The Divine Center: Simplicity
Matthew 6: 24-34
This time of year, many of us begin thinking about spring cleaning. Every so often, I get the urge to rent a dumpster and get rid of all kinds of things at my house or take a huge donation down to the thrift store—things that no longer work, things that no longer serve a purpose, things that I thought I wanted but then stored in the attic, books that I don’t read, clothes that don’t fit. I want a fresh start and a clean, tidy house.
Some of you may be familiar with the Marie Kondo method of organizing. One of the ways that she recommends tidying and organizing the home is to ask of each item, “Does this bring me joy?” If the answer is no, then get rid of that item.
Both of these concepts—spring cleaning and the Kondo method—speak to a truth for so many of us: we have too much stuff. We have more stuff than we could ever want, use, or need. We can view spring cleaning and organizing as ways to improve our lives, but I wonder if we think about the spiritual underpinnings of our desire to get rid of stuff.
One of the spiritual disciplines that Foster discusses in Celebration of Discipline is simplicity. This discipline is not about self-improvement. It’s about drawing closer to God and examining truthfully how our possessions—or rather our attachment to possessions—get in the way of our relationship with God. That attachment is often rooted in our lack of a divine center. That lack leads us to attempt to meet our needs for security through our irrational attachment to things—things that we often neither need nor enjoy. This attachment orients our lives toward things, possessions, and wealth instead of toward God. It is in these things that we seek comfort, joy, security, and status. We don’t go to God, and we certainly do not seek the kingdom of God in our things.
It is difficult to separate our sense of identity and security from things. We live in a society that equates things with success. No wonder we seek to accumulate wealth. As Foster writes of our society, “Covetousness we call ambition. Hoarding we call prudence. Greed we call industry.”
Wealth becomes a rival to God for our loyalty and attention. Simplicity is about breaking that loyalty to and attention on things so that we can place them in their proper place—in God. When we put our faith in things and material wealth, we lose the unity of focus around which our lives should revolve: our relationship with God. We forget that God will provide. When we cling to things and wealth, we are not trusting God.
That’s the point of the spiritual discipline of simplicity—to reorient our lives to God and trust in God’s goodness. To do so is a sweet freedom that brings balance and joy to our lives and to our relationship with God.
Rev. Dana Ezell
