Behind Simplicity

I can really jump on board with scaling back and trying to have a more simple life. For me this comes out of a place of always chasing down jobs that I enjoy that happen to not come with large paychecks, making frugality absolutely necessary. Moreover, I have pretty romantic feelings about asceticism. Traveling overseas has also helped me redefine my sense of need, which is slightly ironic in the sense that long travel in large vessels requiring lots of money and fuel resources is not exactly an ascetic endeavor. Nevertheless, seeing how people in less consumer-oriented cultures manage their money, garbage, time and resources has caused me to alter how I think about "need" vs. "want".

But still I wonder if I love simplicity for the right reasons. Do I approach it out of true faith that God will provide the things that I need? Or do I love simplicity too much for its own sake? Recently I've realized that saving money is not always living simply or reducing my consumer appetite. This came as a huge shock to me, and has caused me to rethink and retrain. But have I approached this new lesson as a life strategy or as a spiritual endeavor? What does it mean to approach money and consumer matters as a spiritual endeavor? We are all spiritual beings, and our relationship with God permeates through all parts of our lives. This is a given. But how can I take the opportunities in my life circumstantially to really dig deeper in a truly spiritual way? Is it a matter of praying through my consumer decisions? Is it a matter of weighing my decisions and attitudes against scripture? Or is it something more?