Simplicity Prefers What Pleases God
Monday of the Fourth Week of Lent – March 16, 2015
ABBA NILUS said, “Have no desire for things to be as you prefer. If you desire only what pleases God, you will be spared confusion and your prayers will be of thanksgiving.”
[Bernard Bangley, By Way of the Desert, p. 351]
When the first of the Desert Christians, Antony of Egypt, left the city for the desert in order to pursue a life of deepening connection to God, he did so in response to the words of Jesus to the rich, young ruler: “Sell all your possessions and give the money to the poor, and you will have treasure in heaven. Then come, follow me” (Lk. 18:22).
Antony was stirred by Jesus’ invitation to simplicity, to let go, and to follow.
The spiritual practice of simplicity invites us to hold things loosely, to not clutch, grab, and hold life. The many things we have in our possession tend to clutter our sight. We spend time securing what we have, protecting it from others, and using it to define who we are.
As Abba Nilus says, simplicity is not merely related to our possessions, our money, our property, and our way of life. Simplicity is also an inner posture. It has to do with the way we approach life day to day. In this way, Abba Nilus suggests that we prefer only what pleases God.
It’s a healthy practice to ask yourself, related to the decisions and choices you face day by day: “Am I only concerned with what is best for me? My family? The groups with whom I identify?”
The spiritual discipline of simplicity, according to Abba Nilus, asks another set of questions: “What is best in this choice or decision for others, even for those I don’t know? What is best for the entire human family? In what ways might God be at work here, even in ways I don’t see and don’t understand?”
ABBA NILUS said, “Have no desire for things to be as you prefer. If you desire only what pleases God, you will be spared confusion and your prayers will be of thanksgiving.”
[Bernard Bangley, By Way of the Desert, p. 351]
When the first of the Desert Christians, Antony of Egypt, left the city for the desert in order to pursue a life of deepening connection to God, he did so in response to the words of Jesus to the rich, young ruler: “Sell all your possessions and give the money to the poor, and you will have treasure in heaven. Then come, follow me” (Lk. 18:22).
Antony was stirred by Jesus’ invitation to simplicity, to let go, and to follow.
The spiritual practice of simplicity invites us to hold things loosely, to not clutch, grab, and hold life. The many things we have in our possession tend to clutter our sight. We spend time securing what we have, protecting it from others, and using it to define who we are.
As Abba Nilus says, simplicity is not merely related to our possessions, our money, our property, and our way of life. Simplicity is also an inner posture. It has to do with the way we approach life day to day. In this way, Abba Nilus suggests that we prefer only what pleases God.
It’s a healthy practice to ask yourself, related to the decisions and choices you face day by day: “Am I only concerned with what is best for me? My family? The groups with whom I identify?”
The spiritual discipline of simplicity, according to Abba Nilus, asks another set of questions: “What is best in this choice or decision for others, even for those I don’t know? What is best for the entire human family? In what ways might God be at work here, even in ways I don’t see and don’t understand?”
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