Is Minimalism Christian?

It is cool (hip, in, not sure the correct term) to be a minimalist. Please do not expect me to do a review of the various reality shows. I don’t have time to watch them. I did watch a little bit of Marie Kondo once and she has helped me to appreciate how my wife rearranged my sock drawer. My garage is in need of a spark, but not the “joy” kind.

It is fairly easy to be a minimalist at certain times in life. I was minimalist when I was in college. Some people are now managing to live that way throughout their twenties. It is hard for me to imagine continuing as a minimalist once children come along. It is almost impossible in today’s culture to have a baby without also having a truck and trailer to carry all the diapers, strollers, car seats, and other sometimes legally necessary possessions.

Shunning material possessions seems on the surface to be a Christian way to live. After all, Jesus was a minimalist. He did not have a pillow on which to lay His head. He even seems to teach such a philosophy of living when He tells us to not worry about clothing (Matthew 6:28-29).

They are seeking happiness.

Many in our culture now have all the “stuff” they could ever really want, and it is not bringing happiness. In fact, our stuff can become a burden. I remember peering into a garage while making a home visit to see it stuffed with a boat, motorcycles, and mechanized toys of all kinds. All that I could think about was what an incredible chore it would be to keep all that stuff running and the frustration I would feel in having it all and never having time to use it. Wealth and all of its accoutrements can be more of a burden than a blessing.

So many are seeking happiness in owning less. I am sure it provides for a much simpler uncluttered life and for many a greater level of peace, but it is still an illusion. Its popularity will fade. Try googling “minimalism is dead” and you will see.

There is a Christian perspective.

Happiness is found in Christ, not stuff.

Happiness is not found in possessing more or less, but in Christ and Christ alone. There is nothing wrong with choosing to own less or even very little, but it will never be the source of true happiness.

When we seek our joy in Christ, our lifestyle choices become simpler. We are no longer our own and everything we do possess belongs to another. Our lives are no longer about the pursuit of happiness, but rather a stewardship before Him.

So take a walk around your home. All of your financial resources are the gift of God. Have you invested well? Does all the stuff you own enhance your ability to effectively serve Him? Or is it a dead weight that enslaves you?

Now, wait a minute. Before you pitch it all and go a-wandering with only a knapsack on your back consider another important Christian principle. Minimalism is a lifestyle choice that is often equated with freedom and a sort of wanderlust, but as a Christian, I am not free. I am a servant of Christ. My life’s ambition is to do what He wants me to do, live where He wants me to live, possess what He wants me to possess, and use everything for His glory. I certainly can live on less, but I do so because it is His will not my whim.

The soldier analogy works well and it’s biblical. No good soldier entangles himself with the affairs of this life (2 Timothy 2:4). It does not work well for a soldier to load his pack with the spoils of war, or to have a business on the side. His only desire should be to please his commanding officer.

I am not free to wander.

God clearly intends for New Testament believers to be rooted and connected in a New Testament Church. 2 Timothy 2:6 compares ministry work to farming. There is no occupation that ties a person down like farming. The animals have to be tended every day. A farmer has to own land, animals, crops, and countless tools to enable him to do his job. It is plain hard work, but he will be rewarded by His master for his faithfulness.

The New Testament church is the “farm” in which God has called all believers to labor. He has gifted every believer to serve there. It’s a body that requires all the parts to function well, and all the parts need the body to survive and thrive. So the freedom—the wandering lifestyle—that is so appealing in minimalism is in conflict with New Testament Church body life.

So, the answer is no. The minimalism as we see it in our culture as a philosophy of life and happiness is not Christian.