Less for More (10/31/2025)

I’d been worried about her. Last time we visited, I could tell that the stress and rush of her days were taking a toll. I said a little prayer at the time that she’d discover that less can mean more. And since then, I’ve kept that prayer for her. We talked yesterday. Her voice was laced with a joy almost palpable. Her energy level was obviously higher. And she told me that over the past month, home recovering from a surgery, she realized she wanted less. She even posted a new image on her Facebook by Brooke Hampton that read: “I feel like I should want more, but I don’t. I want less. Less stuff, less rushing, less stress, less noise. I want simplicity.”

And I thanked the LORD and His angels for answering my prayer. This precious soul had been able to find herself again when she was able to push aside the demands and expectations of the world. Life is like that sometimes; sometimes we need a break from our regular schedule and demands to remember who we wanted to be when we embarked on that path. Are we still that person? Or have we had to abandon that dream because of the expectations around us?

I’ve said it several times in this blog. More isn’t always better. Sometimes, it is just more. And more doesn’t make us happier. More usually overwhelms us in not always positive ways. And this precious soul has realized that. More isn’t always better. Sometimes what we want is less. Sometimes what we need is simply simplicity.

We are four weeks away from the real beginning of the annual madness we call the holidays with a rapid succession of Thanksgiving, Hanukkah, Christmas, and New Year. Let us step back. Let us slow things down. Let us turn off our devices. Let us watch fewer television shows and more sunsets. Let us phone friends and families and take a break from Facebook. Let us abandon the quest for more and see if we can rediscover the beauty of less, the beauty of simplicity.

And if we can, if we can shift from our race for more to a search for less, perhaps we can clear the clutter and find again our hopes and dreams and realize that always it was about relationships with our LORD and one another and the rest…well, it’s just more. And when we are at peace, we feel comfortable with less, with simple simplicity.

Until tomorrow, let us all love well.