Welcome to this week’s “In the Little things” podcast. We live in a time where we have so much stuff. Usually during the Spring season I do “Spring cleaning” and get rid of a lot of around the house. I go room to room and see what can be donated. This year, I started a little later than usual because of the days being so cool and nice… quite honestly I enjoyed the outdoors before it got hotter. Listen now as we share a True Life Story of real life struggle and what God is showing us through it all!
Scripture:
(Proverbs 15:16) “Better is little with the fear of the Lord than great treasure and trouble therewith.”
(Ecclesiastes 4:6) “Better one handful with tranquility than two handfuls with toil and chasing after the wind.”
(John 3:30) “He must increase, but I must decrease.”
(Matthew 6:21) “For where your treasure is, there will your heart be also!”
(Matthew 6:26) “Look at the birds of he air, for they neither sow nor reap nor gather into barns and yet your Father in heaven Feeds them. Are you not more valuable than they?”
(Philippians 4:19) “But my God shall supply all your needs according to His riches in glory by Christ Jesus!”
Application: We live in an era that screams “ more, buy more...it is better” After all.. that is called marketing. If something is going to cause you to be distracted, unhappy, or frustrated… get rid of it or just do not buy it. I now chose to live simply because it is hard to maintain clean, however for there to be more time to enjoy life, less stuff allows me more freedom to enjoy life!More time to be in God's word, in His creation, and with family and friends!
Devotional Insight: Be careful where you put all your energy. For me it was put on building a home of memories and stuff, instead of living free from the burden of stuff. Allow God to increase in you and you decrease so that you can enjoy life; a life of abundant blessings of love and not of material stuff. God will take care of ALL your needs and you will never be without. Just like He promises in the book of Matthew, God will provide for you and your family!
Challenge: So this week's challenge is to trust God with everything you need. Do not be a collector of things but instead ask yourself “ Do I really need this or is this just a 'want to have this?'. Sometimes less is more when you think of how much time and effort it takes to maintain a home with so much stuff. Allow yourself to enjoy what you have and get rid of the things in your life that you really don't need. Ask God for the things you need and He is always gracious and faithful!!
Guided Prayer:Lord God, Thank you, that we do not need to worry about anything we need. You promise us that you will provide us with everything! So let us rest assured that You know what we need and what we do not need. Let our lives be more filled with Your blessings and may we empty the things that distract us from You! It's in Jesus Christ precious name, Amen!
