Living on Less

Cross-country moves sure have a way of getting certain things into perspective. Take creature comfort for example. By the last days before we left Oklahoma, every lamp, comfortable chair, toothbrush holder and coffee cup had been packed away.

We lived like gypsies; eating out of paper plates, sleeping on mattresses stripped of box springs and comforters, sitting on those chairs and boxes we felt could be stowed away at the last minute.

Our menu was reduced to chocolate milk and toast or apple pie for supper and McDonald's reserved for our "hot" meal of the day. All other foodstuffs were either finished off before the movers came or sealed tight in preparation for the long trip West.

One interesting feature of our little adventure in living on less was that for the most part we didn't miss our "stuff" all that much. The family "in" jokes kept us happily amused and the kids watched the football game sprawled out on the empty living room floor (TVs being the absolute last thing on the moving van).

During this time I was reminded of Paul's counsel in I Timothy 6:8 which said, "but if we have food and covering with these we shall be content." Of course, Paul is not suggesting that we can't have more than just food and covering but rather that one can be content when he has these, the rest usually depends on the ups and downs of life.

I'm happy to be unpacking and finding my comfy Lazy-Boy again, but I hope that this last month's lesson about living on less stays with me. I wouldn't want to re-learn it with another move any time soon.