I recently moved out of my parents house.  I moved everything I owned to my new apartment in Fort Wayne.  It was quite a bit of work, and I was not enjoying the process very much.  It seemed like it took forever to clear out all of the stuff I had accumulated over the decades I had lived with them.  Hundreds of trips up and down the stairs to my waiting truck.

Interestingly, I didn’t find any peace in knowing I possess a lot of things.  Instead it brought about great stress.  How do I move this safely? Where do I put it in my new place?  Why do I even own this?  A lot of the stuff I owned seemed worthless to me.  It made me want to throw it all away and start over.

I think that we carry things with us too long to find peace in them.  Some memories and experiences, some relationships, some possessions are just weighing us down.

I have made a deliberate effort to change the way I consume.  Knowing that I would likely never have dinner guests, I chose to only buy one plate, one bowl, one spoon, one fork, one baking pan and one pot to use for myself.  It forces me to keep them clean, by doing it this way, I don’t have weeks worth of dishes piled in the sink.  I hate doing dishes, so by ensuring that I couldn’t put them off for very long, I don’t become overwhelmed when it is time to do them.

Another consumption change is trying to use everything in my cupboards before I go grocery shopping.  I don’t want a collection of food I’ll never use.  It is a simple change, but as I continue to simplify my possessions, I am finding peace in having just enough.  I find peace in being content.

What small practical change can you make to find room for more peace in your life?