Simplifying...

I was thinking the other day about how simple life used to be... before the days of internet, cell phones, etc. The very things that were invented for us to make our lives easier, in reality, complicate our lives so much more. Many of my days are now filled with checking my email, facebook, texting, sending out tweets, and sending people messages. There is nothing more annoying than trying to have an important or meaningful conversation with someone while they are texting! (pet peeve of mine ha!)

Yes, there are things that have, in some ways, made life easier. I spend much less time at the mall scrambling at the last minute to finish my Christmas shopping. I go online to grab a quick devotion on days that are hurried, so that I can still start my day thinking on God, even when I'm rushed. I have been able to keep up with old friends that I would have lost contact with, and I have made new friends through facebook. I have shared prayer request, and prayed for people that have shared things with me over the internet. I found great recipes, read articles, and found sale adds online. So, yes, there are many wonderful things about this world we live in now.

Once I decided to eliminate the process of shopping for a refrigerator by doing all the shopping for brands, comparing prices, and reading reviews online. That, in and of itself, is a good idea. I highly recommend doing all the research for a product online. But my mistake came when I decided the process was so easy and comfortable, that I would just go ahead and purchase one online, too. My new frig was delivered the next day. I was very happy about it, until I realized it was the same size as my old frig, just shaped different. Now I am stuck with a frig that is way too small for all the orange juice, milk, iced tea, and other foods and beverages that we keep in stock! And, as long as we keep things around here, I feel like I'll be married to this refrigerator for the rest of my life! Needless to say, I would not recommend buying appliances online, sight unseen!

My daughter, Lindsay, and I were talking the other day about her camping trips. She was telling me about how,when she left the woods from a backpacking trip and turned her cell phone on, she almost felt disappointed that her time away from all our luxuries were over. I was remembering, too, about when my son, Daniel, came home from his mission trip in Honduras a couple of years ago, he hardly picked his phone up for a few weeks. He seemed much less hurried during those few weeks, and much more at peace in his life.

All of this has me wondering today about how much I miss hearing from God because of my time spent with my 'conveniences'. How many opportunities do I miss for a good conversation with someone, or reaching out to a stranger, because I am so busy living in cyberspace? How often am I so busy sending a text or tweeting about whats going on that maybe I am missing the real purpose God has for me at that time.

One of my friends commented this morning that she was listening to the birds and 'being still'. I miss those times way too much, I think.

So today I am contemplating how I can simplify my life. I am wondering how I can slow things down. How can I find balance between using the wonderful world of convenience that I have at my fingertips, and living life more in the moment with the people that are right around me.

God uses these things I have for His good, very often. However, there's a time and place to shut it down and be in the moment. It's all about balance, don't you think?

^{Psalm 46:10}
“Be still, and know that I am God;
I will be exalted among the nations,
 I will be exalted in the earth.”