Freedom of Simplicity

Foster wonders if he is the right person to write this book, and indeed who would be. (It seems clear that he was exactly the right person.) Our culture is at war with simplicity. Material neediness is almost demanded of us. We need new stuff -- techno-toys, fashions, cars, amazing new whatnot. Says Foster: "Stress the quality of life above the quantity of life. Refuse to be seduced into defining life in terms of having rather than being. Cultivate solitude and silence. Learn to 'listen to God's speech in his wondrous, terrible, gentle, loving, all-embracing silence'... Value music, art, books, significant travel. If you are too busy to read, you are too busy... Learn the wonderful truth that to increase the quality of life means to decrease material desire..." Foster leads the reader to understand that Christian simplicity is not merely a reinvention of self focus, a stripped-down version of self indulgence. It is both carefully inward-looking and thoughtfully outward-looking, always seeking to need only One. This is not the Christianity that the skeptic will find easy to assail, but rather the type of human concerns illuminated by Christ: "A million hogs in Indiana have superior housing to a billion humans on this planet."

It's not an easy task to let go of the known and go into the unknown. To let go of possessions, relationships and to live simply one day at a time. To let go of controlling people you live with, work with, play with, to be and to trust. It is one of the greatest gifts you can give to yourself and others, it brings peace and fulfillment not to rush and accomplish but to do one thing at a time, whether it's eating, vacuuming, telephone calling, working at the office or being with the kids or grandkids. One thing at a time done with simple awareness is worth doing many, many things without awareness. Richard Foster shows us how to live this lifestyle in his books Freedom of Simplicity and Celebration of Discipline. Celebration of Discipline: The Path to Spiritual Growth Once you let go, you don't have to prove anything to anyone, you lose that competition drive, status quo, you don't have to live on the edge, you become more compassionate, more centered, more intuitive, more alive to yourself and others. You worry less and love more, you fear less and trust more, you live for the moment, because that's all you have. You make less mistakes and better decisions. You need less and enjoy more. Live simply so that others may simply live

Why did it take me so long to find this book? Kudos to Harper for reissuing it after years of being out of print. I have read a number of recent, popular books on "voluntary simplicity" and "downshifting," but none approach the beauty of Foster's clear and compelling treatise on the "complexity of simplicity." After outlining the spiritual foundation of the notion of simplicity, he offers practical means of working to achieve it. If you're interested in "living the simple life" BUY this book and check all those other titles out of the library! A great book for "downshifters" regardless of their spiritual background.

Of all the books on the market today about simplicity this one speaks directly to the Christian. It explains why many of us may feel drawn to the simple life. What would Jesus do? This is more than a book about how to save money, buy at thrift stores, and save the earth. It speaks to the soul.