“Then Jesus said to his disciples, ‘Whoever wants to be my disciple must deny themselves and take up their cross and follow me. For whoever wants to save their life will lose it, but whoever loses their life for me will find it.’” Matthew 16:24-25 (KJV)

When I was in college in the 1980s, I had a bumper sticker prominently displayed over my study desk. It read: He who dies with the most toys wins! At that point in my life, I really bought into that philosophy (no pun intended).

I felt like a certain amount of happiness came from what you possessed – materially speaking. I placed a lot of value on things like my Izod shirts and my Gucci watch. I innocently enough believed that having a happy, successful life equated to not just having more but having more of the right stuff. I felt that owning certain things reflected success and would add to my personal value.  

As a result, I accumulated a lot of stuff over the years. Stuff that I felt defined me and, to a certain extent, increased my worth. I feel like I spent a lot of time trying to carve out my place in this world by seeking more (of everything) – more square footage, more horsepower, more work, more, more, more – only to discover that who I am has little to do with what I own and where I live but has everything to do with who I serve and how I live.  

Growing and maturing over the years physically and faithfully, I began to clearly understand that less is more. Less of me and more of Christ. This knowledge and understanding led me to greater self-discovery. When I learned and started to live this, I found my true self along with greater contentment and happiness. 

Less is more. Less of what I want and more of what He wants gives my life more of the right stuff – more meaning and value than I could ever could imagine. 

Now that I am older and hopefully wiser, I find myself purging most of that stuff from my younger days. I want less. I want to lighten my load literally and figuratively. I want less. I want less to make more – less stuff to take care of and more room for time with those I love and less focus on what the world defines as happiness and success and more focus on what God has in store for me which He promises is for my good. 

Don’t get me wrong, I still appreciate certain creature comforts and still have that Gucci watch (as a keepsake) but those things don’t define me and are no longer my focus. Life is so much more rewarding with my priorities in order (God and family first) and my focus where it needs to be (my faith walk).

Simply put in Philippians 4:21: “For to me, to live is Christ and to die is gain.” 

So back to that bumper sticker – He who dies with the most toys definitely does not win. He who gives his life to Jesus wins it all! 

As you go throughout your day and plan the week ahead, remember less is more.