Less Is More
By: Kristen L. McNulty
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We live in a society that really values having stuff. Just think about our possessions compared with that of people even two generations ago. Today most families have less kids, but live in larger homes. Live closer to town, but drive more and thus own two cars. Spend less time at home, but have more entertainment items packed in there. And spend less time with people, but have accommodations and supplies for large crowds. This is because we live in a time where people define success by how wealthy you appear to be and wealth is gagged by the amount of expensive stuff you can crowd in and around your home.
It's little wonder why depression is skyrocketing because we have set ourselves up to fail at every turn. No matter how much we acquire, we will always fall short of someone else and thus we're trapped in a race that we can't never win. This race costs a lot. Financial ramifications being on thing of-course, but it also costs us a lot because the more we have, the more we have to worry about.
People who live within their means rarely toss and turn at night thinking about balancing out the credit cards or meeting minimum payments. But for those who have defined success according to their stuff, that's a way of life and it's no way to live at that.
My Mom often says "less is more" and I couldn't agree more. Don't believe me? Just think about it for a second. How would your use of time or money change if you owned a home that has half the square footage of the one you live in? Or if your family only owned one vehicle and if was a few years older? Or if you didn't all own a cell phone with a number that was passed out to everyone and their dog?
Not only in most cases would you have a lot more time and money available, but think of all the worries that would be eliminated from your life. Not only would the race for keeping up with the Jonses be eliminated, but there wouldn't be a race to make payments or find opportunities for overtime to make ends meet either.
Psalm 39 describes our plight and the solution well: "We are merely moving shadows, all our busy rushing ends in nothing. We heap up wealth for someone else to spend. And so, Lord, where do I put my hope? My only hope is in you." (Psalm 39:6-7) I couldn't think of a better place to put our hope, our trust, and our idea of success.
This devotional was aired as a part of the Making A Difference Christian Radio Show.