Author and philosopher Henry David Thoreau said, ‘Our lives are frittered away by detail…simplify, simplify.’ Jesus put it another way: ‘Do not worry about your life…the birds…neither sow…reap nor gather into barns…yet your…Father feeds them’ (vv. 25-26 NKJV). So how can we avoid complicating our lives with worry about unnecessary details? Here are a few ideas: 1) Put God and His will first. ‘Set your minds on things that are above, not things that are on earth’ (Colossians 3:2 ESV). When we decide to make God the priority in our lives and allow Him to guide us, we have a clear focus. If we’re committed to Him, and spending time each day in His presence and with His Word, we’ll learn to recognise things that could complicate our lives by taking us away from the path He’s laid out for us. 2) Take each day at a time. ‘Don’t worry about tomorrow…Each day has enough trouble of its own’ (Matthew 6:34 NCV). There’s nothing wrong with hoping and planning for the future, but we need to make sure we’re living in the present too. 3) Learn to prioritise. When Jesus visited Martha and Mary (see Luke 10:38-42), Martha was concerned with setting the table, preparing food, and getting everything just right for her guest. She was trying to be a good, welcoming hostess, and there was nothing wrong with that, except that it meant she was missing out on hearing Jesus’ teaching. On that occasion Martha got her priorities wrong. By focusing too much on the trivial details, she took her eyes off what really mattered, and almost lost an opportunity to listen to what God had to say. So let’s turn our focus to God and make Him our priority every day – remember, simplifying doesn’t have to be complicated.
