For our boast is this, the testimony of our conscience, that we behaved in the world with simplicity and godly sincerity, not by earthly wisdom but by the grace of God, and supremely so toward you. 2 Corinthians 1:12 ESV

Last summer we were blessed by some friends with the invitation to stay for free at their cottage which they call Simplicity. We spent three glorious days there watching eagles fish in the lake and enjoying quiet days walking or reading as there was no TV, internet or cell phone access. It was a refreshing time of refocusing our hearts and relearning how to truly decompress from the craziness of 21^st century life. 

Focus is what the Apostle Paul meant when he said they lived with simplicity. He did not allow anything to the obscure the simplicity of His Christian life. When we get mixed up with unnecessary entanglements of our time, thoughts or relationships we lose focus. Time alone on a week-end retreat may help for a while but Paul tells us that God’s solution is for us to have a life lived in complete reliance on grace. When things start to blur the focus of our soul; we need to stop and ask God to clear our minds of clutter so we can once again live simply by the grace of Jesus Christ.