Simplifying

Life gets so complicated. I know mine has. I am a husband, a dad, an employee, a student, a teacher, a close friend, an acquaintance, a son, a brother, etc. Each of these roles brings meaning to life, yet each of them also makes demands on time and energy.

I've been trying to see it all more simply. Instead of making grand plans and casting grand visions, I think we should be focused on the essence of it all. Really, I think there are a few simple questions we should ask ourselves and (especially) each other all the time, repeatedly, almost like a broken record:

• How, really, is it going spiritually (what's up with you & God)?

• How, really, is your community going? Are you loving and being loved?

• And, what's the deal with your friendships out there? How are your friends (not the ones you see at church stuff) really doing in life? Do you long for them to be loved the way you have been?

Simply put, this is what our lives are really about. We should be asking our spouses, our kids, our good friends, our fellow journeyers these questions daily, weekly, whenever. We should ask in tiny groupings, in family-sized get-togethers, and at larger gatherings. There is power in those simple questions and in our struggle to answer them.

At least that's where I'm arriving at these days.