Day 27

In the face of the struggle for freedom,
Give us strength.
In the face of decision about freedom,
Give us wisdom.
In the practice of freedom,
Give us guidance.
From the dangers of freedom,
Give us protection.
In the life of freedom,
Give us joy.
In the way in which we use our freedom,
Give us a clear vision

(South American Council of Churches
"A Litany for Human Rights," All Year Round
British Council of Churches, 1988)

A suggestion for your prayer and meditation:

In what way do you act on your own freedom?
In what ways are you enslaved?
Pastor Patty Fox 40 Days with 40 Christian Mystics

Really difficult questions today. I think we're (I am) enslaved, or at risk of enslavement, to the standards of our society which don't match with the teaching of Jesus. It takes a lot of courage to step away from that and give yourself over to radical love, radical hospitality and radical inclusion. Our lives are so complex but we're enslaved to that complexity. I wish for a life of radical simplicity; loving, serving and sharing. Having the ability to make that choice, to decide what shape my life will take, is the ultimate freedom.

Live More Simply

I have a house full of stuff I don't use. Clothes I don't wear, books I won't read again, DVDs I don't watch. We still have boxes in the loft which remained unpacked from moving house nearly 8 years ago. Why?
At the moment, with little to no time for housework, it just feels like "stuff". I often wish I had time to remove everything from my house and only put back the things we really need, but when I do attempt to throw things away a "just in case" mentality creeps in and I worry that as soon as I throw something away I'll need it.
There are probably very few things we're hanging on to that we need and my main goal when my training ends is to declutter the house from top to bottom, inside and out.

Live more simply

I've not exactly done today's task, despite thinking about it for several days. We had to give away something we don't need but I haven't yet come across anything! I haven't had chance to look too in depth, although there is a book I was planning on giving away to a work friend. Jacob wants to give away his Lego Ninjago book as he has two the same. Faith is undecided.
We have had a lovely simple day- late start due to watching the F1 qualifying, baking, simple lunch and a bit of housework before going to our friend's house for tea. I did give them a cake I'd baked and didn't need- does that count?!

Matthew 10:9-10
Take no gold, or silver, or copper in your belts, no bag for your journey, or two tunics, or sandals, or a staff; for laborers deserve their food.