A More Beautiful Life Collective

In this episode, we are focusing on how you can create a life you love. We’ll look at a step-by-step process to brainstorming what a life you love looks like, plus some biblical principles to get you started. Then, we’ll talk about 5 ways to create a life you love today.

S2E15 – What You Need to Know about the Christian Creeds – A More Beautiful Life Collective Podcast

In this episode, we are talking about the high-church confessional documents and why you should engage with them. No matter what denomination you belong to, these confessional texts – like Christian creeds, confessions of faith, catechisms, and liturgies – have been incredibly influential in the history of the Church. We need to wrestle with what they say and determine how it fits in with our own personal statement of faith. Today, we are going to talk about why you should read these texts, and then, turn our focus to the Christian creeds in particular.  Read more on the blog: https://amorebeautifullifecollective.com/what-you-need-to-know-about-the-christian-creeds/  Get a PDF copy of the Christian Creeds here: https://a-more-beautiful-life-collective.kit.com/d080819cc1  Get the Doctrine and Theology Cheat Sheet Here: https://a-more-beautiful-life-collective.ck.page/bd897d28d0  Get a list of the names of God here:  https://a-more-beautiful-life-collective.ck.page/43d2d5cf6b  Get a copy of our personal statement of faith creation guide here:  https://amorebeautifullifecollective.com/product/we-believe-your-personal-statement-of-faith-workbook-pdf-download/  Get “Building Our Foundations: 10 Week Study” here:  https://amorebeautifullifecollective.com/product/building-our-foundations-11-week-systematic-theology-book-bible-study/  Visit our Shop to get a copy of any of the resources mentioned in this episode:  I’m your host, Cayce Fletcher, and you can ​learn a little bit more about me here​.  While you’re here, would you consider leaving a comment, rating, or review? You can find our podcast, ​A More Beautiful Life Collective Podcast​, wherever you listen to podcasts. Listen on ​Spotify​ or ​Apple Podcasts​, or watch on ​YouTube​.  Subscribe to the blog for access to our latest content and some freebies.  I love creating and sharing resources with you. You can find all of our resources at ​A More Beautiful Life Collective Shop​. Keep creating a life you love, and cultivating your heart for God. 

1. S2E15 – What You Need to Know about the Christian Creeds 50:38
2. S2E14 – Three Ways to Cultivate Gratitude in Your Life Today 32:17
3. S2E13 – How Routines Calm the Chaos of Life (+ My Stay at Home Mom Schedule) 55:53
4. S2E12 – Christology: Jesus as Prophet, Priest, and King 53:15
5. S2E11 – 5 Hobbies Everyone Should Have to Create a Life You Love 41:18

Hey everyone and welcome to Season 2 Episode 9 of A More Beautiful Life Collective Podcast. I’m your host, Cayce Fletcher. Today, we are going to continue our series looking at the tagline of this podcast. What does it mean to create a life we love? How do we cultivate our hearts for God? How can you create a life you love?

In the last episode, we laid the groundwork for that first question. Before we talk about how to create a life we love, we have to ask ourselves if we even should. In the last podcast, we broke down our understanding of what the Bible says about pleasure. By creating a theology of pleasure based on Biblical principles, we are more likely to do this thing right. If you haven’t yet, go back and listen to that episode to help you understand what the Bible says about pleasure. 

Today, on the podcast, we are going to get practical. If we should create a lovely life – a life that we love – how do we do this? We’ll talk about what a life you’ll love looks like, and then, we’ll talk about 5 ways to create a life you love today. 

How is pleasure related to creating a life we love? 

We focused so much on what the Bible says about pleasure in the last podcast because there are certain groups of Christians that believes that if life is lovely, it must be sinful. The good gifts that God has given us are viewed in a negative light. 

In Puritan ideology, eating, drinking, and sex were all looked down upon. Medieval monks also gave up these things. They chose this type of martyr mentality because they believed that it made them better Christians. They felt more devout the more they practiced self-imposed self-denial. 

Interestingly, Jesus never practiced this type of Asceticism. When speaking to the crowds comparing his ministry and John the Baptists (and criticizing the fickleness of the people), he says, “The Son of Man came eating and drinking, and you say, ‘Here is a glutton and a drunkard, a friend of tax collectors and sinners’” (Luke 7:34). 

Plato said that ‘the pursuit of transcendent ideals is a sure path toward a satisfying life.’ In the last podcast, we described how we need to have a right attitude towards pleasure in order to truly enjoy it. To create a life we love, we have to order our loves rightly. 

The first step towards creating a life we love is choosing to find our delight in God above all. In doing so, the other lesser desires of life will fall into place. 

When we don’t order our loves rightly, we have a temptation to elevate pleasure and loving life over God. This leads to us pursuing pleasure and loving life at the expense of our relationship with God. 

Having a correct understanding of your theology of pleasure will help you to create a life you love. 

How do you begin to create a life you love? 

So, if we can and should create a life we love now – a life that we enjoy and delight in – how do we even get started? 

Step 1. With any goal, I think we first have to start with assessing where we are at now. Ask yourself these questions: 

• Do you love your life? 
• What are the most lovely things about your life? 
• What do you delight in? 
• What inspires you to truth, goodness, and beauty? 
• What are the orders of your loves? 

Step 2. Imagine what a lovely life would look like. What would you love to have in your life in order to love it more? Create a list of glimmers, or things that trigger happiness, to begin to brainstorm what it would take to create a life you love. 

Step 3. Define your ideals. A life that is loved is one that aligns with what we hold most dear. You have to figure out your ideals and then work to build a principled life from them. (Check out our method of Christian living to learn more about this process.) 

Step 4. Develop a schedule with habits and routines that make a more beautiful life. We have to apply our ideals to our life to develop a rule of life that allows us to live out what we believe. By creating an ideal schedule and cultivating habits that help you reach your goals, you will create a life you love. 

Subduing Your Domain: Own Your Life 

Recently, I heard someone point to the creation story and particularly the phrase, “fill the earth and subdue it, have dominion over” it all (Genesis 1:26-28). This verse describes two primary tasks of creating a life that you love. (We talked more about the creation story and what it tells us about mankind in this episode.)

Ultimately, you are responsible for your life. It’s up to you to create a life you love. How will you take ownership of your life? 

Part 1. Creating Order out of Chaos. 

Our podcast on theological anthropology described one of the key purposes of man: to tend to the Earth. That tending is done in order to create order our of chaos. A lovely life is one that is rightly ordered. Like I said, the first thing we should order is our love and devotion. God comes first, then everything else after it. Then, we must order our time and surroundings. This may be a physical ordering of our homes and land. Or it may be an ordering of our priorities and relationships. When we do this, we get a little closer to the Edenic purpose that we were given. 

Part 2. Own Your Life.

The second thing you must do is own your life. You need to take ownership of your calling, mission, and vision for life. You need to articulate your ideals. You need to have your vision for what your life looks like thought out, written down, and communicated to those around you. 

We should have dominion over our little corner of life. When we take responsibility for what our life looks like, we can shape it into something that promotes what is good, true, and beautiful. We can create something lovely out of it.    

What does a life you love look like? 

As you’ve been thinking about how to create a life you love, you may be wondering if there are any boundaries or guidelines for what this life looks like. In our episode on whether it is biblical to create a life you love, I mentioned 1 Corinthians 10:23, which says, “All things are permitted, but not all things are of benefit.” 

Yes, a life you love may be a life full of ‘sex, drugs, and rock ‘n roll’ if you like to live on the wild side. But, is that a biblical way to live? 

Of course not! Every action we make should be made with the filter of this question: Does this action bring glory to God? Can I be an effective witness if I take this action? 

Over time, when we desire God, our other desires will fall into place. Psalm 16:11 says, “You make known to me the path of life; in your presence there is fullness of joy; at your right hand are pleasures forevermore.” God reveals to us a more beautiful life, the path of life where there are pleasures forevermore. 

So, what kind of life should you create if you want to create a life you love? I believe that there are certain things that we can all agree on that result in a more beautiful life. 

• A life that delights in God’s word through study and meditation. Psalm 1:1-2 – Blessed is the one who does not walk in step with the wicked or stand in the way that sinners take or sit in the company of mockers, 2 but whose delight is in the law of the Lord, and who meditates on his law day and night.
• A life that is lived righteously, according to God’s word. James 1:25 – But the one who looks into the perfect law, the law of liberty, and perseveres, being no hearer who forgets but a doer who acts, he will be blessed in his doing.
• A life that takes pleasure in the simple things. Ecclesiastes 2:24 – There is nothing better for a man than to eat and drink and tell himself that his labor is good. This also I have seen that it is from the hand of God. 
• A life that values skill and excellence in work. Proverbs 22:29 – Do you see a man skillful in his work? He will stand before kings; he will not stand before obscure men.
• A life that is slow, simple, and quiet. 1 Thessalonians 4:11 – Make it your goal to live a quiet life, minding your own business and working with your hands, just as we instructed you before.
• A life lived closer to nature, glorifying God as creator. Psalm 145:5 – On the glorious splendor of your majesty, and on your wondrous works, I will meditate.
• A life that seeks first the kingdom of God. John 6:27 – Do not work for food that spoils, but for food that endures to eternal life, which the Son of Man will give you. For on him God the Father has placed his seal of approval. Matthew 6:33 – But seek first the kingdom of God and his righteousness, and all these things will be added to you.
• A life with a godly spouse. Proverbs 18:22 – He who finds a wife finds a good thing and obtains favor from the Lord.
• A life with a family who has been discipled to please God. Psalm 127:3-5 – Behold, children are a heritage from the Lord, the fruit of the womb a reward. Like arrows in the hand of a warrior are the children of one’s youth. Blessed is the man who fills his quiver with them! He shall not be put to shame when he speaks with his enemies in the gate.
• A life that values fellowship with other believers in the Church. Matthew 18:20 – For where two or three are gathered in my name, there am I among them.
• A life that cultivates friendships with the wise. Proverbs 13:20 – Whoever walks with the wise becomes wise, but the companion of fools will suffer harm.
• A life that pursues wisdom. Proverbs 16:16 – How much better to get wisdom than gold! To get understanding is to be chosen rather than silver.

We don’t have to be confused over the type of life that we should cultivate. If you want to create a life you love based on biblical principles, the life should be described like what you read above. James 1:17 says, “Every good and perfect gift is from above, coming down from the Father of the heavenly lights, who does not change like shifting shadows.” All of these things – a godly spouse, a growing family, a church family, wisdom, all of creation, and more – these are all good gifts that come from God. If you want to create a life you love, you need to be cultivating these things in your life. 

5 Ways to Keep Going and Create a Life You Love 

If we want to create a life we love, we must be working towards creating order out of chaos and owning our life. A life we love will include more than just pursuing pleasure. It’s an attitude shift that calls us to love the right things. We have to change our hearts. Here are some other ways to create a life we love. 

#1 – Get Wisdom. Get Understanding. 

In the opening chapters of Proverbs, Solomon exhorts, “The beginning of wisdom is this: Get wisdom. Though it cost all you have, get understanding.” (Prov. 4:7). Throughout the book of Proverbs, we see how wisdom plays out. A life that is wise is often more prosperous and enjoyable. It is filled often with the simple good pleasures of life, but more than that it is full of contentment. 

Our actions and reactions to the events of life will often dictate whether or not we are loving life or hating it. How are your actions creating a life you love?

If we live wisely, we will have a more lovely life that isn’t hampered by sin and foolishness. 

#2 – Speak Truth, Goodness, and Beauty into your life. 

Your tongue is powerful and can change the direction of your life. We have to be mindful of the types of words that we speak. The language we use often has a self-fulfilling power. 

If we constantly trash talk the life – or the house, spouse, children, job, church, or body – that we have, we probably won’t feel like our life is worth loving. We need to speak truth, goodness, and beauty into our lives. 

This means that we need to fill up our hearts and minds with what is true, good, and beautiful because out of the heart, the mouth speaks. Our attitudes will shift when we change how we speak. 

#3 – Love the life you have even if it’s not the one you want.  

We’ve talked so much about pleasure on how we should biblically view it that we may think that a life that we love must include luxury, excess, and extravagance. But, as we’ve seen, pleasure doesn’t mean a 5-course meal after a day at the spa followed by a night in a luxury hotel. Does a life that we love always mean we get exactly what we want? 

Currently, I’m trying to teach my young children about the difference between needs and wants. Hopefully, this will help them to be more content and grateful in the long run. We also have to recognize the difference between our needs and wants. Sometimes, we want things. We desire them. And, we think they will please us. 

But, just because we can’t have them doesn’t mean that we can’t have a lovely life. Right now, my son really wants a transformer toy to replace the one we lost. He wants me to order one off Amazon (and has asked me to do so several times), but just because he doesn’t have that one want doesn’t mean he has a life he doesn’t love. 

We may have a vision or dream for our life that doesn’t match up with reality, but just because it hasn’t come true doesn’t mean we can’t enjoy our life now. We can change our heart attitude and focus on loving the life we have now even if it’s not the one we want.  

#4 – Simplify your life to better enjoy the simple pleasures of life. 

Pleasure sometimes makes us think of luxury, but really pleasure is just enjoying something. Anything that you enjoy can bring you pleasure. In today’s world, we have the opportunity to have so much that even 100 years ago would be unheard of: Countless movies and TV shows, thousands and thousands of books, any food from any season, and ornate pastries a dime a dozen. We’ve taken the work out of most of what we take in which can lead to us taking these things for granted. 

Instead of walking miles and miles just to ‘get together with your church family,’ we squeeze church in between the playdate, the restaurant visit, and a work meeting. We shove a cream danish from the coffee shop in our mouths in the 5 minutes it takes to drive to work. We begrudgingly eat the perfectly ripe strawberries in December because we are trying to eat healthy. 

The busyness of life makes us forget how precious each of these things is. We feel like we need to get away to a resort to reset and truly enjoy life, but we would be so much happier if we took some time to enjoy the little things. 

What most of us need to do is simplify our lives. We simplify and place boundaries around our schedules, our work, our entertainment, our relationships, and really every facet of our lives. When we do this, we will be better able to enjoy the things that truly make us love life. 

#5 – Write a list of what makes your heart sing and work to include them every day. 

Lastly, we need to draw our awareness to what we actually love. As I’ve said, part of creating a life we love is to rightly order our loves. We need to acknowledge what we love most which involves creating a list of priorities in our lives. 

For some of us, our lives are so busy with other things that we don’t recognize what brings us joy. We self-medicate with food, technology, and alcohol to try to bring more joy in our lives, but those things come up lacking. We have to begin to create a world around us that makes our ‘heart sing’ – that sparks joy and inspires us to live well. These things should inspire us to be the best version of ourselves. 

You need to sit down and work through what makes your heart sing. Depending on your life journey, you might find that you have no idea. If you were pushed through school, signed up for instruments and sports by your parents, and thrown into a major that seemed like ‘the right thing to do,’ you may never have been bored enough to find out your true interests. 

You may also have not even thought about some things that could bring you joy. A vaseful of flowers on the kitchen counter always brings a smile to my face. Soft music calms a space and sets the tone. Beautiful art can bring light and life to your home. Walks in the morning when the sun is coming up can give you peace and purpose that goes throughout your day. Freshly baked bread on the counter invites you to linger and visit with family and friends. A delectable cup of coffee makes the quiet mornings your favorite time of day. 

What brings you joy? What makes your heart sing? 

Once you know, work to add them to your daily and weekly routines. If you love to hike with your family, schedule a trip once a month and block off the time to be sure that you go. If picnics in the park are your favorite way to spend a Saturday, make a weekly tradition of lunch after errands. 

Part of creating a life that you love is delighting in the simple pleasures of life. Once you slow down, take the time to dwell on that which is good, true, and beautiful. 

Create a life you love

We live a life that is made up of choices. We can live in a way that is dominated by others’ choices for us, that is determined and dictated by things outside of our control. Or you can be intentional about your choices, making them wisely. Intentionality is key to creating a life you love. 

Ultimately, our greatest pleasure should be to delight in God. Creating a life that we love means that we must first love God. The love that we have for him will lead to a life that is lovely. When we delight in God, we can delight in the world that he made. 

I hope this episode has inspired you to create a life you love. We will talk more about cultivating our hearts for God in the upcoming weeks. 

Until then, keep creating a life you love and cultivating your heart for God.