Week's end with thanks
- My kitchen sink–my sacred mundane center.
- Things living and growing.
- Reading the One Thousdand Gifts devotional. Re-embracing thanksgiving.
- Cultivating. Nourishing. Nurturing.
- Death, redefined.
- Long hours digging up weeds. Backbreaking. Worth it.
- Beautiful berry bushes set free.
- Kids squealing through the sprinkler.
- Heidi’s Tinkerbell bathing suit, too cute for words. (Thank you, Nana!)
- Sore back, legs, arms. Evidence of good work.
- Day with the neighbors. So fun!
- Heidi and the “big girls,” together, hours lounging on a towel, painting toenails. So grateful for 12-year-old wholesome girls who love on my Little!
- Slip ‘n Slide for hours.
- Exhausted from sun, fun, work, laughter.
- Wrestling, dying, surrendering, releasing.
- Burying seeds.
- Rolling burdens onto Him.
- Dutch falling in the creek. Priceless.
- Catching crawdads.
- Coffee early.
- Strawberry-avocado salad with honey lemon dressing and candied walnuts. Wowza!
- Another day of life.
- Sun-kissed cheeks.
- Grace-drenched days.
{Learning, again, to give thanks in all things. Thanks for reading.}
Because the Luke 6:38 thing is so true it's absolutely nuts.
Give, and you will receive. Your gift will return to you in full—pressed down, shaken together to make room for more, running over, and poured into your lap. The amount you give will determine the amount you get back.
—Jesus (Luke 6:38)
It’s fascinating (to me) to look through years’ worth of posts and reflect on which ones are “popular” and which aren’t so much. I want to be careful not to profane this sacred space with analytics, but it is interesting to figure out what people like the most. Posts on motherhood (and how hard it is) are the favs, hands down. Ones where I admit something embarrassing about myself are a close second. (smile) On the flip side, another clear trend is that posts about giving to the poor usually receive the least Likes. Not pointing fingers or shaming anyone for not clicking the little blue icon at the bottom, just stating a fact. It could be that they are poorly written (a strong possibility), or include too much sentimentality or guilt-mongering. Certainly I’m guilty of all that to a degree.
But here’s the deal: At the risk of sounding like a greedy fool (also a strong possibility), I have to say that Luke 6:38 is just so crazy stinkin’ TRUE. Seriously. It’s nuts. I’ve shared a lot in Faithfully Frugal about downsizing and living on less, etc. etc. But here’s the thing: Jeff and I are constantly amazed because when we had our “big” (to us it was big) salary, we were always tight at the end. Sure, we put a lot in savings, but every month it seemed tight. We now make less than half of that, and I don’t know where the money comes from. At the end of each month I keep looking in my wallet and shaking me head—there’s still more left! Just last month we made a big gift that wasn’t budgeted. I had no idea how we would pay for it, but believed God had said to do it. Then this month as I was paying bills, not only did we have enough to cover everything, but I “forgot” about two checks (big ones!) that I’d forgotten to deposit. Um… What’s the deal, ya’ll?? The week before last I could hardly close the refrigerator we had so much food. Sure, there are some luxuries we’re going without. But none of them are food, clothing or shelter.
The whole pressed-down-shaken-together-running-over-poured-into-your-lap-thing? It’s real.
I’m pretty sure most of you get this. That giving first to God—that whole firstfruits thing—is the path of ridiculous blessing.
But if for some reason you haven’t taken this plunge yet; try it now.
If things are tight, it’s the perfect opportunity to give a little faith-gift that says, “I trust you, God.”
And we have a really cool opportunity to do just that, as part of the For Every Child campaign through World Vision. They have a big hairy audacious goal of raising $500 million dollars by October 2015, and they are well on their way with more than $328 million already raised. You can read more details about the campaign here, and today I thought it’d be fun to do a giveaway in conjunction, because even though you always receive something when you give, I want the fun of being part of the giving-getting equation this time by offering you a free book if you give to For Every Child today.
(Speaking of running-over-poured-into-your-lap, I asked World Vision if I could have a couple copies in order to do a giveaway, and some dear generous soul there sent me 36!)
So here’s the deal: For the first 36 people who give ANY amount to For Every Child today, I will send you a free book—either Unfinished or The Hole In Our Gospel. (If you haven’t read either one, I would suggest starting with THIOG. It should really be read first.) I’m not telling you how much, just give by faith and with joy. So here’s how to get your free book:
- Give any amount here.
- On social media: share the For Every Child site or this post, whichever you prefer. (The point is to let people know about the campaign.) » Click here to share this post on Facebook. Click here to share on Twitter.
- Fill out the form below so we can mail you your book!
- Watch and see how the pressed-down-shaken-together-running-over-poured-into-your-lap-thing happens in your life. It’s nuts.
Thank you so much!
With love,
Kari & Jeff
How Jesus' Story makes us do weird stuff
They asked us to remember the poor, the very thing we were eager to do.
—Galatians 2:10
Our story isn’t that remarkable.
His is.
When World Vision contacted us about sharing our story in their magazine, about coming up to Seattle to be in the DVD filming for Unfinished, of course we were thrilled. What an honor to share our story as a little part of His! And through the last few years, whenever we share our simple story of downsizing, moving, starting a church, endeavoring to live differently, we often receive two responses:
- Why would you do that?
- Are you telling me I have to do that?
My short answer:
- Jesus
- No, but when you get to know Jesus’ story you’re gonna want to do weird stuff.
Here’s the deal: Jesus’ Story (the Gospel) motivates us to good works.
Good works are not a requirement of the gospel they are the fruit of the gospel. They are the fruit of grace, the fruit of a free gift.
Have you ever received a free gift and you couldn’t help but want to pay it forward?
Right before Christmas I had the idea of buying the Jesus Storybook Bible for a few friends. We have been so blessed by that Bible and I thought it’d be fun to bless some young families. But when I added the Bibles to my cart the cost really added up. Hmm, I thought. Maybe not. I left the Bibles in the cart but never completed the transaction. Christmas came. We had a great day and that night tucked the kids into bed. Then Jeff reminded me that someone had given us a family Christmas card we hadn’t opened yet. I had tucked it in my purse and forgotten about it. So I pulled out the card and tore the envelope to see a Christmas picture of our friends. But instead I found a hand-colored picture of a beach and words that about gave me a heart-attack: “One free week in Hawaii.”
After jumping around the house like a crazy woman, you better believe the first thing I did was hop back on the computer and order those Bibles! It didn’t matter that they arrived after Christmas, of course I could be a teeny tiny bit generous after how someone else had been SO generous to us!
Do you see the connection? I wasn’t ordering the Bibles out of guilt or trying to “pay back” the people who gave us the trip – they didn’t even know about it. Besides, our tiny gift of a few Bibles was truly nothing compared to the riches we had received. It wasn’t about comparing what we gave with what we got. It was just about recognizing how much we have received in the glorious gospel of grace, and being genuinely thrilled at giving forward a teeny tiny bit.
ANY of our giving to the poor, serving, loving, sacrificing is nothing compared to the amazing riches we have received in Christ. But if we truly understand the greatness of the gospel we will be genuinely glad to give. That’s a hilarious giver.
But, consider this: We must have some inkling of how great the gift is. If I had never heard of this strange place called “Hawaii” I might not be that excited. I might not be inspired to give at all. I might not even want to accept the gift and go because I didn’t know if the destination was good or not. But Oh! I knew the glory of the island! I even knew the beauty of this particular place. Oh I knew what an amazing gift this was.
So too we must, as much as is humanly possible, understand how great is the love of God demonstrated in Christ Jesus. How great is the gospel of grace. How life is about Him, not us. How His story is the greatest tale of love and redemption and wild grace.We must ask God to show us the length and depth and width and height, the love of God that surpasses knowledge, so that we can continually be amazed at His riches and feel genuinely thrilled at giving to others.
That’s where the good works come from.
So too, when we “get” the gospel we will “get” a heart for the poor. HEART. Not “obligation” to the poor. Not “vague guilty feelings about the poor.” Not, “I have so much stuff, I guess I can give a little” to the poor. A HEART for the poor. A LOVE for the poor.
1 John 3:17 says, “If anyone has material possessions and sees his brother or sister in need but has no pity on them, how can the love of God be in that person?
Throughout the entirety of Scripture we see that God has a special love and concern for the poor, the widow, the downtrodden, the broken (James 2:15-16. Ex. 23:10-11, Lev. 19:10, Deut. 15:7-11, Jer. 22:16, Amos 2:6-7, Luke 6:36, 38, 2 Cor. 8-9.)
When His gospel grips our hearts we will have a special love and concern for those same people.
When we understand the gospel, what we’ve been freely given, we will freely give. God’s grace makes us just. Just as Peter urges Paul, remember the poor, God would urge us today, remember the poor. Do whatever it takes to remember them. Pictures on the fridge or prayer for them or going to where they are – remember them. We’ve been given so much.
When we’ve really seen and understood the gospel, that free grace is given to those who deserve it the least, we’ll want to help others by extending free gifts of grace. The true gospel motivates us to good works.
His story inspires all of ours.
{Thanks for reading.}
*Please take time to read the other stories from World Vision’s magazine this month and especially their For Every Child campaign. Also, Richard Stearn’s new book Unfinished released yesterday! Snag a copy today OR come back on Friday for a BIG (24 hardback copies!) giveaway. I’m working out the details and very excited to get this book in your hands. Thank you!
*More details about our journey are available in Faithfully Frugal.
For all the ways you shouldn't feel …
It was Ann Voskamp who helped me acquiesce.
That is, when I finally figured out how in tarnation she managed to write a book with six homeschooled kids at home. I was not a little humbled to read her interview here and realize the answer was simply a woman willing to live on less than four hours of sleep a night. Shame on me for feeling overwhelmed here while she shouldered a burden I can’t even fathom.
“Shame on me for feeling …”
Funny how that rolls right off the tongue.
It was this same “shame on me for feeling” that kept me stubborn about the writing cabin. Jeff suggested we finish a portion of our old detached garage and make it an office for him and writing cabin for me. Of course I inwardly loved the idea, but struggled with how to justify such an endeavor. Besides, I write about the sacred mundane–so shouldn’t I embrace the messy chaos of the mundane when I write?
There’s that should again.
See, somehow I got Ann Voskamp and Susanna Wesley mixed up. It was Susanna Wesley who had 19 children and, when she needed a quiet place to pray, would flip her apron up over head to signal to her children this was her time alone! Well, that is well and good, but I need more than an apron on my head in order to write a book, and apparently so did Ann. So her husband built her a small, simple cabin on the edge of their property, where she could be alone. For several weeks I kept thinking, “I shouldn’t want to get away from my kids. I shouldn’t want to escape from them into a quiet place. I shouldn’t need to be alone in order to write.”
And after being should on for several weeks, I finally confessed these feelings to a friend and she promptly dismissed my ridiculousness and told me to relax and let my husband bless me.
Oh, ok. Well that was easy.
It was just the week before that a dear friend had confessed her need to grieve. Because of the unique challenges surrounding her parenting life, she faces continual opportunities for resentment, bitterness, and frustration. But the hardest part is that her challenge is also a gift. And certainly she is diligent to give thanks for that gift, but she also needs to grieve the fact that her gift also requires a radically altered lifestyle from all those around her. Her words:
“I know I shouldn’t feel this way …”
Says who?
Then just yesterday another friend confesses a need to grieve. She had wanted the gift of the child and God decided to give her a two-for-one deal! Twins are a gift, to be sure, but in her beautiful transparency she confessed a need to grieve as well. Instead of living in the shame of “I should be more grateful for these twins!” she was freed up to grieve, “Wow, this isn’t what I had in mind, God.”
The honesty makes space for transformation.
The confession makes space for freedom.
We’re such quick judges, we women. When a feeling pops up, we immediately analyze it around and around, “Should we feel this way or shouldn’t we feel this way?” And instead of confessing it–good or bad–to God, too often I just ruminate on it, turning it over in my mind.
Kept inside, those feelings too often turn to shame. Confessed–to God or to a person–those feelings can be sorted through. Some will be validated and acted upon. Some will be repented of and turned from. But either way, there is no shame.
Shame comes from hiding. From holding onto all the ways we shouldn’t feel.
The truth is: Sometimes I want to get away from my kids. And there will be times to act upon this and get away, and there will be times to ask for extra strength to stick it out and just stay put. But we won’t know the answer until we acknowledge all “the ways we shouldn’t feel” and let God sort through them on His own.
Inside your own heart: What are the ways you shouldn’t feel? What are in the inward struggles you don’t think you “should” have but you do? Dig deep. Be honest. Say it straight to God and let Him sort through it all on His own. He’ll make it clear where to go from there. And if appropriate, would you share a glimpse with us?
Sometimes it helps to know we’re not alone in all the ways we shouldn’t feel.
{Happy Monday. Thanks for reading.}