Time to Sharpen Your Weapons
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Minimalism is all the rage right now. As millennials are tossing their things in pursuit of experiences instead, we are seeing more and more articles on the internet about embracing a minimalist lifestyle. It’s no secret Americans own too much stuff. We’re drowning in possessions and it’s causing us actual anxiety to look at them and care for.
And all this stuff we own… well it’s keeping us from having a deeper relationship with God too. The more we focus on acquiring and and organizing our things, the less time we have to spend with our loved ones and in our prayer life.
That is the job of the Catholic Church, to be a balance to the materialistic drives of our culture and of economy. - David Brooks
We know we need to get rid of some of our possessions.
But what does that look like for those of us who are married with kids, those of us who are homeschoolers, or those of us who are struggling financially and don’t have the luxury of tossing things we might need later?
There’s hope! Catholics have been practicing minimalism for centuries. In fact, whole orders are called to take a vow of poverty. They have shown us that we really can live in this world without an iPhone and that it does genuinely draw us closer to the Lord.
Now, few of us have been called to make a vow of poverty and I don’t think you should get rid of your iPhone, but we can embrace the minimalist lifestyle and live with intentionality. That’s what minimalism really means - choosing where we spend our time and our money with intention.
Living with intention looks like:
Living this way requires baby steps for most of us. It’s unlikely we’ll go through and get rid of half of our possessions. Instead, we must take a little time here and there to go through each room of our home. We must ask ourselves four questions about everything we own.
For example, if you’re keeping stained and ratty clothes, what does that say about your own dignity? If you’re holding onto five boxes filled with childhood school work and toys, what else could that space be used for?
We buy things we don’t need with money we don’t have to impress people we don’t like. - Dave Ramsey
If you feel like you’re not strong enough to let go of some of the things you own, might I suggest focusing on your prayer life instead? Pray that God shows you how to detach yourself from materialism and focus instead on Heaven. When we set about storing up treasure in the Kingdom of God, it makes it easier to let go over some of our material obsessions.
As long as this deliberate refusal to understand things from above, even where such understanding is possible, continues, it is idle to talk of any final victory over materialism. - C.S. Lewis
I believe it is the job of all of us to live counter culturally if we need to, in order to shine the light of Christ in the world. For me, that means not getting caught up in every clothing trend or the desire to have a bigger, better house, and newer cars just to keep up with the Joneses.
I want to show the world that my contentment comes from Christ and nothing else. This is by no means and easy thing to do, but I set out to do this every day.
If you need a little extra help, join the free Catholic Minimalism Challenge on Facebook at www.facebook.com/groups/catholicminimalism. You can dive into the 8-week challenge at any time!
If you want to do it alone, you can read all the guidelines in my book Not Of This World: A Catholic Guide to Minimalism.
I believe that if Catholics truly embraced minimalism and used their time and money to serve the community instead, we would bring America to their knees in prayer to God within twenty years. This is my dream.
Sterling is an adult convert. She wasn't raised with religion but found her way to Protestantism in her early 20's. Then she fell in love with a Catholic and converted at 25. She spent two years feeling disappointed with the lukewarm Catholic culture until she realized being Catholic doesn't have to feel like a deflated balloon! She now dedicates her life to helping Catholics realize how beautiful and lively their faith can be.
She is the mother of three little girls and lives in Boise, ID with her husband and their border collie. She has a finance degree from Seattle University. She also writes at www.sterlingjaquith.com.
Twitter: @sterlingjaquith
Facebook: www.facebook.com/sterlingjaquith
