"the simple life"

Sitting back in my lazy boy. In the glow of my Laptop screen, I wonder if my life is simple. In our modern lives full of life improving gadgets and time saving technology have we lost the ability to be satisfied with the simple things of life?

Old Village / Tribe Culture
· Family
· Community
· Having Shelter
· And plenty to eat
· Kids happy
· Safe and secure
· Following our beliefs
· Family Centred -> Community Centred -> Common Belief Centred


Modern Culture, Hamilton City
· How many houses? Cars
· How big is your house?
· Kids, latest mobile
· Excess, Need more stuff
· Are my kids doing well? Academic, Sport
· Where am I going?
· My career, My Education
· How do I manage my time better?
· Believe, whatever fits my lifestyle (lifestyle first)
· Pursuit of value, What will this do for me?
· Identity, I am a brand (plastic surgery), What is my look?
· Self help books, Self Improvement

Attitudes
-- Ego, Pride, Self-Centred or ME-centred
- Hopeless, Aimless

Results
– Its all about stuff, and what can be seen, Competitive, about me
Hopeless because cannot ever attain success (unreal expectations, insatiable)

Modern culture is burning us out, more depression, more hopelessness. Leads to - Having to escape reality. “It’s not worth it”

Our lives wear us down, we have regular career crisis. Cannot see how we could do this job for the rest of our lives. A job is no longer available for the rest of your life. We live with high change. Our grand parents knew a different culture.

High change is resulting in a wearing down of our will and desire. A depressed generation (what’s the use). People become Polarised, the positive take on the world or the what’s the use sit back and hope it goes quickly or at least as a blur.
Others search for identity and meaning.

Need to step back, how do we live in our culture but not buy into it. It is subtle and not obvious when we are in our busy day to day lives.

It’s not black and white, we are part of this community/culture so that does determine what we need to do. We live in houses, kids go to school, we work in high-pressure work environments, stretch every hour. If we are practical we cannot be total separate,


Tenting experience
No power, No TV,
It was all about hunting and gathering, shelter (not blown away, don’t get wet)
Chatting around the candles, I took up whittling sticks, (very humorous).

In becoming westernised I think we can loose track of what matters, more concerned about attaining a material goal, and fitting a successful pattern for life than looking after our collective spirit, mind and body. The simple life is not a consideration.

What locks us in to this life style?
Habit, Pattern, Familiar
Pride, Ego
Debt, the result of trying to become the dream before we can afford it
Expectation, our own and others
Expectation is almost a debt, a debt that others perceive you owe them, to do this, “look at the time I have invested in you.”
Debt, It’s a trade off, what do we trade, future money, emotions, values, standards, dreams.
The wrong focus, centre


What does the bible say?

1 Peter 2:10-12
10Once you were not a people, but now you are the people of God; once you had not received mercy, but now you have received mercy.

11Dear friends, I urge you, as aliens and strangers in the world, to abstain from sinful desires, which war against your soul. 12Live such good lives among the pagans that, though they accuse you of doing wrong, they may see your good deeds and glorify God on the day he visits us.

The Message puts it well
1 Peter 2
The Stone
4Welcome to the living Stone, the source of life. The workmen took one look and threw it out; God set it in the place of honor. 5Present yourselves as building stones for the construction of a sanctuary vibrant with life, in which you'll serve as holy priests offering Christ-approved lives up to God. 6The Scriptures provide precedent:

Look! I'm setting a stone in Zion,
a cornerstone in the place of honor.
Whoever trusts in this stone as a foundation
will never have cause to regret it.

7To you who trust him, he's a Stone to be proud of, but to those who refuse to trust him,

The stone the workmen threw out
is now the chief foundation stone.
8For the untrusting it's
. . . a stone to trip over,
a boulder blocking the way.

They trip and fall because they refuse to obey, just as predicted.

9But you are the ones chosen by God, chosen for the high calling of priestly work, chosen to be a holy people, God's instruments to do his work and speak out for him, to tell others of the night-and-day difference he made for you-- 10from nothing to something, from rejected to accepted. 11Friends, this world is not your home, so don't make yourselves cozy in it. Don't indulge your ego at the expense of your soul. 12Live an exemplary life among the natives so that your actions will refute their prejudices. Then they'll be won over to God's side and be there to join in the celebration when he arrives.

Do the opposite:
night-and-day difference he made for you
- turn it on it’s head

Trust in Christ as the cornerstone, living stone (solid), foundation, centre
– It’s not about me. What’s at the Centre? What is it about?

Friends, this world is not your home, so don't make yourselves cozy in it.
– not about things, take a step back, worry about your real home, the end goal, is it about comfort?

Don't indulge your ego at the expense of your soul.
– Selfless life, servant, think others higher than yourself. It is a battle, remind yourself daily.

Live an exemplary life among the natives so that your actions will refute their prejudices.
– be an illustration, and so help prove their judgements wrong.

Treat everyone you meet with dignity. Love your spiritual family. Revere God. Respect the government.

But if you're treated badly for good behavior and continue in spite of it to be a good servant, that is what counts with God.
– Its not about your rights.

Walk through life – step by step.

Conclusion
It’s not about having a mundane life, but a simple life. We live for a challenge. The human spirit loves to experience new things. God has given us the great commission. It is a challenge, adventure, a journey.