Advices and queries for eighth month: Simplicity
"Life is meant to be lived from a Center, a divine Center—a life of unhurried peace and power. It is simple. It is serene. It takes no time, but it occupies all our time." (Thomas R. Kelly, Testament of Devotion, 1941 p.124)
A life centered in God will be directed toward keeping communication with God open and unencumbered. Simplicity is best achieved through a right ordering of priorities: maintaining humility of spirit, avoiding self-indulgence, resisting the accumulation of unnecessary possessions, and avoiding over-busy lives.
Elise Boulding writes in My Part in the Quaker Adventure: "Simplicity, beauty, and happiness go together if they are a by-product of a concern for something more important than ourselves."
Queries
- Do I center my life in an awareness of God’s presence so that all things take their rightful place?
- Do I live simply, and promote the right sharing of the world's bounty?
- Do I keep my life uncluttered with things and activities, avoiding commitments beyond my strength and light?
- How do I maintain simplicity, moderation, and honesty in my speech, my manner of living, and my daily work.
- Do I recognize when I have enough?
- Is the life of the meeting so ordered that it helps us to simplify our lives?