Day Five: From Here on Out

What a week!

For those of you who have stuck with me the entire week, I want to thank you.  Each of the comments I received are treasured.  I appreciate your support and encouragement so very much.  I didn't know what kind of response waited for me.  I was ready for anything- but what an encouragement you have been!

This past week has been my attempt to put into words the thoughts and decisions I've made over the past couple months.  This is my journey and while I hope I have inspired some of you to come along, your journey might look very different and that is okay.  My biggest piece of advice is to seek God and the plans He has for you.

I know some of you may be wondering why in the world it took me a whole week to talk about a fairly simple concept.  My response is this- in a "just do it" world, I think it would behoove us to pay attention to why we do the things we do.  What is our motivation?  Our purpose that lies behind our choices?  Are we blindly following others' ways of doing things or are we making choices based on scripture?  Becoming purposeful can make a concept come to life and become a real force in our lives.

So where do we go from here?

A goal I had for this week was to construct a large, sturdy umbrella over everything else that happens here at this site- over the gardening, chickening, recipes, homeschooling, etc.  I want it all to fall under this umbrella of purpose- God's purpose, our purpose.  I want it to be one in the same.  And, I want this purpose to give us new energy and excitement about the way of life we've chosen.  I want the reason for our choice to live simply not to be for our health, the environment, our stress levels or our bank accounts, I want our choice to be what it is so that we can give.  So we can be a blessing to others.

I plan on posting about this topic about once a week, transitioning from the concept to the practical ways of carrying it out.  Next week, I hope to tackle the topic of finding or creating funds we can give.

I will continue to post about food, the garden, the chickens, life happenings and homeschooling.  All will now fall under the umbrella of this new purpose- everything has new meaning!

And, in the spirit of giving, I have an incredible giveaway in store for you next week.  This life of living simply in order to give does not have to only be a solemn and serious life.  Remember that we have so much to be thankful for and excited about!

And, lastly, I know it sounds a bit hokey, but I really do thank God for each of you :-).

See you Monday!