I. Introduction

A. This morning we’re continuing our series called Trauma Care for the Soul. In a nutshell, all of the areas of our lives we’ll be talking about involve spiritual disciplines. Spiritual disciplines, many of which we’ve probably never thought of as being disciplines or as being spiritual, are what God uses to help heal the wounds our lives inflict on our souls.

B. Illustration - D. Elton Trueblood, in his book The Neew Man for Our Time, wrote, We have not advanced very far in our spiritual lives if we have not encountered the basic paradox of freedom, to the effect that we are most free when we are bound. But not just any way of being bound will suffice; what matters is the character of our binding. The one who would like to be an athlete, but who is unwilling to discipline his body by regular exercise and by abstinence, is not free to excel on the field or the tracks. His failure to train rigorously and to live abstemiously denies him the freedom to go over the bar at the desired height, or to run with the desired speed and endurance. With one concerted voice the giants of the devotional life apply the same principle for the whole of life with the dictum: (NEW SLIDE) Discipline is the price of freedom (as cited on PreachingToday.com).

C. Trueblood is right. Discipline is the price of freedom. And the discipline we’re talking about today is the spiritual discipline of simplicity. In his book Celebration of Discipline, Richard Foster writes, Simplicity is freedom. Duplicity is bondage. Simplicity brings joy and balance. Duplicity brings anxiety and fear… (NEW SLIDE) The Christian Discipline of simplicity is an inward reality that results in an outward life-style. Both the inward and the outward aspects of simplicity are essential. We deceive ourselves if we believe we can possess the inward reality without its having a profound effect on how we live. To attempt to arrange an outward life-style of simplicity without the inward reality leads to deadly legalism (pp. 79-80). Foster is simply putting into more modern terms one of the most crucial teachings of Jesus’ ministry. In Matthew 6 Jesus has been talking about not worrying about our daily needs being met. Let’s pick it up in verse 32, and I’m reading from the New Living.

D. Matthew 6:32-34 from the New Living – (NEW SLIDE) “Why be like the pagans who are so deeply concerned about these things? Your heavenly Father already knows all your needs, (NEW SLIDE) 33 and he will give you all you need from day to day if you live for him and make the Kingdom of God your primary concern. 34 “So don’t worry about tomorrow, for tomorrow will bring its own worries. Today’s trouble is enough for today."

II. Keep It Simple, Stupid!

A. Way back when I was in Boy Scouts, I learned a phrase that keeps popping up as one of the best I’ve ever heard. I’m sure you’ve heard it before. It’s “Keep It Simple, Stupid!” That phrase worked well for the Scouts and it works well for Christians too. It’s what Jesus was saying in this passage in Matthew 6. He’s saying, “Keep your life simple – keep it focused on one thing – living for God and making His Kingdom your primary concern!” That’s what life as God planned it is! In his book The Pursuit of God, A. W. Tozer wrote, Now, as always, God [discloses] Himself to "babes" and hides Himself in thick darkness from the wise and the prudent. We must simplify our approach to Him. We must strip down to essentials (and they will be found to be blessedly few). (NEW SLIDE) We must put away all effort to impress, and come with the guileless candor of childhood. If we do this, without doubt God will quickly respond (as cited on PreachingToday.com).

B. Tozer is right. Our problem is that we come to Him and try to impress Him with our credentials. “I know I’m not perfect, but I did this, this and this for You this week.” “I know I’m not perfect, but at least I’m doing better than so and so.” And yes, we all get those kinds of attitudes. (NEW SLIDE) We all try to impress God and we all try to impress each other. We get new cars or new tools or new other toys in part because we want to look good to others. We all know we do. Advertisers are very good at flattering us and making it appear we’ll look really good if we’ll just buy their toy. And then there are times when we go too far the other way. We refuse to buy things because they might make people think we’re image conscious. All the while we’re patting ourselves on the back because we’ve done such a good thing by not buying and so we’re better than they are. We all have times when we have that kind of attitude. But we miss the point of what Jesus is saying. (NEW SLIDE) Jesus is saying that it’s not the stuff that’s the issue – it’s whether or not we focus on having or not having it. Jesus says that the only acceptable focus to God is on becoming like Him and doing His will. That’s it.

C. Illustration – John Stott wrote, Asceticism is a rejection of the good gifts of the good Creator. Its opposite is materialism—not just possessing material things, but becoming preoccupied with them. In between asceticism and materialism are simplicity, contentment, and generosity, and these three virtues should mark all of us. It's not a question of rules and regulations about our income, and how many rooms or cars we have. It's these principles of simplicity, contentment, and generosity over against covetousness, materialism, and asceticism that we have to apply to our living all the time. We need to give away what we are not using, because if we don't use it, we don't need it (as cited on PreachingToday.com).

D. We’d like to make it either all rules and regulations or no restrictions at all, but it doesn’t work that way. (NEW SLIDE) Simplicity simply means centering our hearts and lives on knowing God, becoming like Him, and obeying His will. When He is the simple and uncontested focus of our hearts and lives, our daily lives will show it.

III. How Do I Live This Out in My Daily Life?

A. How do we live this reality out in our daily lives? Richard Foster suggests ten controlling principles to help this inward reality of a heart and life centered on Christ become an outward life-style. Some of them may seem pretty simple and straightforward, and others may seem a bit obscure, but please take them in and allow them to guide you into that kind of relationship with Jesus

B. (NEW SLIDE) First, buy things for their usefulness instead of for their status. This can include anything we buy, such as cars, houses, and clothes – anything that can tempt us to buy merely for appearances.

C. (NEW SLIDE) Second, reject anything that is building an addiction in you. Learn to tell between a real psychological need and an addiction. Cut down on addictive drinks like alcohol, coffee, tea, and Coke. By the way, I do drink less than half the coffee I used to! Watch out for addictions to things like chocolate, TV, music, magazines or newspapers, videos, and books. If you’re addicted to money and making it, then give some away and experience the freedom. Ditch your addictions.

D. (NEW SLIDE) Third, develop the habit of giving things away. Whenever you think you’re beginning to get too attached to something, give it away. Now remember – there is a difference between truly needing something for work or home and just liking to have it around. Foster writes, “Most of us could get rid of half our possessions without any serious sacrifice.” He’s right. Let’s de-accumulate by giving our stuff away.

E.(NEW SLIDE) Fourth, don’t believe the press about so-called timesaving gadgets. They almost never save time, and they’re made to break down so you’ll have to get them fixed or replace them. I have to confess that it’s easy for me to get hooked on technology – to want to newest and the best. But I’ve found that settling for what will work well for me is the best in the long run, because I don’t use half the bells and whistles on the newest and greatest anyway.

F. (NEW SLIDE) Fifth, learn to enjoy stuff without owning it. Our culture is obsessed with ownership. We believe it’s our right. But there are many things we can enjoy without having to buy them, like books and tapes from the library and videos from a rental store. We’ve got to learn to enjoy them.

G. (NEW SLIDE) Sixth, develop a much deeper appreciation for God’s creation. Enjoy being out in your yard, or in the woods, or on the beach. What God created is wonderful, even with man spoiling a lot of it, and very enjoyable if we take the time to look.

H. (NEW SLIDE) Seventh, be skeptical of debt, especially when it comes to things we really can take the time to save for. We live in an instant gratification society, and we’re constantly tempted to upgrade everything. When we live our lives focused on Christ, we discover that we don’t want that stuff as much.

I. (NEW SLIDE) Eighth, obey what Jesus said about plain, honest speech. Matthew 5:37 – “Let what you say be simply ‘Yes’ or ‘No’; anything more than that comes from evil.” If you say you’ll do it, do it. Make honesty and integrity the hallmarks of everything you say.

J. (NEW SLIDE) Ninth, reject anything that supports the oppression of others. We’ve got to be careful about buying from companies that use oppressive labor practices with their overseas work forces. Why? Because God looks out for the interests of the poor and comes down hard on those who help oppress them.

K. (NEW SLIDE) Tenth, avoid at all costs anything that keeps you from seeking first the kingdom of God. It’s so easy for us to lose our focus in the hectic pace of daily life. It’s also easy even when we’re going after good things. But in doing that we sacrifice the good for the best.

L. Why go through all this trouble? The writer of Hebrews has a few words for us in chapter twelve verses one to three. (NEW SLIDE) Therefore, since we are surrounded by such a great cloud of witnesses, let us throw off everything that hinders and the sin that so easily entangles, and let us run with perseverance the race marked out for us. 2 Let us fix our eyes on Jesus, the author and perfecter of our faith, who for the joy set before him endured the cross, scorning its shame, and sat down at the right hand of the throne of God. 3 Consider him who endured such opposition from sinful men, so that you will not grow weary and lose heart. (NEW SLIDE) Simplicity will transform our hearts and lives because it means that the sole focus of our lives will be on knowing and pleasing God. My prayer is that all of us will make that surrender to simplicity and act on it in every part of our lives, in our possessions, in our relationships, even in our schedules.

M. Illustration – Stephen Covey, in his book First Things First, writes, Some of us get so used to the adrenaline rush of handling crises that we become dependent on it for a sense of excitement and energy. How does urgency feel? Stressful? Pressured? Tense? Exhausting? Sure. But let’s be honest. It’s also sometimes exhilarating. We feel useful. We feel successful. We feel validated. And we get good at it. Whenever there’s trouble, we ride into town, pull out the six-shooter, do the varmint in, blow the smoke off the gun barrel, and ride into the sunset like a hero. It brings instant results and instant gratification. We get a temporary high from solving urgent and important crises. Then when the importance isn’t there, the urgency fix is so powerful we are drawn to do anything urgent, just to stay in motion. People expect us to be busy, overworked. It’s become a status symbol in our society - if we’re busy, we’re important; if we’re not busy, we’re almost embarrassed to admit it. (NEW SLIDE) Busyness is where we get our security. It’s validating, popular and pleasing. It’s also a good excuse for not dealing with the first things in our lives. "I’d love to spend quality time with you, but I have to work. There’s this deadline. It’s urgent. Of course you understand." "I just don’t have time to exercise. I know its important, but there are so many pressing things right now. Maybe when things slow down a little" (as cited on SermonCentral.com).

IV. Conclusion

A. Please bow your heads and close your eyes out of respect for each other’s privacy. What’s God been speaking to your heart this morning? Do you have a cluttered heart and a cluttered life? Let’s spend a few quiet moments listening to the Holy Spirit whisper to our hearts.

B. What’s God been speaking to your heart? If the desire of your heart today is to surrender to both the inward reality and outward life-style of simplicity by centering the focus on your life on Jesus, then raise your hand as a sign of that surrender, and I’ll pray for you. Let’s pray.