5 Ways Minimalism Helps Reduce Worry
Recently, I decided to journey further into minimalism and experiment with living out of a backpack.
It’s been a rather large experiment.
After deciding it was worth a try, we listed our home, put some necessary furniture in storage, and began navigating life with only a small set of essentials.
This is a six-month family experiment for my husband, our five kids, and me. So technically there are seven backpacks—but the truth is, we’re living with significantly less stuff.
One month into this experiment, I am noticing several shifts.
Most have been expected: even more free time with less to care for, more energy when not weighed down by stuff-related tasks, and a deeper ability to focus with fewer distractions.
But the benefit of owning even less that I didn’t predict? Less worry. Significantly less.
Now, I’ve always been more go-with-the-flow than worry prone. But, owning possessions, regardless of your personality, increases responsibility. And when you’re responsible for something, on some level, it owns a part of you.
“Every increased possession adds increased anxiety onto our lives,” author Randy Alcorn said.
And it’s true.
Mount a new TV downstairs, and suddenly you’re worried when your five-year-old tosses a football around the multipurpose room. Start collecting mugs, and soon you’re worrying about where to store them. Purchase more clothes, and you’ll likely worry about caring for them—and buying even more to keep up with the latest trends.
If we surround ourselves with excess possessions, suddenly we’re no longer free. Worry can become our baseline because we’re tethered to the responsibilities that accompany our belongings.
And soon, with all this focus on our stuff, we risk placing our confidence and security in our possessions instead of in God, who is the giver of all things.
So what’s the solution? How do we untether ourselves from possession-related anxieties?
We own much less.
In Joshua Becker’s new book Uncluttered Faith, he suggests that selling your possessions and embracing minimalism is the antidote to anxiety. In my experience, I couldn’t agree more.
Here are five ways minimalism can help reduce worry (the first four are from Becker’s new book):
1. Minimalism reveals how little we need
We all need much less than we think to be happy. But when our homes are filled with peace-stifling piles of possessions, it’s hard to see that.
Becker says, “As we start living with less, we notice that we’re doing fine—better, in fact.”
We realize an overflowing wardrobe wasn’t a prerequisite to being liked or well-dressed. We discover we can still make wonderful meals for our family with fewer kitchen gadgets and dishes.
“Soon we find ourselves worrying less and less about having enough stuff,” Becker writes. “How light it makes us feel!”
2. Minimalism frees us to become faithful with our resources
Money and possessions are fleeting—placing our security in them is futile and only begets worry.
Becker says that when we look for security in money and possessions, we always come up short.
Our resources come from God and we are simply stewards. When we see him as the source of our money and possesions—and we steward them faithfully—we worry less and grow in confidence.
“It’s a confidence that he will care for us because we are right where he wants us to be,” Becker writes.
3. Minimalism provides margin to handle life’s uncertainties
Minimalism creates margin in multiple ways. A minimalist’s bank account has less debt and more savings from purchasing less. Their schedules have fewer commitments and more downtime. They are “less distracted, less frazzled, less tired, and more focused, more alert, and more at peace,” says Becker.
This leaves minimalists with more capacity to navigate life’s uncertainties when they arise.
“For people who are overwhelmed by maintaining an overly complicated lifestyle, risks can seem magnified,” Becker writes. “Minimalists have more confidence that, with God’s presence, they can handle whatever they may face.”
4. Minimalism changes our focus
Minimalism pulls our focus away from stuff and redirects it toward what—and Who—truly matters. Our possessions become necessary tools, rather than distractions, on life’s journey.
“With minimalism, rather than our hearts being set on all the things we want to get, our minds find rest in the blessings and goodness God has provided for us already,” writes Becker.
A mind at rest, confident that God has provided for us now and will continue to provide in the future, is a mind less prone to worry.
5. Minimalism gives us more opportunities to practice trust
“Our great drama is this: Man does not have confidence in God,” writes author Jacques Philippe. “We cannot experience support from God unless we leave Him the necessary space in which He can express Himself.”
Minimalism creates opportunities to exercise trust—letting go gives God the space to step into our lives and carry us.
Holding onto things “just in case,” or clinging to a scarcity mindset, fosters worry. The more we white-knuckle our money and possessions, the less we live from a place of abundance and trust.
When we let go and make room for God, we begin to see him working in our lives, which quickly nixes worry.
Conclusion
If you want to reduce worry and increase peace, the answer lies in owning less. Why not conduct your own simplicity experiment and see?
Pause for a moment and ask yourself: How could you simplify your life?
It could be as simple as making a trip to a donation center or pausing before making a purchase. Or it could be more involved—decluttering your entire home or committing to a low-buy (or no-buy) year.
“As we put our focus on God and trust in Him to provide for us, He proves faithful, and our confidence grows,” writes Becker. “Made freer by minimalism, we embrace the adventure God is taking us on—life more abundant than excess possessions.
Every step we take to simplify life and own less counts toward easing anxiety.
Contrary to our culture’s message, we don’t need to fill our lives with more stuff and more worry.
We can live simply and deeply.
We can experience an abundant life without an abundance of stuff.
For more on how owning less can unlock a richer, more fulfilling spiritual life and help you discover greater purpose, I highly recommend Becker’s new book Uncluttered Faith, now available wherever books are sold.