Lost Virtues: Simplicity

I am going to begin to do a series of posts on "the lost virtues" of Christianity...that being virtues that I percieve to have been at one time very important to Christians and the Christian community, that are no longer widely practiced or encouraged. The purpose of this posts will be, obviously, to re-commend these virtues to my brothers and sisters. The first lost virtue...simplicity.

Lost Virtue: Simplicity

Christian history is replete with stories of the faithful who valued simplicty as part of their calling and mission as Christians. As of late, though not surprising in our captivated by capitalism consumeristic society, simplicty is looked on with disdain or as some sort of oddity at best. Look around at our churches. Most leaders are very succesful in a material sense (fat wallets, nice cars, big houses), and those who are simple or from lower class will most likely never be seen in anything resembling a leadership role in the community. And the "health, wealth, and prosperity gospel"...don't even get me started. Garbage! That rant aside, here are the reasons I commend simplicty to you as a very important spiritual discipline and virtue:

1. As Witness

When Christians live simply and joyfully, it is a witness to the surrounding community that we are satisfied by something much more glorious and certain than cars, money, houses, and possesions. It makes Christ look glorious, and it is the aroma of heaven to all those others who are looking for their joy and self-worth in the things that they own but turn into dust in their mouths.

2. As Discipline

I know discipline is a "four letter word" in our culture right now, but simplicity is good for the Christian soul in the same way that fasting is. In fact, it could be considered a type of fasting. It keeps us from eating to much at the world's table so that when we show up at the table of the Lord we are already full and have no appetite for spiritual food. It increases our capacity to desire and appreciate God.

3. As Stewardship

In is a plain and simple fact that there are not enough resources in the world for everyone to live like an American. By refusing to own status symbols or gratuitous amounts of material possesions, we are conserving the limited resources of our home and planet. In that way we are loving not only the creation, but also our neighbor, and there for God as well.

4. As Devotion

We only have a limited amount of time, energy, and emotional resources to spend in any given day. If we are spending them worrying about the mortgage, upset about ruining our new shirt, or taking the other car in for another oil change, that means we cannot be spending those personal resources on loving God and our neigbor. By owning to many things, we end up spending all of our personal resources on ourselves. It is a selfish way to live. Having to spend less time on the things that we own frees up incredible amount of time, energy, and emotional resources to spend on the things of God and His Kingdom.

5. As Generosity

The almost goes without saying, if we spend less on ourselves, we have more to spend on others who may be in need.


For these reasons and others that have gone unnamed, I commend living simply to all my brothers and sisters. It will certainly not be easy. There are people spending billions of dollars, literally, to get us to believe that our lives consist exactly in the things we own and the things we do for ourselves. It is a lie. Do not believe it. Live simply.

Birthday Trip to the NorthWest

What it is like to travel with Jason Ballard

I took this picture of our nightstand at our hotel in Vancouver so you might get a real personal look at what it is like to travel with my husband Jason Ballard. This was just a spur of the moment 5 day trip mind you, and I could only laugh when our nightstand turned into a temporary theological library! The only demand that I had was that he carry the suitcase!

Here Come the Maoists

Former communist rebels won the most seats in Nepal's new governing assembly, taking more than double the number of their nearest rival, an election official said Thursday.

The former insurgents, known as the Maoists, are now expected to form the backbone of Nepal's new government and usher in sweeping changes to the impoverished Himalayan nation, although they will not have an absolute majority in the 601-seat Constituent Assembly. Among the biggest likely changes is the abolition of Nepal's 239-year-old monarchy, which the Maoists have repeatedly said must go.

But the Maoists, who are considered terrorists by the United States, have made it clear they are committed capitalists, albeit left-leaning ones, and have no plans to transform Nepal into a communist state. Apart from that, there's still much uncertainty over what the new government will look like.

The Maoists have been in talks in recent days with the other major parties about forming an administration and are pushing for the creation of a president. That job they want filled by their leader, who is known as Prachanda, or "the fierce one" in Nepali. "It is my desire to be the president," Prachanda told reporters Thursday after meeting with U.N. officials and foreign ambassadors in Kathmandu. "But since there is no provision in the present constitution, we will have to reach some agreement with the other political parties." Prachanda's reaction to Thursday's news was subdued -- he spoke about the mechanics of government and shied away from grand statements about Nepal's future. It was clear that the Maoists, who have led the vote tally since counting began, have moved past celebrating and are now trying to figure out just how to run the country.

Coffee With the Bishop

This is one of the most fantastic interviews of NT Wright I've ever read. Most of you know that NT Wright has been tremendously influential in my spiritual formation. If you are interested in him at all, you should take five minutes and read this. It addresses the Gospel in Public, John Piper, Doug Wilson, Resurrection, The Ascension, Third World Debt, his upcoming book on Paul (rubbing my hands together), and much more.
Read it: Wax with Wright

For those of you who don't know, NT Wright is the Bishop of Durham in the Church of England and probably the world's leading New Testament scholar. He studied at Oxford and Cambridge, was a former professor at McGill and Oxford, and was previously the Canon Theologian of Westminster.

Vancouver and Out

Tonight we will be getting on a plane in Seattle to head back to Denver. It has been a heck of a time, and much needed. Jenny made an interesting point when she told me she had planned this trip. She said, "Well, we are heading to Nepal in just ten months, and then we will be there for several years. By the time we come back, we may already have children or we will be ready to have children. This could be our last chance to travel around our home country without kids." I thought it was a good point, and it has turned out to be a remarkable trip.

The highights of the last three days: tulip festival near Mount Vernon, wine tasting in the Pacific Northwest, exploring small coastal fishing villages, the town of Fair Haven, camping out in a small state park near the border, touring the University of British Columbia's Botanical gardens (amazing!), checking out Regent College (home of JI Packer and Eugene Peterson), walking down Jericho Beach, eating Afghan food, riding a tandem bike around Stanley Park and the seawall, exploring various old churches, having communion at Christ Church Cathedral in Vancouver, , strolling through Gas Town and China Town, and having romantic meals in small coffee shops and cafes.

Pictures to come soon, and a post or two by Jenny... I promise.

Two Days Down

Two days down in Seattle, and it is everything I hoped it would be. Romantic, exciting, new, beautiful and adventurous. Highlights so far: Pike Place Market, World's First Starbucks, Space Needle, the troll under the bridge, Capital Hill, Mars Hill Church, taking the ferry to Bainbridge, the brew pubs, and walking hand in hand with my lover around the city. We have stayed the last two nights in the Green Tortoise Hostel, but we are heading out today for Mount Vernon area. Stay tuned, and we'll keep you posted.

Unbelievable Birthday

Well, my wife threw me an unbelievable birthday party tonight at the apartment. And aside from the Literary Study Bible (which I have been coveting for months), a membership to the Boulder Wine Club (from Jenny's parents), and the a bottle of Woodford Reserve Bourbon (thanks Tim), the big surprise of the night is that my wife surpised me with a trip to the Pacific Northwest tomorrow (well, technically today)!!!

We are flying out for Seattle at 8:00 a.m. tomorrow, going to Mars Hill Church on Sunday (I love that my wife knows me so well), checking out the original Starbucks, going to the Skagit Valley Tulip Festival, heading out to the San Juan Islands, and then we are going up to Vancouver. I have no idea how she pulled this off. She even got my shifts covered at work without me knowing. Unbelievable!!! My wife is indescribably thoughtful and amazing. I have never had such a birthday surprise in my life. I'll give a full report here when we get back.

I love you Jen.

Apostles to the Apostles

If you believe, as I do, that God is sovereign in all of life, then what are the implications of the fact that He ordained that women be the first witnesses to the resurrection? Apostles to the Apostles if you will.

I'm not sure the weight of this reality has been sufficiently felt by modern evangelicalism, especially Reformed types like myself. It would have been an apolegetic liability to the early church, and yet, there it is, in Matthew, Mark, Luke, and John.

Next Up

...for those of you observing a Christian Calendar,

May 1st -- Day of Ascension

May 11th -- Pentecost

I'd love to hear from those of you who are thinking of observing these days and how you go about doing it. My wife and I started observing the Christian Calendar this past Advent season and it has been tremendously beneficial to both of us. As I've never celebrated either of these days before (my Reformation hertiage threw the baby out with the bath water), I'm still looking into exactly how Christains have gone about their discipline of celebration.