“It is better to have less of what doesn’t matter and more of what does.”

A thought by Chris Hodge from his book, The Daniel Dilemma: How to Stand Firm and Love Well in a Culture of Compromise (Kindle Locations 3019). Thomas Nelson. Kindle Edition. (Click on the book title to go to Amazon.com to buy the book.)

Here is another good principle to look at here in the first month of 2018

Ecclesiastes 4:6 says, ““Better one handful with tranquility than two handfuls with toil and chasing after the wind”

In a practical application of this verse, Chris says, “It is better to have less of what doesn’t matter and more of what does. It is better to have enough so that you can enjoy what you have than to have more and never enjoy it. Peace is better than stress. Less really is more.”

He goes on, “Most of us think that if one of something is good, then two has to be better. We assume if one dollar is good, then two is better. If one car is good, then two cars must be better. If one child is good, then five kids must be better (well, that’s what Tammy and I did, anyway). And if one wife is good, then two wives must be—whoops! Maybe that’s where it breaks down! Seriously, more is not necessarily better—especially when the pursuit of more consumes your entire life.”

He then says, “If more is not better, then what’s the guiding principle to tip the scales of life in the right direction? We must believe that our lives function best in their God-given design—not culture-driven demands. Simply put, it’s better to live by design and not by default. We must live on purpose with a clear sense of priorities focused around that purpose. Otherwise, our energy gets shotgunned in a lot of different directions. We end up firing a lot of shots but never hit any of our targets. Nothing gets accomplished, especially not the goals at the center of your bull’s-eyes.

“There’s another reality we must consider in this equation of design. If we don’t prioritize our lives, someone else will. If we don’t discover God’s design for our lives and live them on purpose, then we will be overtaken by the pulls and pushes of those around us. God alone knows how many days we have and how we should spend them. ‘All the days ordained for me were written in your book before one of them came to be’ (Ps. 139:16). Only God has the answer, and only he can give us divine direction.

He then says, “Our lives function best in their God-given design—not culture-driven demands. Without God, we will lose our way, chasing after things that don’t really matter like a hamster on a wheel. His way is not about quantity but about quality. God’s Word makes it clear that it’s better to get the right things done, not more things done. ‘An intelligent person aims at wise action, but a fool starts off in many directions’ (Prov. 17:24 GNT). Or, as I once heard someone say, ‘If you’re burning the candle at both ends, you’re not as bright as you think you are.’”

And that is so true. Isn’t it?