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A LIFE OF LESS. A HEART FOR MORE.

By Lindsey A. Frederick Leave a Comment

A LIFE OF LESS. A HEART FOR MORE. - New Identity Magazine

“What do you really want?” my mentor asked the first time we met. The question felt huge, and the answer almost too big for words. But it came as I listened to my heart bumping around my chest. It felt heavy and wrung out from old hurts and fears stashed in my emotional basement. “I want. . .freedom.”

As I cleaned out that space, I began to feel lighter, more confident, more peaceful. The emerging emotional freedom made me crave material freedom, too. Minimalist principles piqued my interest. I began to look around my apartment and ask What am I holding onto that serves no a purpose? What unused items do I still own because I’m afraid I’ll need them “someday” or because someone else gave them to me? Most importantly, I asked, What do I own that I don’t love? As the discard pile grew, so did my sense of freedom. This is exactly what the minimalist movement is all about.

“Minimalism is a tool that can assist you in finding freedom,” says Joshua Fields Millburn and Ryan Nicodemus on TheMinimalist.com. “Freedom from fear. Freedom from worry. Freedom from overwhelm. Freedom from guilt. Freedom from depression. Freedom from the trappings of the consumer culture we’ve built our lives around. Real freedom.” It struck me: these aren’t just minimalist principles, they’re spiritual principles. Jesus tells us to give away, to him, the very things that weigh us down and clutter our hearts and minds. In return, he promises real, deep, soul-level rest. “I won’t lay anything heavy or ill-fitting on you. Keep company with me and you’ll learn to live freely and lightly” (Matt. 11:28–30 MSG).

A LIFE OF LESS. A HEART FOR MORE. - New Identity Magazine

I packed up my things in boxes and bags, and then . . . I stalled. My possessions waited patiently by my door for about a month. Maybe more. The reality of breaking up with my stuff was uncomfortable, almost painful. It turns out some brain researchers at the University of Yale discovered the struggle is—literally—real. Pain indicators in your brain light up in response to discarding things you own or feel a connection to. What if I need some of these things again? I asked. Do I have what it takes to live with less?

In every transformational process, you’re going to encounter some internal and external obstacles. How you respond can either be your path to further freedom, or further bondage. Millburn and Nicodemus agree that there’s nothing wrong with owning things. Our problem is in the power we give our possessions. “We tend to give too much meaning to our things, often forsaking our health, our relationships, our passions, our personal growth, and our desire to contribute beyond ourselves.” Minimalist principles are less about what and how much we own, and more about making conscious and deliberate decisions about the things that truly add value to our lives.

A LIFE OF LESS. A HEART FOR MORE. - New Identity Magazine

The words from Matthew 6:19–21 kept whispering through my mind as they echoed Millburn’s and Nicodemus’s ideas, “Do not store up for yourself treasures on earth, where moths and rust destroys them, and where thieves break in and steal. Store your treasures in heaven, where moths and rust cannot destroy, and thieves cannot break in and steal. Wherever your treasure is, there the desires of your heart will also be.”

This verse is often applied to putting others first, or sharing about Christ, but I took it quite literally. I thought about what my storage room might look like in 20 years—filled with nostalgia and stuff worn and ruined by moths, dust, and mice. Why wouldn’t I offer my unused things to someone in need? I had to face the fact that if I chose to not let go, then I was choosing external clutter and chaos. All this while simultaneously putting myself at risk to reclaim or re-accumulate the spiritual and emotional disorder I’d worked so hard to clear. Because clutter begets clutter, no matter what area of our lives we’re dealing with.

In her Christianity Today article, Margot Starbuck quotes minimalist blogger Joshua Becker as she journals her quest toward simplicity, “I used to view Jesus’s teachings—on money and possessions and generosity and not stockpiling treasures on earth—as a sacrifice I was called to make today so I could have greater rewards in eternity. But I began to realize that Jesus was just offering us a better formula for living.”

A LIFE OF LESS. A HEART FOR MORE. - New Identity Magazine

Minimalism addresses our freedom from material slavery in much the same way Jesus addresses our struggle with spiritual bondage. The Apostle Paul reminds us that when we decide to model our lives after Jesus, we are set free from spiritual slavery. But, understanding our limited capacity to remain unbound from materialism, temptation, and oppression, he warns us to “stand firm” and “stay free” (Gal. 5:1).“For you were called to freedom, brothers. Only do not use your freedom as an opportunity for the flesh, but through love serve one another” (5:13).

I reminded myself my goal was clarity, not clutter. And I envisioned what life could look like: fewer things to dust, fix, launder, put away; more disposable income; more time to pursue passions, focus on health, connect with people, and create space to listen—really, really listen—to God. And when you know who you want to be, how you want to feel, or what you want your life to look like, the answers become clear and simple. Not easy. But simple. And so, I let go.

Don’t get me wrong, I am not a minimalist. At least not yet. But I’m understanding the value in approaching my life with more simplicity. Which I believe is at the heart of God’s best for us. Because when we say “no” to one thing, we’re giving ourselves the opportunity to say “yes” to something better and more beautiful. And isn’t this the foundation of faith?–for our awareness of God to increase, we must decrease what inhibits us from experiencing him (John 3:30). We’re freeing ourselves to pursue the most important aspects of life: health, relationships, passion, growth, and service. What would a life of less look like for you?

Imagine the possibilities.

A LIFE OF LESS. A HEART FOR MORE. - New Identity Magazine

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Filed Under: Culture & Creativity, Featured, Live Tagged With: Issue 32

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Our striving to be like Jesus or do his work on ou Our striving to be like Jesus or do his work on our own is in vain. We can never hope to achieve the same level that Jesus was on while we are still here on Earth. We’re like little kids, struggling just to walk. But that’s why Jesus gave us an example of redeemed followers in the form of the Apostles, who were his close group of students here on Earth. He chose a group of broken, sinful men, and ultimately shaped them into the group responsible for continuing his ministry here on Earth. ⁠
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✍🏽: Tim VanDeWalker in "Running By Example" | Continue reading at newidentitymagazine.com⁠ by visiting the link in our bio and tapping on the image.⁠
"Do your little bit of good where you are; it's th "Do your little bit of good where you are; it's those little bits of good put together that overwhelm the world." –Desmond Tutu
The Bible tells us to live in the world, but not t The Bible tells us to live in the world, but not to become like it. The New Living Translation puts it this way, “Don’t copy the behavior and customs of this world, but let God transform you into a new person by changing the way you think” (Rom. 12:2a). Some have interpreted this as an instruction to reject anything that isn’t explicitly Christian. But I don’t think that’s what this verse is getting at. I think it means much more.⁠
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✍🏽: Lindsey Beharry in "Choosing Wisely" | Continue reading at newidentitymagazine.com⁠ by visiting the link in our bio and tapping on the image.⁠
If you desire to serve, seek to form groups withou If you desire to serve, seek to form groups without age distinction. Maybe you want to form a group in your church. Avoid just inviting members from your age group. Seek out people older and younger than you to invite to meet together. Find that person who sits alone and talk to her or him. Instead of a focus on building groups that have the same characteristics to “relate” with one another, you center your discussion in the work of Christ. He will bring the group together. ⁠
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✍🏽: Russell Almand in "Community and Age Diversity" | Continue reading at newidentitymagazine.com⁠ by visiting the link in our bio and tapping on the image.⁠
"If we put our faith in temporal things, they will "If we put our faith in temporal things, they will inevitably let us down. They were never meant to be enough for us. Not alone. When Barnum finally does hit bottom, he recognizes that his heart has been led astray, fooled into thinking that fame or fortune could satisfy him."⁠
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✍🏽: @slimkeman in "The Greatest Showman" | Continue reading at newidentitymagazine.com⁠ by visiting the link in our bio and tapping on the image.⁠
"Porn. We are only now beginning to realize the ex "Porn. We are only now beginning to realize the extent of its effects on the brain, relationships, and society at a time when sexually explicit content is just a click away. Christians have recognized pornography’s negative impact for decades, yet it is still often considered a “male” problem within the Church. This can leave women who struggle with porn addiction feeling isolated and alone. The organization SheRecovery (formerly Dirty Girls Ministries) aims to change that and has become a resource for women with porn addiction. You can read more about their ministry at the link in our bio. ⁠
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✍🏽: Lisa Gagnon in "Dirty Girls Ministries" | Continue reading at newidentitymagazine.com⁠ by visiting the link in our bio and tapping on the image.⁠
"The presence of my sin reminds me of my great nee "The presence of my sin reminds me of my great need for grace, and good works are the outpouring of a grateful heart; being a good child is not a means of earning the favor of God."⁠
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✍🏽: Sally Blotzer in "Forgiving Failure" | Continue reading at newidentitymagazine.com⁠ by visiting the link in our bio and tapping on the image.⁠
"As Christians, we identify ourselves not only by "As Christians, we identify ourselves not only by how we handle our daily lives, much like those around us, but also by an added component: our faith. How we pray and worship and spend time with our fellow followers provides additional meaning to our lives."⁠
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✍🏽: Matthew Hamilton in "Does Your Form Determine Your Function?" | Continue reading at newidentitymagazine.com⁠ by visiting the link in our bio and tapping on the image.⁠
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Often I picture Jesus telling us to love others an Often I picture Jesus telling us to love others and not to judge. I forget that when he said, “Come follow me,” he wasn’t just inviting us to a strict set of rules but to a real and exciting life whether you turn out to be a pastor, a doctor, designer or simply “Dad.” Sometimes I forget one of his main messages was that he came to give us a better life than we could ever dream of—life to the fullest. Jesus wasn’t locking us down to a vocation or job title. It’s as if he was saying, “Real, vibrant life is available to you now. Following me, loving me and living like me is your real calling…the rest is just there to aid you in following, loving and living.”⁠
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✍🏽: Wendy Van Eyck in "Living For A Purpose" | Continue reading at newidentitymagazine.com⁠ by visiting the link in our bio and tapping on the image.⁠
Like Morpheus, I want to “show you how deep the Like Morpheus, I want to “show you how deep the rabbit hole goes.” There is yet another parallel between the Christian story and The Matrix, simultaneously the most foundational and the most captivating. It’s that something which is missing, something which is not quite right with the world. You can’t quite put your finger on it, but you know that it’s there. At the outset of the first film, Neo is searching for it. Trinity asserts that “it’s the question that drives us.” Morpheus claims that “you can see it when you look out your window or when you turn on your television. You can feel it when you go to work, when you go to church, when you pay your taxes.” The question is: What if I’ve only ever scratched the surface of all that life has to offer? What if there is a deeper, truer current of reality, ever-present behind all of my life’s experiences, to which I might awaken at any moment?⁠
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✍🏽: @slimkeman in "Tumbling Down The Rabbit Hole" | Continue reading at newidentitymagazine.com⁠ by visiting the link in our bio and tapping on the image.⁠
"I’ve always been intrigued by Augustine because "I’ve always been intrigued by Augustine because we all struggle with temptations to sin. And we all struggle to live in a way that honors God. Like Augustine we all feel the tug of our past sins that say, 'Don’t you want to enjoy us?' And Augustine’s story relates to Galatians 5:16-26 where Paul tells us about how the Christian life is like a walk. In a way, walking is a metaphor for the Christian life." ⁠
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✍🏽: @the_christopherscott in "In Step With the Spirit" | Continue reading at newidentitymagazine.com⁠ by visiting the link in our bio and tapping on the image.⁠
"The Holy Spirit empowers us for Christ-like livin "The Holy Spirit empowers us for Christ-like living, and for serving others." Where in your life or in what ways has the Spirit enabled you this week? We'd love to hear, tell us in the comments below!⁠
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✍🏽: @the_christopherscott  in "In Step With the Spirit" | Continue reading at newidentitymagazine.com⁠ by visiting the link in our bio and tapping on the image.⁠
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