For those of you just joining our LiveDifferent Challenges, click the LiveDifferent link under featured to see what we’ve done so far. Basically, we’re just brainstorming on fun ways to live counter-culture, focusing on creative ways go against the grain of materialism, consumerism, and selfish waste. I always love hearing your ideas, so send ‘em in!
Apparently the library bug is in full force, because I was reading Caila’s blog and she had just posted “Library Lover“, then spoke with another friend who said she was loving her local library this summer. So, perhaps ya’ll are already there, but–surprise–this challenge is to patronize, that is, become a patron, of your local library.
Tonight right before dinner Jeff and I took Dutch in to the library. The fabulous kid’s park is in the same block, so it makes for a fun destination. As we walked into the library (which is actually very impressive for such a small town), I took a deep breath of the familiar, intoxicating musty smell of books–Ahh!! I love that smell. Now that Dutch is such a book fan, trips to the library are even more fun, as he loves to sift through the big picture books, or even pull the “big kid” novels off the shelves and pretend to read.
Besides the traditional use of the library–going and spending lots of time searching and sifting through titles (which is still a sacred experience if you ask me), there is another way that I’m loving now that I’m a busy mom–online requests. I can go online, search by title or author or subject, and put up to ten titles on hold, from anywhere in our county. Then I can just walk in, give them my card, get my huge stack of books, and be out in 2 minutes. This is amazing! Our other favorite thing is the movies. Who needs Blockbuster, and paying almost $4 per movie when you can get them for free at your library, and keep them for a week instead of the measly 1 or 2 days that Blockbuster and Hollywood allot. True, it’s hard sometimes to get recent titles, but again–try out the online request. Early this morning Jeff requested Spiderman 3…and it was sitting there waiting for us when we arrived at 4:30pm. I looked online and there were no other copies available by that time in the entire county–so consider reserving ahead if you want good titles!
So anyway, libraries are really a no-brain way to save money and enjoy a risk-free way to read and watch wonderful literature and movies. I’m excited for the days when Dutch will be ready to go to library story times, or when he can go himself and pick out books to read. Growing up we lived at the library. We went there every week, and read everything we could get our hands on. Plus, my mom donated so many books that they gave her a no-late-fee status so even if we were bad about getting them back we never had to pay a cent! 
So check it out. At least go there and take a deep breath, inhale that heavenly scent, and relish the fact that you can walk out with a stack of books and movies without paying a dime. Make it a habit. Patronize the place. If you really go hog wild you can even pay $1 and get an “I love my library” sign to put in your yard. Or not…it’s up to you.
Dutch is pooping blue. Really. Sorry, that’s gross, I know, but I want you to understand the enormous quantity of blueberries that this boy is consuming. He eats them by the pound. I’ll make no comment about my digestive system, but I’ve been eating quite a few myself, as they are the only healthy thing that doesn’t make my stomach turn right now.
So last week I finally succumbed and paid the ridiculous price for 2 pounds of blueberries-and that was at Winco! I almost bought some raspberries at Thriftway, as they’re my favorite, but dropped the teeny ½ carton as if it’d burned my hand when I saw the sign saying $4/carton. It was only about a handful of berries!
So, after a few days bemoaning the rising food costs, I was seated amongst some girls at a playdate, and asked, “Does anybody know where I can pick blueberries?!” Becky, who hosted the date, got a funny look on her face and just pointed toward the road. At that moment I realized how silly my question was because I knew that they had bush after bush of fresh blueberries-they’d given us some last year. I had totally forgotten that though, so here I was looking as if I’d planted a question in order to get free blueberries again. Anyway, I explained that my brain failed me quite often these days, but they insisted that we come back out and pick berries, for free. The next morning Jeff and Dutch and I came back and picked two huge mixing bowls brim full of berries (actually I only picked one, Becky came and helped me and picked the other one herself). What generosity!
Then, another dear friend overheard me talking about blueberries, and she picked me a big carton full of them herself. She also cut out the section in the local paper that lists all the places to pick local berries, at super amazing deals. Then the first family, five days later, picked us another huge plastic bag full of them! Three cheers for generous blueberry-plant-owners!
So, between our garden (which is limping along in its own pretty pathetic way) and berry farms and generous friends, we are enjoying the produce of the land rather abundantly this year. I planted five pots of basil and have made batch after batch of heavenly homemade pesto with pine nuts and parmesan. This mixed with rotini pasta with more freshly shredded parmesan, whole pine nuts, and dried cranberries is absolutely spectacular.
So, we all know that to buy local and pick fresh is the earth-friendly way to do things. It can also be cost-effective, if you pick things yourself and plan ahead, canning or freezing extra so you can enjoy all winter long. Eating local produce can also be much healthier, as there is less travel time for food to lose valuable nutrients, and often food is organic without the expensive green sticker. Supporting local farmers is also a worthwhile cause, and the joy of sharing produce–giving and receiving–brings people together. Berry pick with a friend, get together to can or freeze fruit, make freezer jam (I’m scared of canning but freezing and freezer jam is super easy), or bake yummy berry breads and muffins and freeze them for quick treats reheated in the microwave.
Summer is the perfect time to skip the supermarket. Buy it local, pick it fresh!
I am so blessed by my husband. I don’t applaud him enough on here; and I realize how much I take for granted all that he does. He is probably the most serving person I have met. He is always looking for ways to make others feel comfortable, to help them with a problem, to seek out the person in the corner and talk to them. He cares nothing for his own status, appearance, ego. He lives what he preaches–he genuinely loves to serve, love, learn about, and live for God more than anything else in the world. He expects so little–whether it’s dinner or a clean house; he’s content with “scraps” as he calls it (just throw some scraps in a bag for my lunch, he says). He’s just content. And he’s painstakingly devoted to recycling–what a cool guy! So for him I am thankful.
The latest cool thing that my husband does is that he now rides his bike to work. He has a 1/2 time job working at our church (hence the prayers for a full-time job), so he goes in 4 days a week (that adds up to more than 1/2 time in my calculations, but that’s another story). Our second car went kaput in December, so for 6 months we maneuvered jobs and school and life with one car, which was an adventure, but it worked. But for his 30th birthday, generous friends and parents partnered with me to get Jeff his dream–a Marin commuter bike (which was $100 cheaper in June!). Spendy, but not compared to a car! Then, my husband who loves to take trash and turn it into treasure, took a sturdy plastic milk crate, spray painted it matte black to match his bike, then bolted it onto the back of the bike, creating a carrier for his laptop bag and books, extra clothes, and bag lunch. Thus loaded, he pedals the eight miles to work, over the river, up the grueling Coleman hill, and into town. He can do it in about 29 minutes each way. He makes this trip four times a week, which means that he’s riding an average of 64 miles/week! Way to go, Jeff! This also means that we save almost $50 a month on gas. It might not seem like much, but it provides Jeff with awesome exercise, gives me the luxury of having a car to use if I need, and saves a little money at the same time. It’s better for the environment as well, but Jeff’s favorite reason is that it just energizes his day. The 1/2 hour into town gives him a chance to pray, reflect, think, rejoice. Sometimes he listens to sermons on his ipod (with only one earplug in!), sometimes he just thinks and prays. He says that by the time he gets to the office he’s so refreshed and energized, he’s ready for the day. A quick change of clothes, splash of water under the armpits (at least I hope he does that, perhaps I should mention this to him), and an extra layer of deodorant, and he’s good to go!
Jeff laughed when I told him this was our LiveDifferent Challenge because he said it’d be pretty tough for an electrician to practice this, or a mom with kids, or a meter-reader :-)…or a lot of people. I know this isn’t possible for everyone, but my husband’s devotion to ride instead of drive has definitely inspired me and I know perhaps there are creative ways we can cut down on driving and get more exercise instead. Such as:
1. Plan all your errands so you only use your car once a week for running around.
2. Carpool.
3. If you can, ride your bike to work or take the bus. Walk to the grocery store or to the post office.
4. Trade in your gas guzzler for a fuel efficient car.
5. Instead of driving to the gym every day, go running outside or do a workout video or make up a circuit training routine with stairs, jumprope, pushups, crunches, etc. Studies show that those who workout at home are actually far more likely to stick with a fitness routine.
These are just ideas. I know these aren’t possible for everyone, but perhaps you could sit down and evaluate your own circumstances and try to think of 2-3 simple ways that you can drive less and perhaps ride or walk more. For us, necessity is the mother of invention. But no matter what your situation and even if money is no object, it’s always fun to think of creative ways to LiveDifferent, even if they seem so small. So put away those car keys, and let’s ride!
This week is your week! My tragic news is that my laptop has a virus and isn’t working. This, one week before I have a 25-hour assignment due that is 50% of my grade and so Jeff and I are taking turns on his laptop and today I’ve thrown up and now have a migraine :-). So, all this to say that I cannot think of any way to LiveDifferent other than to just put one foot in front of the other and just to praise God for being alive and try to not complain. But truly, I was hoping that perhaps you would write in your LiveDifferent ideas, either for us to just do this week, or possibly for me to develop into its own special idea for a separate week. This is just me, being weak, allowing ya’ll to see life as it really is, and asking you to help me and be my brain and creativity this week and show me your ways for Living Different. Don’t worry if you don’t think they are life-changing–none of mine are either–but please do write in something, a sentence, a paragraph, some fun idea of how we can live for God in a counter-culture way this week. It could be as simple as gardening, or as huge as a year-long commitment. Don’t scrutinize; just toss it out.
And if you could, would you please pray that this TrojanHorse virus would shrivel up and die off my computer and wouldn’t fry it completely…a new laptop definitely isn’t part of our plans right now. :-) Thank you so much! I love you guys, I do. You are such an encouragment to me. As always, thanks for reading.
With all the fun festivities yesterday I totally forgot about our LiveDifferent Challenge! So, here we are, the final Challenge from the Get Marginalized Series: Margin in Finances.
This topic, I believe, is the most critical and timely of all the Margin issues for several reasons. First, our nation is driven by money. Second, we are in an economic crisis in the US. Third, Jesus talks more about money than heaven and hell combined. Where our treasure is, there our heart will be too. I believe it was J. Oswald Sanders who once said, “To see how godly a man is, I do not look at his Bible, but at his checkbook.” How we handle our finances reveals a lot about our hearts.
And we live in a country of progress, where material wealth abounds. Swenson explains that Americans spend more on eating out than the individual gross national product of 207 countries in the world. Gulp. We are rich rich rich. And yet, if we have all this wealth, why are these figures also alarmingly true:
- Personal and national debt levels are skyrocketing.
- Unemployment is skyrocketing.
- College tuition costs have outpaced inflation to the point where staggering amounts of student loans are now the norm.
- Health care spending is spiraling out of control. Federal agencies estimate that total health care spending will rise to $3.1 trillion by 2012.
Most of us know debt is bad. We all know credit cards, not paid off responsibly each month, are bad. We know that in order to be financially successful we need to buy a house, start a retirement fund, invest wisely…so forth and so on. But what I’d like to focus on here is our widespread belief that money is life’s report card. Last night, at our poor man’s party, we had an absolute blast eating dirt cheap food off of old mismatched paper plates and fast food napkins. This year has been so awesome learning to go without. And now that we’re having another baby, I’m surprised at how much I’m realizing we don’t need. Babies really need breastmilk, snuggly arms, and a warm bed. Diapers are nice too :-), but is the baby who has the matching crib set and designer diaper bag really any happier? Anyone who has half a brain can attest to the fact that money cannot buy happiness–but it can buy status. It can make us feel successful. But nothing could be clearer in Scripture: wealth is not the primary objective of the spiritual life.
So what does Scripture say about money? “If anyone has material possessions and sees his brother in need but has no pity on him, how can the love of God be in him?” Swenson concludes then that we “should keep our needs low, generosity high, and our expectations heavenward.” He then goes on to explain how creating financial margin increases joy: First, by lowering expenses you live with far less stress and pressure. If the refrigerator breaks down, you don’t. If you need new tires, you just go get them. Second, margin enables you to give more to others, and that brings profound joy. My parents are the ultimate example of this. They were simply school teachers, not a lucrative vocation, but they always lived well below their means. Now, they are enjoying the fruit of their frugality, and are able to help others (us!), more than they would ever have imagined. They are an example to me of people who truly know the joy of not being enslaved to what they own.
A few of you may remember my New Year’s Resolutions, one of which was to not worry about money, ever. This does not come naturally. But somehow, by the grace of God, and without even realizing it, this has happened this year. And most of it came through a few simple decisions to let go. First, I let go of the gnawing demand to have a house. I was constantly keeping an eye on our savings because I wanted to buy a house when we moved out of there. Well, our old house never sold, so we rented it out, which meant that that dream, and consequently a heap-load of anxiety, went out the window. Even though I still dream of having a little home to bring my new baby back to, I’ve resigned to the fact that it may just not happen, and no amount of stressing is going to suddenly quadruple our savings account. :-) Second, we resigned to staying here at mom and dad’s for the summer. Since Jeff was only hired 1/2 time at the church, we could have pinched every penny to move out into a tiny apartment in town, or we could stay here through the summer, reduce the stress, and have some financial margin. This meant that this week when we discovered that two of our tires were down to the rims, we could replace them without a second thought. I can’t believe how easy it was! Before that would have totally stressed me out because I was obsessing so much about saving every penny for a house.
So, how can we establish more financial margin in our lives?
1. Have the right aim. If the ultimate goal of your financial margin is anything to do with storing up more treausure here on earth, I do not believe that honors God. The goal of financial margin is not to get more, it is to give more, to lose more, to live free from the bondage of things and stuff and status. The goal is God. Let’s have the right aim before we do anything else.
2. Break Mammon’s Back. The one way to break the powerful spell that money has over us is to give. This one act goes totally against what our culture says to do. And not giving just for the tax-benefit. Give to give. Give to break Mammon’s back, to neutralize money’s power over us. Give for the kingdom of God.
3. Discipline Desires and Redefine Needs. Redefining what “need” means is one of the best ways to curtail unnecessary spending. A great resource called NUDEL helps separate things into categories of Need, Useful, Desirable, Extra Luxury. This can help you determine whether things are truly needs. Disciplining desires is a daily battle. We are bombarded by advertisement telling us we need a newer car, cooler clothes, a slicker phone, a new iPod, a better laptop…ugh. It’s so ridiculous. Learn to listen and view with a critical eye, asking “What discontent are they seeking to create in me so that I will want to buy their product?”
4. Share, Lend, Borrow. I love this one. Things are to be used, people are to be served. Not the other way around. God feels our neighbors are so valuable that He sent His son to die for them. We don’t even value them enough to let them borrow our lawn mower. But, if we are willing to share and loan items, the others will not need to purchase similar items. My sister-in-law and I used to hold a quarterly Style Swap, where a group of girls would bring in clothes, purses, accessories, and we’d swap styles, picking out what we wanted, then giving the rest to goodwill. We’d come away with “new” clothes for free. I think this would be an awesome way to share lots of items.
5. Fast. And not just from food. Fast from shopping for a period of time. Fast from buying food for a week and eat up everything in your freezer: “Use it up. Wear it out. Make it do. Do without.” Periods of time where we fast from consumerism will yield lifelong benefits of freedom from the pull of materialism.
6. Emphasize Usefulness over Fashion. This is tough one for me (hence my clothes fast for this year). Swenson writes, “Someone has to give permission for people not to follow fashion. The opinion levied over and over again by culture says that if you wear plain clothes and drive a rusty car, you should feel embarrassed. But God never said such a thing…Go to the cross, take the embarrassment yourself, and start allowing others to follow your example of simplicity in fashion.” This is so true and so freeing. Who says I have to wear the latest thing everyone else is wearing? That’s one of the things I loved about our Poor Man’s party last night. We could wear whatever we wanted. I had on an old white undershirt and cut off shorts. To LiveDifferent means that our status and value is not determined based on the brand of jeans we wear.
7. Question Cultures. I love questioning culture. Why do we consider tan skin desirable but pale skin not? I’m not advocating some legalistic system here that insists we dress in rags and never do our hair. But let’s think a little bit before we just sail down the culture stream, thinking we need to look like the world, have a car like the world, a house like the world. How are we preaching hope in something eternal when we practice putting our hope in things temporal all the time? Only you as ain individual can hear from God about these things in a personal way. It’s NOT for me to say who shouldn’t have something or other. But I do pray that we take these things to God and choose to LiveDifferent, to challenge our culture’s messages.
So, I hope I’ve maybe whetted your appetite just a little bit for this great book, Margin. I would definitely recommend it. Next week we’ll tackle a new LiveDifferent Challenge, but for this week, let’s establish some financial margin, evaluate our “needs” and challenge the assumptions of the world about the way we should live, look, dress, and go about our lives. Let’s make God’s Word our standard, as best as we can. I’m just embarking on this journey, and have far to go, but I think I can see a teeny bit more margin than I could before. It’s a start, at least.
