Less Junk. More Jesus.

A review of Uncluttered Faith.

If you're looking for a place to start in living a more content life in Christ, this book is a challenge and a delight.

Author: Joshua Becker

Genre: Christian Living, Spiritual Growth

Published: February 10, 2026

Best for: Christian Homeowners | Overwhelmed Christians | Christian Leaders

Verdict: Highly Recommend

I picked up this because a friend recommended it to me in a conversation totally unrelated to the topic. The topic piqued my interest because after a few too many family moving trucks, I realized we had too much "stuff" in our lives, and I was curious how that would be connected to my spiritual walk. Around the same time, the author was a guest on a podcast I listen to semi-frequently. It seemed like the perfect time to give it a read.

One sentence summary:

Regardless of why we collect worldly possessions, we do so because our sense of security is somewhere it shouldn't be.

Becker gracefully, but truthfully, walks through the emotions and reasoning behind our human desire to gather possessions in excess. Whether we are worrisome, greedy, or lack some level of self-control, many people find their security in possessions rather than in Christ.

A few things that stayed with me:

Our possessions demand more of us than we realize. Having too many things takes away from all of the valuable assets we have in life. Time, money, and personal ministry are just the beginning of the list. Having too many possessions can, and eventually will, put us in a place to sacrifice things that actually matter because we feel an unhealthy motivation to collect worldly possessions.

In Western culture, we have an epidemic of what one well-known financial advisor calls "stuffitis." How we define success in our culture is dangerously different than how God tells us to do so. Owning more possessions seldom leads us to living a life that glorifies God more or brings any version of personal fulfillment. John Piper says it best, "God is most glorified in us when we are most satisfied in Him."

I cleaned out my closet and a few other rooms. I got to looking around and realized it had been years- not days, weeks, or months, but years since I had used many of the items I still owned. I also look at buying things differently now. Becker gives a list of several questions to ask yourself before acquiring new things. I boiled it down to two basic questions I now ask myself before I buy something new.

1. Will I be more satisfied in 6 months from now if I own this?

2. Will this purchase improve my family's situation in any way? (Spiritual, Financial, Emotional, Organization, etc.)

3 Quotes I Liked

"Even if we are unusually fortunate in this life, we will inevitably all reach the end of our time on earth and be forced to discover whether we ran towards the correct finish line." - Chapter 11: Success Redefined

"An overattachment to wealth may be the great American sin of our day as I have characterized it, but the temptation to clutch one's possessions rather than be openhanded in faith is clearly a perpetual sin." - Chapter 13: Less Stuff, More Giving

"Do you have more things in your home than you need? I hate to say this, but it's probably a sign that your affections are tied up more with worldly desires than you would prefer to admit. Maybe you're, at best, inconsistent with seeking joy in the Lord - same as I was." - Chapter 15 More than Happy

I wasn't sure about the way Becker framed the relationship between faith and minimalism. At times, it almost felt like he was hinting that minimalism is the key hinge point of a healthy spiritual walk. I don't necessarily think he intended it that way. I felt like he could have framed satisfaction in Jesus as the path to contentment outside our possessions, rather than losing our possessions as a way to find more contentment in Christ. I'm nitpicking, but as an ordained minister, my radar is always up for the way people frame the messages they convey. I'm probably even overly critical of others in this area at times.

I'm still thinking about Becker's claim that Jesus was a minimalist. I suppose in the way he defines it, it is true. However, cultural context is also very important. Our common culture has a lifestyle expectation that is above what many kings would have desired or expected in the time Jesus walked the earth. That doesn't make Becker wrong. It certainly doesn't make our culture right, but it still has my wheels turning.

If you only remember one thing:

If we seek satisfaction in the possessions we collect, we will miss the greatest joys and satisfaction in the earthly lives God has given us to glorify Him.