm 116:1-2, 12-19, 1 Corinthians 11:23-26, John 13:1-17, 31b-35

April 16, 2014

Isaiah 50:4-9a, Psalm 70, Hebrews 12:1-3, John 13:21-32

Read today's verses and think on the events that lead up to Easter Sunday.

April 15, 2014

Isaiah 49:1-7, Psalm 71:1-14, 1 Corinthians 1:18-31, John 12:20-36

1 Corinthians 1:21 sticks out to me. Since God in his wisdom saw to it that the world would never know him through human wisdom, he has used our foolish preaching to save those who believe.

...and 30-31, God has united you with Christ Jesus. For our benefit God made him to be wisdom itself. Christ made us right with God; he made us pure and holy, and he freed us from sin. Therefore, as the Scriptures say, “If you want to boast, boast only about the Lord.”

April 14, 2014

Monday of Holy Week 

Isaiah 42:1-9, Psalm 36:5-11,  Hebrews 9:11-15, John 12:1-11

I am pondering the last part of verse 6 in the Psalm, You care for people and animals alike, O Lord. Or as it says in the ESV, man and beast you save, O Lord.

I am trying to wrap my head around it. What do you think it implies?

Here is a devotional I wrote for today in our church's Lenten devotional.

Today in John we see Jesus and his friends and disciples at the home of Jesus’s friend Lazarus -- the same Lazarus who Jesus had just raised from the dead (possibly foreshadowing what would happen in just a few days, demonstrating the power of God over life and death). I can guess that Jesus had talked about what would happen to him, though they might not have fully understood it. How could they? So maybe this is why Mary anointed him, as a way to honor her friend before he would be killed. When Judas protests her extravagant actions, Jesus tells him that it is in preparation for his burial. He knows that he will be killed. He is speaking openly about it. His friends and disciples know first hand that he has the power to raise someone from the dead. They have the pieces of the puzzle. But even we will see at the end of the week, after Jesus was crucified, his disciples were in mourning. 

I can understand where the disciples are coming from. Even when you know something will end well (even if you don’t understand the details of it, and it seems unbelievable), watching people beat and mock and kill another person, your Jesus, is difficult. Why does it have to be so terrible? 

Because sin is terrible. Our sin is terrible. It is good to be reminded of this. If we don’t think our own sin is terrible, we soon think that we are good enough. I am a nice person (most of the time), I haven’t committed any heinous crimes, etc. James 3 says, “wherever there is jealousy and selfish ambition, there you will find disorder and evil of every kind.” This is terrible news. We are all sinners. All of us.

BUT! This is what makes the Good News, the Gospel of Jesus, SO GOOD. If we are just simply nice people, then the Gospel is just simply nice news. Shoulder-shrug news.

Let’s remember this week, this Good News of what Christ did on the Cross. He conquered that sin.

Hebrews 9:13-15 says, Under the old system, the blood of goats and bulls and the ashes of a young cow could cleanse people’s bodies from ceremonial impurity. Just think how much more the blood of Christ will purify our consciences from sinful deeds so that we can worship the living God. For by the power of the eternal Spirit, Christ offered himself to God as a perfect sacrifice for our sins. That is why he is the one who mediates a new covenant between God and people, so that all who are called can receive the eternal inheritance God has promised them. For Christ died to set them free from the penalty of the sins they had committed under that first covenant.

Amen!

April 13, 2014

Palm Sunday/Passion Sunday

Psalm 118:1-2, 19-29, Matthew 21:1-11, 

Isaiah 50:4-9a, Psalm 31:9-16, Philippians 2:5-11, Matthew 26:14—27:66 or Matthew 27:11-54

There is a lot to read today, and such a contrast between the Palm Sunday verses and the Passion Sunday verses.

April 12, 2014

Psalm 31:9-16, Lamentations 3:55-66, Mark 10:32-34

If you were one of Jesus's disciples and he told you that he would be murdered, but then rise again in three days, could you wrap your head around it? Even if you had seen all the miracles, and knew that he had raised others from the dead, could you fathom it?

April 11, 2014

Psalm 31:9-16, Job 13:13-19, Philippians 1:21-30

Philippians 1:21, "For to me, living means living for Christ, and dying is even better." How does this parallel the Job passage? 

What does it mean to live as a citizen of Heaven? How does that play out?

April 10, 2014

Psalm 31:9-16, 1 Samuel 16:11-13, Philippians 1:1-11

The Psalmist sounds like he is at his lowest of low time of life. How is his prayer encouraging? 

But I am trusting you, O Lord, saying, “You are my God!” My future is in your hands.

Perhaps this is a good prayer to remember for our low times.

Philippians 1:6
And I am certain that God, who began the good work within you, will continue his work until it is finally finished on the day when Christ Jesus returns.

April 9, 2014

Psalm 143, Jeremiah 32:1-9, 36-41, Matthew 22:23-33

Reading through the Jeremiah passage inspires me to pray for the Church to be united in their worship of God. Not necessarily united in style of worship, but to remember that we are united in the fact that we worship and serve the same God.

The past couple days we have been reading accounts of dead people being brought back to life. Today Jesus reminds us that God is the God of the living, not the dead. What do you think he means by this?

April 8, 2014

Psalm 143, 2 Kings 4:18-37, Ephesians 2:1-10

The Psalmist says, "I am losing all hope..." What is his solution? Verse 5, "I remember the days of old. I ponder all your great works and think about what you have done." He remembers what the Lord has done in the past. 

The boy in the Kings passage was dead and brought back to life again. How is this a parallel to the Ephesians passage, where we are dead because of our sins?

Does it give you hope to know that you are a masterpiece of God?

April 7, 2014

Psalm 143, 1 Kings 17:17-24, Acts 20:7-12

Lately I've been so thirsty. I take a drink of water, and my thirst is temporarily quenched. Sooner or later (sooner), my throat is dry again, and it persists until I take another drink of water. Thirst is not something I am able to ignore. How does thinking of thirst this way help you to think about the Psalmist saying to the Lord, "I thirst for you as parched land thirsts for rain." How can this Psalm be a helpful prayer when facing the uncertainties of life?

The other two passages talk about the miracle of bringing someone who was dead back to life. How does this help us to think about the upcoming Easter?

Pray from Psalm 143:

Teach me to do your will,
for you are my God.
May your gracious Spirit lead me forward
on a firm footing.

Amen

April 6, 2014

Fifth Sunday in Lent 

Ezekiel 37:1-14, Psalm 130, Romans 8:6-11, John 11:1-45

Lately I've been thinking about the type of person I want to be, and the type of example I want to be for my little family. For Lent I gave up using my phone for social media. It has caused me to consider what I do in idle moments. Do I resort to staring at my phone every chance I get? Do I create idle moments when something else needs to be done (ie, the house is a wreck, and the dishes and laundry are piling up, and I haven't actually read a book or done something crafty in a while...better just sit here and check Twitter). Ugh. Why do I choose this? Why am I drifting through life without engaging it? Perhaps for you it is something else that distracts you from doing meaningful or necessary things (TV? Netflix? Staring at the wall?). 

I am not saying that partaking in social media is bad. In fact, we are currently in a time of transition, and feeling sort of isolated, and sometimes social media can make us feel like we are connecting in some small way. But if it is taking over our lives, something needs to change. Priorities need to be made.

I would like to work toward spending my evenings not in front of a screen (with the exception of writing this blog). Instead, I would like to finish up any unfinished housework, do something crafty (sew, knit, etc), read a book, play a game, or just have a good conversation. And I would like to model that for my kids. I don't want them to think that the time between the evening meal and bedtime is to be used for mindlessness or idleness. Obviously there will be special occasions where we will snuggle up with some hot chocolate and watch a movie, but it will be together. And I can wait until everyone is in bed to blog.

Anyway, I've been thinking about this sort of thing, and then today's verses are all about the Lord reviving dry bones, not letting sin control you, and Jesus raising his friend Lazarus from the dead. I feel like there needs to be a revival in our house, and we are on the way to it. Ok. Time to get off the computer.

April 5, 2014

Psalm 130, Ezekiel 36:8-15, Luke 24:44-53

In Luke we see that the Lord opened the people's minds so they were able to understand the Scriptures. Pray and ask the Lord to help you understand today's Scriptures.

April 4, 2014

Psalm 130, Ezekiel 33:10-16, Revelation 11:15-19

Continuing from yesterday's thoughts, what hope is there in the Ezekiel passage?

April 3, 2014

Psalm 130, Ezekiel 1:1-3; 2:8—3:3, Revelation 10:1-11

My soul waits for the Lord

That's how the ESV titles this Psalm, after verse 6. In the NLT, it says I long for the Lord. In reading through today's Psalm, I can say that I can relate with this longing. In general, I can be a pretty impatient person sometimes. I get a glimpse of the future, and I have a really difficult time living in the now. Especially if the now is still Winter, or lonely, or mundane, or stressful, or, or, or. But do I long for the Lord Himself? Sometimes I think my longing for Spring, or community, or adventure, or relaxation, or, or, or, is a longing for the Lord Himself.

In today's other passages, we see a glimpse into the future. Seemingly a glimpse of doom. For me, these passages are a bit confusing. What I can take away is, a future without the Lord is a future of doom, and a future with the Lord is a future of hope.

April 2, 2014

Psalm 146, Isaiah 60:17-22, Matthew 9:27-34

What glimpses of the Kingdom of Heaven can we see in these passages?

April 1, 2014

Psalm 146, Isaiah 42:14-21, Colossians 1:9-14 

About once a year, I reread the book The Hiding Place by Corrie ten Boom. Have you read it? YOU SHOULD! Oh, it’s so good. It is the story of the goodness and faithfulness of the Lord in very dark times. It takes place in Holland in World War 2. Corrie and her sister are in their 50s, living at home with their father, and helping him run the family watch/clock shop. They are believers who take in Jewish people and hide them in their house when their lives are in danger. Eventually Corrie and her family are caught and taken to a concentration camp where terrible things happen. But, the Lord is there the whole time with them. God is SO REAL in this book. Of course He is real all the time, but whenever I finish this book I say, I want to know the God of Corrie ten Boom. The God who gets you through the terrors of war, who performs miracles, who acts and loves us and gives us hope every day. The God of Corrie ten Boom is our God. Why do we so easily forget?

One thing that Corrie and her family cherished was Scripture, and the daily reading of it. While she was in the camp, her most treasured possession was her tiny Bible that she smuggled in. Her sister, Betsie, showed enormous faith and knew that her purpose in life was to tell people about Jesus, whether at home, safe and cozy, or in a cramped, flea-filled barrack, filled with sick, hopeless prisoners. It didn’t seem to matter to her where she was, she was happy for the opportunity. She loved the Lord so much. If you want an example of what it looks like to love and serve the Lord in any circumstance, I recommend this book.

How have you seen God work in your own life? Do people look at your life and say, “I want to know their God!”

Pray through the Colossians passage:

So we have not stopped praying for you since we first heard about you. We ask God to give you complete knowledge of his will and to give you spiritual wisdom and understanding. Then the way you live will always honor and please the Lord, and your lives will produce every kind of good fruit. All the while, you will grow as you learn to know God better and better.

We also pray that you will be strengthened with all his glorious power so you will have all the endurance and patience you need. May you be filled with joy, always thanking the Father. He has enabled you to share in the inheritance that belongs to his people, who live in the light. For he has rescued us from the kingdom of darkness and transferred us into the Kingdom of his dear Son, who purchased our freedom and forgave our sins.

Amen.