40 Das 40 Gifts Day 30

Today marks ten days until the end of lent and since I failed so spectacularly last week and based on comments on the blog, I’ve decided to up it a notch. The last ten days will be dedicated to exploring the ten outward expressions of simplicity according to Richard Foster and to pushing the boundaries of my giving.

So the first outward expression of simplicity is to buy things for their usefulness only. John Wesley said “As for apparel, I buy the most lasting and in general the plainest I can. I buy no furniture but what is necessary and cheap.”

This outward expression of simplicity goes to the heart of our consumer culture. Our culture is about buying more and more and more things that are for the most part completely unnecessary – gadgets and fashions being the main marketers’ dreams. I am at the moment thinking of upgrading my computer for instance. But thinking about it, I really only want to do it because I like the look of a smaller version. My computer is slowing down and I will have to look at it in the future, but for now it operates perfectly well.

But the rubber hit the road here on the clothes issue. This seems to be a problem for me. I’m not sure if you agree with me but winter is looming in the air. As I was walking through Woolworths I noticed how many nice winter clothes there are. And I had Richard Foster’s words playing over in my head “buy things for their usefulness only.” Well, if that’s the case I really only need to buy some warm shoes. I have everything else for winter. I can’t tell you how tough this was. As I walked through Woolworths I was just imagining how that jersey or that jacket would make me look, what it would say about me. And then I had to bring myself back to reality.

But here was my solution: I decided that instead of buying some winter garb for me, I would buy some children’s winter garb for the children who stand with their mothers on a couple of corners in my neighbourhood. These children definitely could do with some warm clothes.

So from now on I will need to be walking through malls going "buy it for its usefulness only..."

Lesson 30: Freeing ourselves from what we are told we need helps us identify with how much God has given us.