What does a simple life look like to you? Does it mean reverting back to a hippie mentality? Or joining the green movement? I enjoy the oxygen that trees provide but hugging one isn’t my style.
On the other hand, I have thought about God’s command to Adam to care for the animals and the earth.
How can I do that? By making choices that help protect the earth. By not being wasteful. Maybe by recycling.
Then again, maybe by adjusting my eating habits – eating more whole foods and less packaged foods. My body gets double the benefits, less sodium and “nutrients” from the packaged foods, and the earth gets less packaging for the dump. Another benefit, the scraps I have from fruits and veggies can be added to a compost pile to renew my fantasy garden.
Here are three general areas that you can work on to start simplifying your life:
1.) Physical – no you don’t have to go get a gym membership. But you take a good, long look at what you are doing to your body. Are you getting enough sleep? Too much sleep? Are you consuming too many carbonated beverages? Alcoholic beverages? Are you consuming too much sugar? Too many carbs?
2.) Mental/Emotional – are you taking time to learn new things not related to your work? Are you vegging in front of the boob tube at night? (I call it the grey-cell eater but that is for another post.) Have you read any good books? When was the last time you blew the dust off your Bible?
3.) Spiritual – How long has it been since you disengaged with the world and reengaged with the Creator? Have you taken the time to pour out your heart to Him and then sit back and listen to him? (Trust me, I am preaching to the choir.)
Don’t get overwhelmed and try to focus on everything at once. You will burn out. Choose one area to start with.
For example, I chose to start simplifying my life through my physical life. I choose to replace an unhealthy habit with a healthy habit. For instance, sugar is my nemesis. We don’t keep a lot of snacks, but when my boys get a sweet tooth, watch out! We have been known to make a special trip to the store just for ice cream so we can devour it in two days.
I had been feeling wiped out and poorly (to coin my Grandma’s saying). I was concerned that past medical issues would finally catch up to me, and I would end up with diabetes. So, I decided to eliminate soda and caffeine from my diet for 30 days and see how I felt. To keep me motivated, I wrote a countdown on our chalkboard and thereby had accountability since my household could see it. I, also, carried my water bottle with me everywhere.
The first two weeks were very hard and I found my sugar fix in other areas (i.e. food). But I stuck to it.
And you know what? I noticed at the end of 30 days that I did feel a tad better. I, then, decided to try another 30 days. This new 30 day cycle wasn’t quite as hard as I was feeling better and my skin seemed to be clearing up. My body was getting the hydration it needed, and I actually felt my clothes getting looser. I had even lost seven pounds! Not a huge amount. And I didn’t think I would get my own infomercial, but I was seeing results from one simple choice.
This one choice helped me start analyzing the other two areas in my life that needed a little simplification. I am not where I want to be, but I am not where I was.
What about you? What area of your life are you going to choose to take charge of and simplify?
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