I’m not afraid of work.

There is something very satisfying about a good day’s toil. Given the choice between hauling dirt to create raised beds for my vegetables and lying on the couch watching American Idol, I’ll pick getting dirty any day. (Even when the results are not what I’d hoped for.)

It’s not about the toil or the ease. I like ease. But what I like even better than comfort and bon bons are the results my toil brings. There’s something about dad pushing the wheelbarrow, mom wielding the shovel, big brother managing a rake, and sisters pulling baby in a wagon that leaves you feeling satisfied at the end of the day.

I like pulling in the driveway and seeing my annual beds blooming and my front porch rockers swaying. It’s work to maintain it, but it’s good, satisfying work. Because it’s community work and because it’s work that has a purpose. If you’ve ever sat on a 10-person committee, you can say “Amen.” Come on, now.

The reason we’re pondering the simple life is not because we want to avoid work, but because we want to embrace work…together.

This past year pursuing simplicity has meant ridding our lives of excess fluff—sports, programs, and general excesses that our children need to be supposedly “well-rounded”– like…say, Happy Meal toys—in order that we might collectively work toward a common goal that has a productive end. But we’ve only scratched the surface. The time has come to get radical. (Uh, I’ll tell you what that looks like for us after we’ve done it. No need getting ya’ll worked up prematurely.)

It’s not about milling my own wheat or sewing a quilt. These are not the things that add value to our lives, per se. I ain’t getting a bigger mansion just because I sewed all the furnishings. By hand.

But bonding with my daughter while baking bread instead of rushing off to Girl Scouts is a good thing. Sitting in a quilt circle while listening to the aged reminisce about the olden days does better for us youngsters than a pre-programmed Tuesday night women’s group. And, plus, ya even have something to show for the time.

What is the lowing I hear? Sacred cows bleating in the fields…

We’re on a journey. The ultimate end is to see and savor Jesus Christ in the details of life, that He might be glorified and enjoyed while we talk, play, eat, love, and work. That’s the goal.

And if we kill a few cows on the way, so be it.