a new testament life

the call to simplicity and freedom for christians is the call to move from achievement oriented spirituality to a life centered on a shared vision of relatedness to people and things, a relatedness of gentleness, of compassion, of belonging to one another
- Richard Bower

it is blasphemy in this country not to laud achievement, not to place the greatest value on those who have accomplished much. this is true in our social strata, and it is a temptation for the american church.

bigger is better.

numbers please the upper echelons of denominations.

we count the number of people saved, the number baptized, how many join the church.

it's too much like the interest in abortion that stops short of an interest in meeting the needs of children born unwanted.

once the child is here, the work is done. once a person has been counted, the work is done.

that is not the life of the new testament church; that is not the life we are called to live.

frederich buechner calls our life a sacred journey.

what a theologian is doing essentially is examining as honestly as he can the rough-and-tumble of his own experience with all its ups and downs, its mysteries and loose ends

there are lessons from god to be learned every day in the ordinariness of our lives. we are not gaining spiritual achievement, we are listening for the connections of our lives that lead us to seeing the world as jesus did,

the pharisee in the temple who expressed his thankfulness for all his spiritual achievements went home without being justified before god. the tax collector who looked at his relationship to others and found himself lacking humbled himself and asked forgiveness.

i think like zaccheus, his repentance was very specific. he had cheated others.

a tax collector achieved great wealth but lost all connection with the people in his community. his wealth was achieved by taking more than was his due from the people.

what these two tax collectors learned is that their wealth was meaningless without the community of others, without the relatedness of gentleness, of compassion, of belonging to each other.

principles that jesus taught over and over.

i have been reading simpler living, a compassionate life: a christian perspective by michael schut. it's an older book, copyright 1999.

simpler living has been sort of a fad with tiny houses, farm cooperatives, and the rise of thrift store shopping by those who could pay the higher prices; but this book talks about intentionally living a simpler life as a christian.

the intentional simplicity of a christian is not about better health or greater happiness. the simple living of a christian is about social justice and respecting god's creation. it is about sharing with others and creating the kingdom of heaven envisioned by jesus and shared with his disciples.

it is the simplicity of what we celebrate - a conversation with a friend more than a promotion at work, a casserole brought to a grieving family more than a newer, larger tv; a gathering of believers working for the greater good more than having our political candidate win.

it is the simplicity of how we live our lives. how do we think about the daily experiences of our lives? how do we treat the people we meet in our day... convenience store workers, teachers, police officers, teenagers, executives, custodians... do we treat them all as beloved by god? or do we make distinctions?

this kind of simplicity is so much more than spending less money. it means thinking less about consuming and more about creating. it means spending our time on relationships instead of improvement.

it is a simplicity that does as buechner suggests, looking at the stuff of our lives for meaning, looking to see who we are and what we have to share.

this is a simplicity that recognizes that we show our love to god by loving each other the way we are loved by god.

living a simple life is not easy.

it's everything.