February
Take My Yoke Upon You: SIMPLICITY
Few of us would dispute the fact that we live in a world of ever-increasing complexity.
As a self-confessed ‘gadget man’ I have a fascination with technology and all sorts of devices which reflect the ingenuity of humanity. Yet in more recent years, even I have begun to reflect more and more on how the accumulation of items which promise to reduce the workload of life, actually end up adding layer after layer of complexity and concern. This is true, not just of material and technological clutter, but of any accumulation that expands to fill our minds and hearts. Added to this is our innate tendency to seek idols to which we give our attention, and ultimately, our adoration and worship.
According to Richard Foster, simplicity is:
‘an inward reality that results in an outward lifestyle’
– Richard Foster, Celebration of Discipline.
Most of us don’t buy things for sheer survival but because of the promise they bring to us. We buy designer brands because they communicate success. Subconsciously (and sometimes consciously) we believe that nearly everything we buy will make us happy and successful.
Jesus famously said,
‘No one can serve two masters. Either you will hate the one and love the other, or you will be devoted to the one and despise the other. You cannot serve both God and money’ (Matthew 6: 24, NIV).
Money and possessions pretend to offer what we want from God – security, comfort and happiness. That’s why we are prone to ‘serve’ money. But money, wealth and material possessions are not the real issue; our hearts are. The outward issue (abundance or lack of money) is not as important as the inward issue (where our heart is set). Jesus contrasts God and money because they both compete for our hearts. The Kingdom solution is neither financial stinginess or carelessness, but simplicity. Simplicity is an inner attitude that affects how we choose to use the resources we have and whether we set our hearts on gaining more.
The practice of simplicity does not just relate to our possessions; it speaks to how we fill our time. The call to walk in the way of Jesus is often not a call to do more, but to do less. The vast majority of us have far too much going on to ‘add’ Jesus into our manically busy lives. If taking the yoke of Jesus upon us is to be the centre of gravity for our entire life, we need to think of what we need to subtract. During the season of Lent, the Church has traditionally thought of ‘subtraction’, but this can often be something superficial (chocolate etc). Rather than focusing on something like that, each of us could instead consider two questions:
What could I ‘subtract’ from my life which would create space to spend time with God or serving others?
What five possessions could I give away which would bring blessing to someone else? (Resist the temptation to replace them).
A prayer for FEBRUARY:
Lord God, you know our tendency both to hold onto the clutter of tradition, but also to rush from one ‘new’ thing to the next. Give us grace to relinquish the disorder which accumulation brings to body, mind and spirit, and to embrace the opportunity to fix our unbending focus on Jesus, the author and finisher of our faith. Holy Spirit assist us to create margin, space and openness in our lives, churches and communities. Lord Jesus, help us to find our identity in you and to set aside competitors for our devotion. Amen.
COURSES & MORE
Articles
Adele Calhoun – https://renovare.org/articles/simplicity-a-practical-guide
Richard Foster – https://renovare.org/articles/understanding-simplicity
Video
John Ortberg on Frugality https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=NFJ5wb1dcfg
Richard Foster on Simplicity https://conversatio.org/simplicity/
Christopher Hall on Simplicity – https://conversatio.org/the-discipline-of-simplicity/
Podcast & audio
Dallas Willard - https://conversatio.org/simplicity-frugality-and-poverty/
Jan Johnston - https://renovare.org/podcast/abundant-simplicity
Courses on Spiritual Practices
Practicing the Way: A series of free personal and small group resources based around 9 core spiritual practices. These are being released one by one and currently (at Jan 2024) there are resources for 4 practices available: Sabbath; Prayer; Fasting & Solitude. Resources for Generosity (which will include Simplicity) are due for release in August 2024.
All resources can be found here: https://www.practicingtheway.org/
Holy Habits: Small group resources which have been developed based on Andrew Roberts book ‘Holy Habits’. These focus on 10 core spiritual practices or ‘habits’.
https://www.holyhabits.org.uk/
Inside Out: A free small group course from Renovare for discovering a deeper, more transformative life with God
BOOKS
Abundant Simplicity – Jan Johnston (173 pages) ISBN: 978-0830835478
Freedom of Simplicity – Richard J Foster (272 pages) ISBN: 978-0060759711
The Ruthless Elimination of Hurry – John Mark Comer (304 pages) ISBN: 978-1529308389