1. Love Jesus
2. Love all people
3. Love yourself
“For those who live according to the flesh set their minds on the things of the flesh, but those who live according to the Spirit set their minds on the things of the Spirit. For to set the mind on the flesh is death, but to set the mind on the Spirit is life and peace.”
When you read the title, you were probably thinking this was going to give you a couple of tricks to clean out your house or reduce debt or unclutter your garage, in a round about way this letter will help with all of that. Sit back and put your big girl pants on because this is so much bigger than organizing your junk drawer . If you work to implement these three things into your life everyday, you will be transformed. There is so much information out there.. more than ever in history, yet so many of us are dying inside.. slowly every day. We are busy and overwhelmed with life. Our closets are filled with clothes we never wear. Our schedules are filled with things we do out of obligation and not passion. Our garages and our minds are overflowing with junk. Focusing on these three things can help us get back to what God wants for our lives. It will set our minds on things of the spirit and less on the things of the flesh.
1. Love Jesus
Even if you are not a follower of Jesus, don't believe he even exists or have no idea what that even means, this is for you. There are many passages in the bible that give us good direction on how to behave. Whether we believe in him or not, following them will bring us joy and fulfillment. Starting with something as simple as reading through Proverbs will give you a big start on how to simplify life. Jesus was a kind person who treated everyone with love and compassion. If you learn more about Jesus and how he lived, you will start to look more like him in every aspect of your life. When (not if) you are feeling lost, anxious, angry or overwhelmed, I encourage you to look to Jesus. The more you study him and get to know him, the more you will see a refection of his love that fills your heart, your mind and your actions.
“Love the Lord your God with all your heart and with all your soul and with all your mind. This is the first and greatest commandment. And the second is like it: Love your neighbor as yourself.”
2. Love all people
Black, white, yellow, purple, gay, straight, tall, short, republican, democrat, city, country, rich, poor, angry, happy, grumpy or bashful. It is not our place to judge anyone for anything. We must love others, even when it is difficult. Several of my letters dig much deeper into this because, for me, this is one of the hardest things to live out every day. I want to snap back and argue when someone doesn’t agree with me, because I am always right of course lol. If people don’t see things my way, I judge them and kick them out of my life. I look down upon their faults and sins and weaknesses. We must intentionally fight against the judgement, blame and accusations that arise in our mind because God calls us to ‘love your neighbor as yourself’… that’s it… period. It doesn’t say to only love those like you or those that you enjoy being around or those that are nice to you or those that agree with you. We are all sinners, not one of us is perfect. ‘Love your neighbor as yourself’ is mentioned several times throughout the Bible (Leviticus, Matthew, Mark, Luke, Romans, Galatians, James) because God cares about this.
“You shall not take vengeance or bear a grudge against the sons of your own people, but you shall love your neighbor as yourself: I am the LORD.”
“Honor your father and mother, and, You shall love your neighbor as yourself.” ”
“The second is this: ‘You shall love your neighbor as yourself.’ There is no other commandment greater than these.””
“And he answered, “You shall love the Lord your God with all your heart and with all your soul and with all your strength and with all your mind, and your neighbor as yourself.” ”
“For the commandments, “You shall not commit adultery, You shall not murder, You shall not steal, You shall not covet,” and any other commandment, are summed up in this word: “You shall love your neighbor as yourself.””
“or the whole law is fulfilled in one word: “You shall love your neighbor as yourself.” ”
“If you really fulfill the royal law according to the Scripture, “You shall love your neighbor as yourself,” you are doing well.”
3. Love yourself
Often times the way you treat others is a reflection of how you feel about yourself. If you are a joyful and confident person then you will most likely bring joy and confidence to others. If you are bitter and depressed then you will bring drama and depression to others. Technically this should be number 2 because I believe that in order to love others well, you must first love Jesus and then yourself. I believe the best way to love yourself is to affirm God’s love for you. He loves each and every one of us so deeply. He is a father to a precious little daughter. Even when we make mistakes and can’t even look at ourselves in the mirror, he is there to look deep into our eyes and welcome us back into his arms. You are never too dirty, too full of sin, too broken for God. He wants a relationship with us. He wants us to call on him in times of trouble. He wants us to look into the mirror and see the beautiful creation that he has made. He wants to use us to do great things in the world. He wants us to see the beautiful, unique masterpiece that is inside us. If loving yourself is hard, I encourage you to spend some time in a quiet space, reading what God says about you and asking him to pour joy into your life. I believe another way to love ourselves is to be grateful for who we are and what we have, put down our phone and stop comparing. Instead of coveting our neighbors cars and houses and families and good looks, take some time to write down things that God has blessed us with. Every day we should wake up and thank God for the good things he’s given us. That one task alone will bring transformation to your mind.
“For you formed my inward parts; you knitted me together in my mother’s womb. I praise you, for I am fearfully and wonderfully made. Wonderful are your works; my soul knows it very well. My frame was not hidden from you, when I was being made in secret, intricately woven in the depths of the earth. Your eyes saw my unformed substance; in your book were written, every one of them, the days that were formed for me, when as yet there was none of them. How precious to me are your thoughts, O God! How vast is the sum of them! If I would count them, they are more than the sand. I awake, and I am still with you. ”
My loving advice to you. Nothing else really matters in the is world. When you focus on these three things, everything else will fall into place. To simplify your life, make loving Jesus, loving others and loving yourself your top priority every day. Spend time to get to know Jesus, his character and his love for us. Be intentional about loving others, even when it is difficult. Stop arguing and judging and trying to win. Love people where they are, in their mess, simply because that’s what God does for you. Be grateful for the things you have and the masterpiece that God created in you. Do not throw that masterpiece in the trash, put it into the world for people to see.
My love to you and my prayer for an amazing life! Live to inspire <3 to create!
The purpose of this letter is to inspire my daughter MacKynzie to live a prosperous, God loving, joyful, legacy building life. Who knows, it may help you too. Please ‘like’ if you found this letter useful and please ‘share’ if you want to help inspire others. You never know who is watching ;)