Good morning to each of you. As I sit down to write this particular post the sun isn't even up yet. Today I write with fear and trembling. Who am I to express the desires of the heart for a group of people? What if I misrepresent their views? What if somehow I make my reader feel that they are less of a Christian then those in the Plain Community? Never would I want to offend but encourage. So with that said, join me in understanding a radically different way of living.
There are some things that would be universal if you happened upon a Plain Community. The first would be their love and deep devotion to God. God is number 1. They live to please the Master in all they do.
They believe fiercely that they are not to be conformed to the world as Paul stated in Romans 12. They believe that God has called them to be holy which truly means to be called out.
With those two rock solid foundations they have had to decide how to live these principles out. The first that stands out to me is their belief about "stuff". You know what I am talking about, right? The stuff we spend lots of money to store in commercial storage units. Or, the boxes and boxes of stuff that we stash in closets, under the bed or in the garage. That's the stuff I am talking about.
In order to live a simple and quiet life as found in 1 Timothy 2:2 they resist the urge to have "stuff". My favorite fluffy little purple gal Flylady says that stuff clutters the brain. When our brains are cluttered with stuff, it fills up areas that only God can fill. Profound! We brought nothing into the world and we will leave this world with nothing but our souls.
The Plain Community believes that they are only travelers in this world for a brief moment in time. This is not their home, they are just passing through. Travelers pack light when they know they are only going for a little while. If you take that philosophy then traveling light makes sense. Jesus traveled really light. He had no transportation except the feet God gave him. He had no home, no bed and no pillow at night. He was just passing through. When you travel light you can move with speed because there is nothing to hinder you. They keep this principle before their minds on a daily basis.
Money is another area where they live out the above beliefs. The love of money is the root of all evil. It is so easy to love money. In fact, Jesus said it would be very hard for a rich man to go to heaven because his "stuff" weighs him down. The desire for more and more is in the very fabric of our lives here in America. You only have to travel to most of the other 4/5 of the world to see that we live in great excess by the rest of the worlds standard of living. They buy only what they really need.
Their homes are a perfect example of this concept. They could build fancier houses but they chose not to in order to keep the expense down. They could buy washers and driers and microwaves and t.v.s buy they chose not to because it takes electricity to run all that. The expense of electricity goes beyond just the monthly price. The cost of a home goes way up when you put in electricity. They can build a home cheaply since they don't put in all the wiring etc. that comes with using electricity. They don't believe the washers and dries etc. are sinful just that they add another layer of complexity in living simply.
They believe in hard work. Hard work builds character especially in children. When you train a child to have a good work ethic they develop into hard working adults. All this hard work makes the lifestyle slower. No one is dashing to and fro. They have work to do and they do it. No rushing out of the house each morning, running through the McDonald's drive thru for breakfast before going to work or school. Speaking of which, I will stop here so I don't have to dash before heading out for ladies Bible class.
Please feel free to leave a comment or a question and I will try to answer to the best of my ability. Till tomorrow, may your day be one that brings glory and honor to God.
In Christ Alone,
Jill
Be the kind of woman that when your feet hit the ground each morning Satan says, "Oh crud, she's up".