Tag: Living as a Christian Minimalist

THE MINIMALIST MIND

I had been wasting hours trying to gain points on a video game with nothing to show for it.

One night I was bored and resumed an activity I had done during COVID – a video game on my Kindle. I am a total idiot with math puzzle games but give me anything visual and I’m all in. One night I was so enthralled that I didn’t go to bed until 1AM. Time just raced by.

THE WAKEUP CALL

Shortly after that late night, I read Voice of the Martyrs “Global Prayer Guide”. Each day’s reading is devoted to a different country. It gives a brief snapshot of the persecution taking place in that country and how we can pray for it. I read about the #1 country in the world for persecution of Christians (and anyone else who doesn’t agree with the state). The state requires all citizens to function as informants – even young children are taught to spy on their parents from a young age. When a Christian is discovered, the government punishes the entire family. Those “lucky” enough to not be executed suffer in prison and labor camps.

THE GIFT OF MEMORIZATION

What caught my attention was that “few people ever have access to Scripture because of the regime’s unceasing efforts to restrict access. Most of the underground Christians find memorization the safest and most effective way to keep God’s Word.”

Wow – is that convicting! I had been wasting hours trying to gain points on a video game with nothing to show for it. I just got off the Minimalist Challenge with physical things. Could I do it with mental/spiritual items? What does it take to move to a minimalist mind?

CHANGING TO A MINIMALIST MIND

I deleted the game from my Kindle. In its place, I have a notebook I carry with me containing handwritten memory verses. If ever there is a time in my life I need to carry God’s Word in my mind and heart, it is now. Knowing the location of the candlestick in the videogame room on my Kindle is just not going to help me get it through my day.

So, the deal is, the notebook travels with me. On my commute to work the notebook on the passenger seat so that at red lights I can find hints for any Scripture I am saying out loud and am stymied. (Yes, I actually am a careful driver). Right now, I’m working on I Peter 4:7-11. It is an applicable passage considering it begins with “The end of all things is near.”

Do you also need to begin working on a Minimalist Brain and Spirit and to clean up the clutter? Delete those things that side-track your mind from Christ.

Take heart from the words good old Minimalist Apostle Paul: “You learned Christ! My assumption is that you have paid careful attention to him, been well instructed in the truth precisely as we have it in Jesus. Since, then, we do not have the excuse of ignorance, everything—and I do mean everything—connected with that old way of life has to go. It’s rotten through and through. Get rid of it! And then take on an entirely new way of life—a God-fashioned life, a life renewed from the inside and working itself into your conduct as God accurately reproduces his character in you. (Ephesians 4:20-24)

EVEN THE BEARS ARE HIS

I sprinted over the finish line for my month-long Minimalist Challenge.

I sprinted over the finish line for my month-long Minimalist Challenge. Miraculously, it seemed to get easier to let go of stuff, even when I got to day 31 (I let go of 31 things that day). I wished it had been more palatable for my husband when he realized that I was going to give away most of my Boyd’s Bear collection. That assortment of stuffed animals was the embodiment of our dream – that someday we would have grandchildren to share the bears with.

GRANDCHILDREN NOT ON THE HORIZON

Our plans for grandchildren do not appear to be part of God’s plan. However, I recently came across a family with two little girls who definitely needed something to brighten their summer. A box of assorted delightful bears was just what God ordered.

CHANGING DREAMS CAN BE PAINFUL

Yes, giving up or changing dreams can be painful, but giving into the dreams of my Heavenly Father is much more rewarding. It’s funny how I can squirrel away portions of my life safe-guarding segment which I think are mine alone. God does not view it the same way. He doesn’t want just a little piece of me. God wants all of me. He already owned all the bears, silverware, pens, and appliances even when they exited my home during August. Everything is His.

THINGS I THOUGHT WERE IMPORTANT

In Philippians 3, the Apostle Paul writes: “I once thought these things were valuable, but now I consider them worthless because of what Christ has done. Yes, everything else is worthless when compared with the infinite value of knowing Christ Jesus my Lord. For his sake I have discarded everything else, counting it all as garbage, so that I could gain Christ.” Paul probably was not writing specifically about bears or even dreams, but they all can go under the category of “Things I Once Thought Were Important”.

WHAT TO MAKE ROOM FOR

I’ve discovered a little life lesson: The more tightly I hold on to something, thinking that it is mine, the less room I have for Jesus in my life. The more I limit room for Jesus, the more room I provide for useless things in my life. Paul is correct. Everything else is worthless when compared with the infinite value of knowing Christ Jesus my Lord. Live as a Christian Minimalist.

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