I’m not really poor. But 4 years ago I stopped working and since then I have no income. I was then 60 years old. We moved to another city because of my wife’s job and I did not want to apply for a new job. Since then we only live on the salary of my wife. I try to be as economical as possible. I only buy new trousers once a year when the old one starts to break and a pair of sandals every two years. I was able to repair my son’s old cell phone and I have been using it ever since. And I bought my two glasses for near and distans at Hema for three euros. Except a book now and then, I do not buy anything. Nevertheless, I miss nothing but in recent years I have had something that most do not have, I’ve had a lot of time for my children and for my hobbys, sing and play music.

The decision to stop working did not come at all through my Christian faith. But, of course, there are occasional Christians who, because of their faith, are willing to follow Christ. They would take the easy yoke on immediately, the easy yoke he offers them. Many of the younger people have certainly never seen a yoke, except in photos or paintings. It is the beam that will be place on the shoulder of the ox and with which they pull the heavy loads. But Christ says “my yoke is easy, and my burden is light”. How can that be? I imagine this with the easy yoke as follows: It seems impossible to many to give up their wealth and surrender to the simple life. One does not give up its freedom so easily, to buy and to do whatever one wants. This supposed freedom is so important to us, especially to the people in our western society. Therefore, the decision to give up our “freedom” is very difficult and actually impossible. It’s like having to endure a heavy yoke, which you do not want at all. But the people who have managed to free themselves from the constraints of money find that it opens so many good ways to live, even if one has little or no money. They now have so much real freedom and so much less responsibility that they can not understand why the freedom of money was to such importance to them. Everything is suddenly very easy. The heavy yoke has become a light yoke. Perhaps the best known example of this is the life of Francis of Assisi.

But there are other people who free themselves from the compulsion of money. If you search in Google for minimalists, you will find them. They also give up their job. But I do not mean those who spend a sabbatical year and then often return to their old way of life. The minimalists who I mean give up their jobs and sell their possessions. Then they move, e.g. into a Tiny House and try to live as sparingly as possible. However, for them, this decision often comes not out of Christian motives but rather to escape the compulsion to consume.

And then there are the homeless. Most of them have not chosen this path with their own free will, or out of Christian faith. But they too have no possessions and no work. They consume very little and everything they have fits in two large shopping bags. Here in Utrecht they do not have to suffer any hardship, the city and many volunteers, one of whom I am, take good care of them. And that they are not unhappy. You can see it clearly when you’re with them.

The causes and reasons of all these people to consciously choose the simple life or to land there by circumstances are very diverse. In the least they are Christian motives. But there is something that they all have in common. Something very strong Christian. without realizing it, all these people carry the light yoke they have received from Christ . And they follow Christ, whether they believe it or not.