Laura Lane of Harvest Lane Cottage

There is a lot more to minimalism than meets the eye. Yes, there is the decluttering part of it. But Cheryl E. Smith takes us along on her journey (which I've had the privilege of peeking into through her blog) from a big beautiful house filled with what she thought were treasures to a small place, in another state, where she treasures the things she has. But it's not just a book about how she decluttered. It's a book about how God took her through a long process of reevaluating nearly everything in her life. She began to look at things, situations, and relationships through His eyes, and it changed everything. She didn't go through this process alone though. She's shared this journey with her beloved husband Kevin and young adult son Zac. There is so much heartfelt, good advice about following hard after God in this text. It is a real challenge to look carefully at what we have and what has us. I underlined many passages, but these are some that really stood out to me. "It is often easier to stay where we are, no matter how miserable our circumstances, than to open our minds to the possibility that God has something better for us." page 17 Boy I know this is true from experience! "God was calling us to move, but my affection was so strongly set on our physical possessions, I was refusing to answer His call. My hesitation to let go held me like prison bars. What I "owned," really owned me instead." page 51 "God doesn't always reach down and immediately eliminate the messes we have created for ourselves. Smetimes, He allows us to feel the sting of bad decisions to drive the truth home so firmly that we won't forget or repeat the mistake in the future." page 106 Chapter 12 —Eleven Ways to Discover Your Life's Calling was amazing. It had a number of questions to ask yourself that really shed light on what you should be doing with your life. This whole book had very concrete advice about how to do each thing involved with a journey to Biblical minimalism. I highly recommend the book. 5 stars ★★★★★ I use the Goodreads star system. ★ Did not like it ★★ It was okay ★★★ Liked it ★★★★ Really liked it ★★★★★ It was amazing Thank you Cheryl, Kevin, and Zac for this complimentary review copy.