Welcome to the feminine podcast. This is Nancy Wilson. Thank you so much for joining me today.

The topic that occurred to me today is simplicity of heart.

Simplicity means uncomplicated, not intricate, not complex with many layers to work through. It's simple. And the passage that

refers to this simplicity of heart comes from acts 2 and this chapter is describing Pentecost the great explosion of the church

and Peter is preaching the gospel and I'll just read a bit of it beginning with verse 40

and with many other words he testified and

exhorted them saying be saved from this perverse generation.

Then those who gladly received his word were baptized and that day about 3,000 souls were added to them.

Now I just want you to remember their demeanor they gladly received his word. Okay then skipping down to

verse 46 it says so continuing daily with one accord in the temple and

breaking bread from house to house they ate their food with gladness

and simplicity of heart praising God and having favor with all the people. Notice they ate their

bread they ate their bread, they were breaking bread, they ate their food with gladness and simplicity of heart, praising God.

Their hearts were not weighed down anymore with all those sins that had been washed away and they were

overflowing with joy and praising God. Now, are we to assume they just didn't have any more cares or troubles or anxieties?

3,000 people? Well no I hardly think so. Of course they had troubles, like all of us, but something had changed. Those

troubles weren't in their hearts anymore. Forgiveness always simplifies life. It removes all the complications that come with anxiety and worry and competition and envy and selfishness.

And these people at Pentecosts must have felt tremendous relief at hearing Peter's words,

and they responded to them by faith. They were made new in Christ, they were baptized,

and they had gladly received Peter's words. Now they ate

their bread with gladness and simplicity of heart. In contrast to this just

really lovely example of Christian simplicity.

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