Sermon Title: Living the Simple Life
Place: Oakdale Wesleyan Church
Date: March 6, 2005
Subject: Living the Uncomplicated Life
Introduction
Once upon a time their lived a wealthy prince. He was given everything his heart could desire. He was educated by the best scholars in private tutoring and he was skilled and trained by the best artisans of his day. His family’s kingdom stretched wide and far and the family’s wealth was beyond compare. This young lad had servants who helped him dress in the morning, who cooked each and every meal, who picked up his toys and made his bed. Every detail of his life was cared for and tended to quite nicely. From the time he awoke to the time he laid his head on the pillow he had servants at his every disposal and anything money could by was his to cherish and have.
As you can imagine a child raised in such a splendid environment can tend to become a little selfish and spoiled. The princes’ father and King discovered the extent to his young son’s condition when one day he found the prince screaming and yelling at the servants because his food was not just right. The King was greatly disturbed by the son’s action and sought the council of his beautiful queen. The two did not know what to do because the attitude of their son would surely bring the kingdom to ruin. They then sought the counsel of a wise and trusted friend. As the king and queen explained their misery with their son the friend suggested a course of action. The friend suggested that he be allowed to steal the prince away from his throne and away from all the riches the castle could afford and force him to live as a peasant would live. The king and queen were disturbed at the idea but after further frustrations decided to allow the friend to accomplish his plan.
One night as everyone was fast asleep in the castle the friend arranged to steel the prince from his quarters. Armed with some others they walked into the prince’s room and grabbed him from his royal bed. They placed him in a bag and carried him off to a far away land. They left only a note to the king and queen that their son would be returned only when he discovered the simple things in life that money could not buy.
They took the prince to a small village at the very furthest out posts of the kingdom. They placed him the hands of an old farmer and his wife who labored hard each and every day. The prince was awaken in his new surroundings by the sounds of a rooster crowing and cows mooing ready for their morning milking. The prince ran downstairs and demanded to be taken back to the castle. He exclaimed that he was the prince, the king’s son and no one could treat him this way. The old farmer and his wife just laughed at the idea that he could be a prince. They said they had purchased him as an extra servant to help around the farm, and then quickly told him to get dress and head out to the barn to start the morning chores. “I do not do chores!” exclaimed the prince. Well, the farmer told the young man, then we do not do food, and with that the old farmer walked out the door to leave the prince alone in the house.
For several days the prince demanded to be taken home and refused to help one bit on the farm. But the farmer didn’t give in either and refused to give the young man anything to eat. Eventually the prince’s stomach won out and he reluctantly headed out to the barn to help with the morning chores. Weak and tired form a lack of food the prince still worked as hard as he could. When the chores were finished he came into for breakfast and the farmer’s wife had made the best food the prince has ever tasted. It was only oatmeal, bread, and fruit, but when you are starving anything tastes like a feast fit for a king.
Over the next few weeks the young man became more accustomed to working in the barn and learning the ways of the farm. He still had his demands and still claimed to be a prince. But every time he would mention it the old farmer and his wife would just softly chuckle. Several months into this experiment the prince asked the farmer how he could live like this. You don’t have servants, you don’t have luxuries, you don’t have even the simpler things of life, and yet you and your wife seem so happy. The farmer began to see the soft teachable spirit of the young man finally coming to the surface. He told the young prince, tomorrow rise early, and help me complete the chores, and after breakfast I will take you on a journey.
The young man could hard sleep. He was excited about what he was going to learn. He rose early and even beat the old farmer to the barn. They quickly and happily completed the chores and then the old farmer saddled up two horse for the journey they were about to take. After they ate a hearty breakfast and packed a lunch the two of them road off but the prince had no idea where they were going. After several hours of riding they came to a beautiful scene. They rode up to a cliff that plummeted into the ocean several hundred feet below. The land and the sea came colliding together at this beautiful juncture on the earth in a spectacular way and formed the most appealing views that you could imagine. As they came out the woods and upon this incredible scene the prince’s breath was taken away. The old farmer led the young man to a grouping of small ruins that was on a small plateau half way down the cliff to the sea. There they stopped for lunch.
The old farmer dismounted his horse and invited the prince to do the same. They unpacked their lunch and began to eat the wonderful meal that the farmer’s wife had prepared. He told the young man that this was the very spot that his father had given him the lessons of a happy and simple life.
He then began to tell the young man the story of his past. He told him that his father was a powerful king, in charge of a large nation. The prince about chocked on his food in disbelief but the old farmer went on. One day he was over thrown by a neighboring kingdom and driven from his land and by boat he traveled to these shores where he and a few of his officials took refuge and began a new life. They moved from the riches and wealth of what the world could offer to the simplicity of a simple life of farming and fishing. The old farmer said that while his father at times would talk about his life as king, he never once regretted being forced to move into the simple life.
The prince was in awe to realize that this simple farmer was actually royalty of a neighboring nation. As he told his stories he couldn’t help but ask, “why did you not return to royalty, why have you chosen to continue to live as a simple farmer.” The old farmer then began to tell his young servant and prince what he had discovered. My father warned me of the riches of this world but for a time I too sought after them. I had houses and homes and servants and had become a rather powerful man. I did not want to follow my father’s example of his older days but in the end it was all taken from me.
In despair I came back to this place and came back to these ruins of my childhood house where we are sitting. And as I was contemplating what I should do, the words of my father began to speak to me again. The lessons of my youth which were printed on my heart began to come to the surface. It was those very lessons that lead me back to the simple farming life that I enjoy today. The prince intrigued and excited could hardly contain himself and he blurted out “What were the lessons? I too want to learn them.”
The old farmer had the young prince take out some paper and begin to write….
Lesson One: Buy things for their usefulness rather than their status
This was one of my father’s great down falls. In the later years of his kingdom he began to buy things to impress people. He filled our palace and even the kingdom with statues, ornaments, works of art, and gadgets that were only to impress others. He began to work so hard at buy the right things to impress people that he no longer worked diligently at the kingdom. And so while he impressed people with his purchases, he did not impress them with his life. This was a lesson, learned hard. I can still see him sitting at the stove in this small house by the sea telling me, “Son, impress people with your life, not with the things your money can buy.”
The young prince eagerly wrote the words of the old farmer down knowing all to well how he had attempted to impress his so called friends by all his power and wealth and the things his money could buy. The Old farmer then went on.
Lesson Two: Reject anything that produces an addiction in you
For many years I became obsessed and addicted to the idea that I would never live as my father had chosen to live. I committed my life to regaining wealth and prosperity as my father once had before loosing his throne. I was addicted to power and wealth and the notion that I had something to prove. But when my businesses began to fail I began to notice how enslaved I was to these things. Once again the lessons of my father rang true. We should refuse to be enslaved to anything but God. I now realize that if anything is producing an addiction in my I must cut it off.
I once had a friend that one morning awoke to retrieve his morning news paper that was distributed all over town for those who could afford it. When he walked out his door to get the paper it was not there. He almost became panic stricken because he had to have the latest news and information of the day. He was so addicted to his morning fix of news that he even plotted how he might steal his neighbor’s news paper. It was at this point he realized he was addicted to the newspaper and knew he had to cut it off.
Son, be careful to reject anything that is producing an addiction in you. Get rid of it, cut it off as fast as you can before the addiction or takes you and ruins your life.
Lesson Three: Develop a habit of giving things away
As a young prince my father learned early on to hoard all his possessions. In fact he told me by the time his kingdom fell he was building bigger buildings simply to store all that he possessed. No one could even see half of what he had amassed by his great fortune and they were simply stored away in dark building and simply counted as one more thing that he possessed, and as he sat upon this shore line looking over the ocean he realized that all those things now brought no joy and no satisfaction. He regretted the fact that had he did not shared his possessions with others and that may-be some would still count him as a friend and may-be some would have come to his aid when he was being routed from his kingdom if only he would have shared what he possessed with them. But no, he had to keep all he could and refused to develop a habit of giving things away and consequently he was not favored at all by the people to whom he was entrusted to lead..
The old farmer looked at the young prince and told him. “Son, true joy in life comes when you can develop a habit of giving things away. No greater joy is afford to this old man then when I take my fruits and vegetables into the town and give them freely to others. The labors of my hands are turned into blessed smiles and laughter as they eat my apples, and enjoy my fresh tomatoes. Besides, you would have to agree that most of us could get rid of half our possession without any serious sacrifice on our behalf.”
The young prince sheepishly nodded his head in agreement to the Old Farmer’s comments. Seeing that the young man was engrossed in his words the old farmer went on, with the sound of the sea in the backdrop and the waves quietly crashing against the shore the farmer told the young man the next lesson his father had given him…
Lesson Four: Refuse to propagandized by the custodians of modern gadgetry
My father always told me that there would always be those who would have the latest gadget and the latest devices that might save time. They often explain as part of their pitch, “Sir, it will pay for itself in six months.” The problem with most of those things is that they won’t even last six months, they will break down, they will wear out, only to force you to purchase them again, or constantly cause you to continually keep them up.
Son, look for things that will bring long lasting enjoyment; things that will not wear out, things that will last a life time. Invest your wealth in things that will help you develop as a person and possibly help you to grow and accomplish your dreams. Those investments are never bad ones and they usually will pay great dividends for years to come. So refuse to be propagandized by the custodians of modern gadgetry.
“It’s getting rather late and we probably should be heading home,” the old farmer proclaimed. NO, said the young student. I want to learn just one more. Do you have another lesson from your father that I can write down? The old farmer told the young prince I can give you only one more lesson and then we must head home to complete the evening chores. The prince agreed, one more and then he would happily be ready to head home and help the old farmer with the evening chores.
Lesson Five: Learn to enjoy things without owning them
This was one of the hardest lessons I had to learn as a young man. It seems like there is something inside of us that cries out, that maximum enjoyment can only come from things if we own or possess them, consequently I squandered much of my money on things of little value simply because I thought I had to own them. Until my world came crashing down around me, I never stopped to realize that I could enjoy the time at the beach without having to own the beach. I never realized that I could enjoy a great ride on a horse without having to own the horse. I was surely trapped in the idea that true enjoyment could only come if I had full control and possession of what it was I was trying to enjoy. My father learned the lesson the hard way though, that we should learn to enjoy things without own them. If we are willing to share what we possess and give things away we will find favor with others and they too will share what they have so that we do not have to own things to enjoy things.
The young prince was hanging on every word. He carefully wrote them down and once the old farmer was done he closed his notes and gladly helped him pick up their belonging and strap them back to their horses.
As the two began to ride back into the woods towards the farm, the prince asked the Old Farmer, why didn’t you ever tell me that you were a prince yourself, why did you not tell me until now that you too owned lands and homes and businesses?
The old farmer just sort of chuckled and asked back, “Would you have listened, and would you have believed me if I had told you any sooner?”
The young prince simply said, “Touché!” for he knew he would not have listened. As they approached the farm the young prince asked if there were more lessons. The old farmer told the young man that there were five more pieces of wisdom that his father had left him but they would surely have to wait for another day. The prince, feeling tired himself, agreed. They unsaddled the horses, put them in the stalls and feed them some hay. They then went about finishing the evening chores together and for the first time, the young prince began to actually enjoy the simple labors of his hands. He began to find joy in the simple life he was now living. While he still missed the comforts of his own palace and his own throne, what he once despised was now becoming a source of joy.
The farmer’s wife had prepared a nice evening meal that they shared together before going to bed. The young prince asked the farmer when he could hear the other five lessons of wisdom from his father. He was excited to learn about them and hear about them. The farmer told the young man, not tonight, but if all goes well, may-be next week we can again travel to the sea shore to hear more.
This satisfied the young prince and he happily headed off to bed tired, but peaceful for the first time in his life. As he lay in his bed looking up at the ceiling he noticed the soft rays of the moon shinning in and casting beautiful dancing shadows across the room. As he watched the shadows dancing in the night he thought about his life at the palace and began to see the hallow and empty ways that he had lived. His heart softly cried to be able to go home, but now he was torn, because he was also discovering for the first time in his life the attitude of simplicity.
As the moon danced in his room he recounted the old farmer’s lessons…
Lesson One: Buy things for their usefulness rather than their status
Lesson Two: Reject anything that produces an addiction in you
Lesson Three: Develop a habit of giving things away
Lesson Four: Refuse to propagandized by the custodians of modern gadgetry
Lesson Five: Learn to enjoy things without owning them
As he thought about these lessons, for a moment he wandered how all this could have happened? How could a prince end up in a prince’s home? How could the stories the old farmer shared be so similar to his. How could the castles he talked about and the lands that he enjoyed in his youth seem so familiar? It was almost as if the farmer had lived his young life.
But these were questions to great for his tired mind and so the young prince drifted off to sleep, but this time as his eyes clothed in the depths of sleep his lips formed a pleasant smile, a smile that spoke of contentment and peace. For the first time in this young lad’s life, he was content in who he was and the simple farming life he was now forced to live.
Next week we will finish the story of this young man’s adventure into simplicity and we will discover the connection of the King’s good friend to the Old Farmer and his wife. You will want to come back for the surprise ending.
