Living in a Material World

Summer of Simplicity

When our daughters were much younger, their toy boxes overflowed with playthings. It seemed they spent more time looking for a toy to play with, rather than plain old playing. So The Hubster and I developed a strategy.

Once a month, we had the girls put a few toys into a black plastic trash bag or opaque plastic bin. These were toys that Sarah & Rachel picked out themselves to store. No forcing allowed. After setting on a basement shelf for a month, we found the girls weren't so interested in looking inside the bins, much less playing with the old toys. They had the option of donating the toys to charity, or letting them set on the shelf a little longer.

"Out of sight, out of mind" worked wonders in this instance. The trick was to make sure they did not see any of the toys during the first month. I made the mistake of buying clear bins the first time. 

The object lesson learned by our girls (and their parents!), is that stuff we think is vital to our lives...really isn't all that important. Don't get me wrong, things are nice. But ownership does not give us a happiness guarantee.

When I take a good, objective look around my home, I see lots of stuff, but which of these things gives me peace and contentment? Well, the bed and the fridge are two of my favorites.

1 Timothy 6:17 (KJV) Charge them that are rich in this world, that they be not highminded, nor trust in uncertain riches, but in the living God, who giveth us richly all things to enjoy;


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Female in Motion Health Update: Well, my daily schedule will soon allow plenty of time for exercise and healthy cooking. Our contract with the hospital has not been renewed, so we have decided to close our company. Please pray for God's guidance for my next job.

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Notable Quote:

"Anything you cannot relinquish when it has outlived its usefulness possesses you, and in this materialistic age a great many of us are possessed by our possessions."--Peace Pilgrim