Author and Professor John Leith describes simplicity like this: “Simplicity if very close to sincerity. It clears away the ornaments, the ostentations, the contrivances, and pretenses that obscure the real.”

I like that. I like the idea of sweeping away whatever obscures “the real” in my life.

Do you?

In 2 Corinthians 1:12 Paul writes that “we behaved in the world with simplicity and godly sincerity, not by earthly wisdom but by the grace of God, and supremely so toward you.”

It sounds dreamy. And hard.

So one thing you can do to help make it a reality is to do fewer things that add limited value to your life.

For example, I know someone who recently deleted their Twitter account because they had trouble disconnecting and it jammed their head with weird images and ideas before bed. Someone else took a hiatus from signing their kids up from activities for a season. Someone else made a habit of walking slower. Who knew!

We can live this way because we trust that we’re not the ones in charge. We don’t have to do it all. Plus, our identity is secure in Christ.

So why willingly enlist for chaos?

A simplified life is a less distracted life, and a less distracted life is a more prioritized life, and a more prioritized life is a more godly life.

Feeling like things are too crazy?

Simplify by doing fewer things that add limited value to your life.

By Matthew Ruttan

• My latest blog is: “The day you discover the pastor isn’t perfect.” Click here to read.
• Click here for a 1-minute YouTube video about what I’ll be teaching on Sunday.
• “Up!” is published 5 days a week (Monday-Friday) and returns on December 10.
• Bible quotes are from the New International Version.