Voluntary Simplicity

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Voluntary Simplicity

• . . . ordering our inward and outward lives
• Bill and Betty Ehlers

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Paradoxes of Simplicity

• Both a grace and a discipline
• Both easy and difficult
• Both inner and outer
• Recognizes material things to be both good and
  limited

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Simplicity The main concern

• A holy focus on the Kingdom of God
• But seek first his kingdom and his
  righteousness, and all these things will be given
  to you as well.
• Matthew 633

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Inward Simplicity the starting place

• The tension we all face is the pull of so many
  commitments, obligations, responsibilities and
  competing loves. Our lives are complicated. The
  inward life must be ordered before we can
  simplify the outward life.
• No servant can serve two masters. Either he will
  hate the one and love the other, or he will be
  devoted to the one and despise the other. You
  cannot serve both God and Money. Luke
  1613

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Inward Simplicity whats involved?

• Jesus must be invited to unify and order our
  many competing selves
• Bring God into every activity 1 Thess. 517
• Learn contentment Phil. 411 1 Tim. 65-6
• Learn to say No to self and others in conscious
  decisions of holy obedience Mark 834 Matt.
  1039
• Dont try too hard. There should be a joy, ease,
  and freedom from self-consciousness

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Outward Simplicity Beginning steps

• Seek biblical guidance without legalism
  regarding ostentatious display 1 Pet. 33
  regarding exploitation Deut. 2319 regarding
  the poor O.T. gleaning laws
• Seek practical accommodation without ethical
  compromise In the world not of the
  world John 1714
• Do not conform any longer to the pattern of
  this world. Rom. 122

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Outward Simplicity Beginning steps

• Experiment with voluntary poverty give away
  one treasure
• Plan your spending know where the money
  goes set up budget controls
• goal is to decrease operating budget and
  increase giving budget

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Outward Simplicity Beginning steps

• Unplug from consumptive society question all
  advertisements
• resist planned obsolescence
• recycle, reuse
• Before buying, pray and see if God will provide
  in other ways first
• Stress quality of life above quantity of life

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Outward Simplicity Beginning steps

• Make recreation inexpensive and gadget-free
• Learn to eat sensibly, and with sensitivity to
  the rest of the world
• Buy things for their usefulness, not their status
• Involve the church community for encouragement
  and accountability as we seek to live a life of
  voluntary simplicity

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Outward Simplicity the bigger picture

• The planet cannot support our Western standards
  of consumption issues of justice, equity and
  compassion
• Two-thirds of people on the earth have not heard
  Christs liberating Gospel issues of personal
  sacrifice to accomplish evangelism and
  discipleship

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Financial Stewardship considerations

• The gift of giving some may have it, but
  recognize the dangers and potential abuses
• Consider budgeting, then giving from the excess
  (example of John Wesley)
• If both husband and wife work, consider living on
  one salary and giving the rest away
• Invest some specific portion exclusively for the
  Kingdom of God
• Consider the tithe only as the starting point

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The Goal of Voluntary Simplicity

• As I focus to live a life of holy obedience with
  Christ at the centre of my life, my desire is to
  have the Lord direct all competing aspects of my
  life from the inside-out, so that more of my
  mental, emotional, spiritual and physical
  resources (my thoughts, attention, prayers, money
  and service) can be directed and freed-up for the
  benefit of the Kingdom of God.

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Resources on Voluntary Simplicity

• Ordering Your Private World, Gordon MacDonald
• Freedom of Simplicity, Richard J. Foster
• Rich Christians in an Age of Hunger, Ron Sider
• Living the Simple Life, Elaine St. James
• How to Survive Without a Salary, Charles Long
• Your Money or Your Life, Joe Dominguez and Vicki
  Robin
• Stepping Lightly Simplicity for People and the
  Planet, Mark Burch
• http//www.simplicitycentre.org/news/news.html