Henry David Thoreau once said, "Our life is frittered away by detail...simplify, simplify." On many occasions while prayer journaling, the Holy Spirit has said I need to simplify. Does your life ever feel as complex as this math problem? Mine does. To SIMPLIFY means to make something easier to understand or do; to emphasize and speak what is fundamental and straightforward; to make things plain, basic, or uncomplicated without much decoration or ornamentation; to be more humble and unpretentious; to be composed of a single element—not compounded, divided, or branched. David said, "One thing I have desired of the LORD, That will I seek: That I may dwell in the house of the LORD All the days of my life, To behold the beauty of the LORD, And to inquire in His temple." (Ps. 27:4)

Danish theologian Soren Kierkegaard echoed, "Purity of Heart is to Will One Thing." For twelve years I attended a Quaker School. One of their beloved hymns was, "'Tis a gift to be simple. 'Tis a gift to be free. 'Tis a gift to come down where we ought to be, And when we find ourselves in the place just right, twill be in the valley of love and delight." Simplicity is a gift that brings joy. Quaker Theologian Richard Foster called simplicity a spiritual discipline stating that, "Simplicity is freedom; duplicity is bondage." Minimalists emphasize ways in which de-cluttering our homes, schedules, minds, and bank accounts can bring us into more and more freedom. How might you need to simplify?

King Solomon wrote, "This is all that I have learned: God made us plain and simple, but we have made ourselves very complicated." (Ecc. 7:9, GNT) The Apostle Paul warned that false teachers can cause us to over-complicate even our relationship with Christ. As a spiritual father he said, 2For I am jealous for you with godly jealousy. For I have betrothed you to one husband, that I may present you as a chaste virgin to Christ. 3But I fear, lest somehow, as the serpent deceived Eve by his craftiness, so your minds may be corrupted from the simplicity that is in Christ".(2 Cor. 11:2-3) Simplicity here is the difference between a plain sheet of cloth versus one with many folds or wrinkles. God invites us to iron out/simplify the complex to bring us to a place of peace and calm.