Simplicity

There's an India.Arie lyric that I really love: "I've found that the art of simplicity simply means making peace with your complexity."

I think there's a lot of wisdom in this idea, and I think that - without realizing it - the idea has come into play a lot for me in my journey towards a greater faith.

I was talking last week with a good friend and sharing some of my fears, doubts and uncertainties. I was asking questions like that centered around trying to understand the true nature of God and how it plays out in the "real world" these days. More specifically, I was trying to figure out how to figure out what He is doing in my personal real world! :)

But, even as I type that, I underscore the point I'm going toward here. I was "trying to figure out how to figure out" God. I was trying to figure out God? Ha! I believe I spent years drawing nearer to the Lord, and then jettisoning backward because I'd bump into a complexity I didn't understand. I couldn't figure it out; and I couldn't figure Him out.

I'm grateful that I have a seeker's heart, and I kept digging, but I readily admit that I came to the place of peace I find myself in today not without some serious scuffles and tangles along the way. What I think I have been able to figure out is this: God is complex. His universe is complex. His capacity for complexity and sophistication truly is far beyond that which I could ever conceive. And I think this is born out not only in the countless layers of scripture, scriptural reference, historical application and Biblical storyline, but also in the way life shows up at my door each morning.

And please hear me when I say that I don't think of this complexity as a negative thing; and maybe "complex" isn't the right word to use. I will say this, there is more breadth and depth to the world around me than I will ever be able to fully grasp. Shoot, there is more breadth and depth to my own internal environment (i.e. my feelings & thoughts) than I can grasp at any given point. So, naturally, the Lord is the Lord of all these things, and He, Himself, tops all!

That said, I am grateful to have come to a place where the complexities of His will, His word and His plan no longer drive me batty. I, personally, gave up trying to found my relationship with Him in my head. I let Him move into my heart, and the questions in my head (many of which still exist!) no longer seem so critical. I have some areas in which I feel like I've found answers...but, I always know they're subject to change, and I no longer feel very attached to being "right" in those areas.

I think that, in summary, it's fair to say that basically, I've made peace with the complexity and that has brought about the simplicity of trust and surrender.

As I close this post, I realize that what I've just said has very, very relevant and practical application to my life today. I have half a dozen "problems" that come to mind when I ask myself, "What scenarios would be bettered if I made a conscious effort to make peace with their complexity?" In the end, for me, I think that "making peace" is really rooted in surrender and trust... but in the end, semantics aside, it is still the pathway to an inner serenity I suspect we all crave. I know I do. So, I will thank the Spirit today for a lesson I think I needed: the intricacies of life are. The end. They are. And He is. And He is God. I can trust in that. I can release into that. I can let go.

Ahhhh...