We kept coffee on hand, until my sister Helen told me gently that coffee's shelf life was limited, and she would bring her own when they came to visit. She came to help after each of our children's births. She and her husband visited us everywhere we lived, as long as they were able. They took pictures, which are the main record we now have of our pre-fire family life. The Quaker testimony on simplicity has helped me understand that simple living is part of basic Christian faith.
Faith begins with a single choice of direction and leader.
In my view, these expressions emphasize the simplicity of focus that can carry one through various trials. Warnings against wrong choices and doublemindedness abound in scripture. Rewards from singleness of mind and simplicity of life are mentioned often by biblical writers. Isaiah and Jesus both warned against accumulation of wealth for selfish satisfaction. Franklin had became a conscientious objector, without an organized support group, before he finished college in the thirties.