Joyful Austerity
One person commented after a recent post on materialism and true need, asking that I not back off from pressing you folks on this matter. I appreciated the openness, and have had God continue to press in on me. I've been mulling over the whole question of need and giving and related matters and came upon a John Piper statement that further rocked my world (it's from his book, Brothers, We Are Not Professionals):
In August, by the help of God I'm going to be doing a joyful austerity/simplicity experiment. Don't read this as anything really spiritual; it's more like a sincere experiment and learning lesson. Here's what I'm going to try to do.
I'm going to attempt to live for thirty days as close to bare bones and needs only as I can get. That'll look like one helping of healthy food, no hot showers(only luke-warm ones lasting only as long as it takes to suds and rinse), no Starbucks or Wawas coffee, no in-between meal snacks, no entertainment except what seems needed for family and relational benefit, no condiments on my food, or butter or half-and-half, paper backs instead of hard covers (if any books at all), no Ritas, no meals out (unless ministry or relationship required), etc.
I'm aiming for as close to wartime austerity/simplicity as I can get--just to see what it's like, and to see what I learn in the process! You see: the problem seems to be that unless and until we actually do without we never really learn what we can do without!
And besides, I've got a feeling that I'll learn some new things about the sufficiency of God and grace, as well as how I might be able to give a little more to alleviate the misery of a fallen world rather than build another barn.
Very few of our people have said to themselves: we will live at a level of joyful, wartime simplicity and use the rest of what we earn to alleviate misery. But surely that is what Jesus wants. I do not see how we can read the New Testament, then look at two billion unevangelized people, and still build another barn for ourselves [a reference to Luke 12:13-21]. We can only justify the exorbitance of our lifestyle by ignoring the lostness of the unreached and the misery of the poor.
In August, by the help of God I'm going to be doing a joyful austerity/simplicity experiment. Don't read this as anything really spiritual; it's more like a sincere experiment and learning lesson. Here's what I'm going to try to do.
I'm going to attempt to live for thirty days as close to bare bones and needs only as I can get. That'll look like one helping of healthy food, no hot showers(only luke-warm ones lasting only as long as it takes to suds and rinse), no Starbucks or Wawas coffee, no in-between meal snacks, no entertainment except what seems needed for family and relational benefit, no condiments on my food, or butter or half-and-half, paper backs instead of hard covers (if any books at all), no Ritas, no meals out (unless ministry or relationship required), etc.
I'm aiming for as close to wartime austerity/simplicity as I can get--just to see what it's like, and to see what I learn in the process! You see: the problem seems to be that unless and until we actually do without we never really learn what we can do without!
And besides, I've got a feeling that I'll learn some new things about the sufficiency of God and grace, as well as how I might be able to give a little more to alleviate the misery of a fallen world rather than build another barn.
Labels: Contentment, Giving, Materialism, Need, Wartime Austerity
posted by Tim Shorey at
11:21 AM
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