Grace-Full Goals
I call these “grace”-full goals because I need God’s grace everyday!
Continuing thoughts on “Less Is More”…
- Aimlessly spending money is what you do when you’re confused about your life’s direction. I thnk that is a very insightful thought. When we randomly buy things, there really is no purpose behind the purchase (typically). I think it often may just be an instant gratification motive. Or how about choices? Are you ever overwhelmed with the CHOICES of items to buy? I have really enjoyed shopping at Aldi these past few years basically because it’s cheap and there is only ONE option. Flour is flour. Bran flakes are bran flakes (I love them :)). I think having so many choices, can lead us to aimlessly spending money.
- Childhood is about a race for success – are kids keeping pace with competition? This is on a different train of thought, but there was a chapter on our “success-oriented” minds. I am not an earthly parent, so I say this with experience only with teens, but by saying “no” to an activity, really, what is at risk? What if you had 1 day with no scheduled activities for your child? Would they know what to do? Do you they know how to entertain themselves? Or are they SO busy that there is no room left for imagining, creating, and being a kid? Just some things to think about. Dan and I have met teens who are so burdened with their schedule that they really have no time to enjoy life – it’s just dictated by their schedule. It makes me sad.
- For every action that we take, every item that we purchase, we must ask ourselves, will this bring us closer to God? Whoa. Think about that. That sentence put me at a dead-stop in my reading. This should be our ultimate goal, but really, do we think about this? I read too, that God designed the world so that it would sustain our needs – NOT our wants. But how often do we live to just fulfill our wants? If we become a society that is always supplying our wants, is that really bringing us closer to God? Are we hungering after things that will only satisfy for so long? What if we filled that hunger with God Himself? What if, in those moments of needing to fill our instant gratifications, we thought about what God would want for us? I am not trying to solve all the problems of the world and am I living these ideas out perfectly? Absolutely not. I wish I could say I was, but I am not. I fail too. So I say all of these things with a humble heart in recognizing that I too, join you, in trying to live more in line with the way Christ calls us to.
I hope you take these thoughts, tuck them away in your heart, and pull them out when needed. This book was very thought provoking for me and I hope you think about changes you need to make as well. Maybe that change can start today. Maybe you are already doing these things. If so, spread the word! I know I am challenged and am eager to continue to apply these thoughts into my own life.
