Simplicity

I'm sure you have noticed this.  Life is busy and very complicated.  Time schedules, appointments, lists to accomplish and even vacation times fill our lives to the max!  Imagine with me how this next phrase jumped off the page.  I was just reading a morning prayer from my Puritan Prayer Book (The Valley of Vision).  Here is the phrase that jumped  off at me:  "May I cherish simplicity and godly sincerity of character."  Wow really?  Can I still do that?  Better question:  'Am I even capable of doing that?'  Can I stop the rush, the bombardment of things to do, accomplishments, people to meet, stuff to fix, buy and paint--change, change, change-- and cherish simplicity?   

Why can't I do that?  What would it take to do that?  Is it even important to do that?  The early church fathers often took a vow of simplicity.  I found, for example this:

Vow of Simplicity (VowofSimplicity) on Twitter

https://twitter.com/VowofSimplicity
The latest from Vow of Simplicity (@VowofSimplicity). Live simply so that others may simply live.

But there is something else that prayer hit me with--"cherish godly sincerity of character."  This slaps us 21st century westerners in our gifted apostolic faces.  Not giftings--but cherish godly character.

Two things are pretty potent:
1.  Lord help me to love simplicity--change what is confusing, busy, and problematic in my life--to be available for You always.
2.  Lord
a.  Help me to develop character ALWAYS above gifts.  Even to the point of forgetting about my particular giftings--they will take care of themselves
b.  Help me to cherish not the gifted person, but the person of godly character.


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