Trash Into [Eternal] Treasure

Please tell me we aren't the only ones with a "junk" room!

You know what I'm talking about. That room that's sort of a catch-all for all the stuff you have that doesn't really have a place but you don't want to get rid of it because you "might use it one day". That room where you throw anything that's just laying around when a last minute guest is coming by and then it ends up staying there permanently. Maybe yours goes by the name of a "storage building" that you pay monthly for. Yeah. You know what I'm talking about.

Well, we had a room like that and it was bad! We just celebrated our three year wedding anniversary and this room had grown exponentially since that time. It started out with just some boxes from when I moved in after we got married. Then it started piling up as we would just put things in there to "go through later". It started out in our office but eventually it moved to our spare bedroom to make room in our office. Then, we had our son so it all moved back to our office to make room for baby.

It was basically a mobile dumpster of stuff that neither of us had any desire to go through.... so we didn't.

While reading "Radical", we were convicted about how much stuff we have. Things we don't need and don't use that just clutter our home. But not only the things in our "junk room", but the surplus of dishes, pots, pans, towels (yes, you can have too many), clothing, shoes, bags, etc. Seriously, once we sat down objectively and evaluated, we were blown away by how much we really had.

It took us taking off our "American eyes" and seeing it from a Biblical perspective. By "American eyes", I mean the way that we look at what we own and somehow justify it because we don't have as much stuff as "that other guy". Sure, compared to a LOT of people in the USA, we don't have a lot. But compared to the majority of the rest of the world, we have enough for several families!

So once again we were faced with a choice: get rid of the excess and use it somehow for good, or keep it and let it take up space in our homes, serving no purpose but to make our lives more stressful. (If you're like me, clutter = stress.)

We chose Plan A and here's what we did:

1. Cleaned out the cabinets. We had so many dishes, pots, pans, appliances, and utensils that we never used. Who needs 3 skillets, 3 sets of dishes, 4 spatulas, 2 coffee makers, 2 deep friers, 3 crock pots, and cups and glasses out the wazoo?? A hotel maybe? Anyway, we downsized our kitchen big time! We left only enough dishes for us plus two in case we had friends over for dinner and got rid of any duplicate appliances and more than half of our cups and glasses.
2. Got rid of some towels. When we got married, it seemed everyone thought it important to give us towels. "You can never have too many," we were told. Turns out, that's not true. More than 15 towels for two people (Elliott has his own, too) seems a bit on the excessive side. So we cut those down to less than half. This gave us a wonderful amount of space in our bathroom closet, not to mention cut down the towel load for the washer tremendously! (What can you do with used towels, you ask? There are animal shelters that are constantly asking for towels and bed linens. Or, as in our case, you may have a family member whose son just moved out and took most of theirs! ha!)
3. Emptied the closets of excess. I think Richard was most happy about this one. We don't have a lot of closet space in our house (read: one closet), so it's hard to organize and maintain organization unless you're on top of it daily. And, well, sometimes organizing apparel isn't No. 1 on my to-do list if you can imagine that. So, prior to even setting foot into the closet, I determined to get rid of any clothing I hadn't worn in the last 6 months (besides winter clothing since I obviously hadn't worn that within that time frame). It was hard, but I stuck to my goal and literally got rid of three full boxes of clothes between me, Richard, and Elliott. I had no idea we had that much clothing and most of it we hadn't worn in well over a year! I also downsized on shoes, purses, and bags. There were plenty in that category that we never used as well.
4. Got rid of the "we-might-use-this-one-day" stuff. This included, but was not limited to a dart board that we had won at a "Chinese Christmas", keepsake boxes, photo frames, unused wedding albums, jewelry, some furniture, vases, random decorative items, etc.

So by now you're thinking that we are some super pack-rats, right? Well, if you had walked into our house prior to this proverbial detox, you would have thought our house was organized and clean (aside from that one room we never opened). But it's like in our spiritual lives, if you start digging deep, you start finding things that you didn't really notice were there before. Things that need to be cleaned up. And it was amazing how the more we got rid of, the more we wanted to get rid of because it was very liberating! (Cheesy, but true.)

Anyway, after clearing through every room in the house and putting every must-go item into our dining room, we had to decide how to best use this "junk" for good. And what better way to get rid of junk in a productive way than to have a yard sale??

We did just that and decided that no matter how much we made, it would all go straight to some missionary friends of ours who have some upcoming needs. We were so happy when the yard sale was over and we had made a decent amount and could surprise our friends with this love offering.

Now, everybody knows that you don't sell everything at a yard sale (much to your dismay, no doubt). So in our hunt for a good charity to give our leftover items to (besides the catch-all Goodwill), we heard about one nearby that gives free items to families who have lost their homes in natural disasters as a way to help them get back on their feet. We loved that idea so Richard's mom took all of the excess to this organization and they were happy to take it off of our hands (apparently in this economy, people don't give like they used to and a lot of charities are suffering).

So, maybe this isn't really a "radical" change in our lives...more like a "practical" one. But it was good to know that the junk that had been weighing down our home could be used to lay up eternal treasures instead by giving to those in need who are doing the work of the Lord.

And we're still getting rid of things and trying to pay better attention to the needs of those around us. We've found if our hearts are tender and our eyes are open, it's a lot easier to see that we are surrounded by those in need... not of our "stuff" per se, but of the Savior who died for them. And sometimes that Savior's love is expressed by our tangible giving.

Stayed tuned because I get the feeling that soon God's going to call us to do something really radical for Him!

"Trying" to give more.....

Picture this: It's Sunday morning and your church has brought in it's "monthly missionary" and given them 5 minutes to share what God is doing on the field. (Five minutes is generally long enough to introduce themselves, but hey, don't want to "bore" the congregation with missions.) After hearing, and possibly even seeing, the needs, you feel a tug in your heart. You think to yourself, "I really wish we could afford to give to causes like that. We just can't."

The service moves on: you hear the announcements, shake hands with the people around you, listen to the sermon. As the service comes to an end, your stomach is loudly announcing that it's lunch time. So you meet up with "the usual gang" and try to decide where to go eat and life proceeds as usual.

This is the scene across America every Sunday morning. I know it well because I've been a part of it for so long.

Something that the book "Radical" has really brought to our attention is how we are all quick to agree with the fact that something in American culture needs to change, but we are very slow to act on it.

For example, everyone would agree that we need to do more for missions, right? I'd say as long as children around the world are starving we'll be willing to admit that's the case. But how many of us sacrifice--really sacrifice--to give to missions?

That was a reality that hit home for us. As missionaries ourselves it's really easy to get frustrated when we see the lack of giving. We justify it and say, "Well, we give this amount so we're doing our part." But are we?

We hear preachers teach that we are to tithe and then "try" to give above and beyond to missions.

In my short 24 years of life, I've discovered that if we set out to "try" to do something, the likelihood of ever actually doing it is slim to none. We have to decide without question that we will do something. Besides, I'm unable to find anywhere in the Bible where God says that 10% plus "trying" to give above and beyond is what He asks of us. Isn't the question not so much how much of our money are we going to give to God, but rather, how much of God's money are we going to keep for ourselves?

The problem with giving 10% and a "little more" to missions is that we start to think that's ALL we have to do. We convince ourselves that as long as we're doing that, we're good.

Hm. I think God frowns on that.

In light of this, God did some serious convicting in our own hearts. We took a look at our monthly expenses and, while we were giving above the "typical" 10% of income, we were comfortable there. There was no sacrifice. The truth is, we were spending a lot of money on luxury things...like eating out. It's hard to justify saying, "We can't afford to give more to missions." when we spend so much on unnecessary things like that.

So, we had a choice: ignore what God was saying to us or do something about it. And, well, ignoring God is not recommended. My hubby came to me one day and said, "If we can afford to eat out, we must be able to afford to give to missions. Period."

I was on board with that. "You're right," I said. "Good point."

"So, from now on, anytime we eat out, we will match that to missions," he continued.

"Oh. Um. Ok. Yes. That's right. That sounds good," I replied. But in my head I'm thinking, "That's a little "radical" isn't it?"

That's the point!!

So, beginning August 1, we started following through with that commitment. And the results weren't what I anticipated!

Several things have happened:

1. We've started eating out less. We literally could not afford to match in giving what we had been spending in eating out. It was a big wake up call to us about how much money we "wasted" eating out when we had plenty of food at home (we were just too lazy to cook!)
2. We've discovered that it's a lot of fun to cook together! Trying new recipes and cooking together is really underrated!
3. But most of all we've learned that there is extreme joy in giving sacrifically. Each time we have eaten out, we've said, "Ok, who's this gonna go to??" Yeah, we had our budgeted giving. But what a blessing to be able to give "a little something extra" to some missionaries who have some transitions going on in their lives or to a ministry just getting it's feet off the ground!

So, we're only about two weeks into it, but it's been an exciting time already. No doubt it's a challenge because who doesn't like to just sit down at a restaurant after a long day and let someone serve you?! Eating out is definitely part of "our culture". But when a luxury like that prevents us from reaching the lost for Christ, something doesn't add up.

That's where we are. Looking forward to more radical changes in our lives!

What radical thing is God calling YOU to do?

Chandler, Platt, and Chan: A Good Dose of the Bible

Have you ever just come to the place where you say, "Ok, God. I hear ya."?

Generally for me it takes a while before I say, "Oh, you're talking to me!" This past March we were at a missions conference in Alabama when we met Tracie and Josh Lansford. They are church planters in Austin, TX and have a strong passion for reaching this city for God. During one of our conversations, they mentioned the book Crazy Love by Francis Chan. That wouldn't have really been a big deal except for the fact that was the third time within about a week that someone had suggested to us that we read that book! I told her that and she said, "Well, I think we have a copy in our car. Let me go get it!"

So, with a copy in hand, I had no excuses.

I love to read, but it's easy for me to get started on a book, read about half, and never finish it. (I know, not a good habit.) But this book was different. I couldn't put it down!

After finishing the book (which I highly recommend), I had a new perspective on God. I realized that for too long (ie my whole life!) I had been putting God into this little box, limiting Him with my lack of faith.

And so began a journey for Richard and myself that over the last 4 months has included tears, lots of prayer, several "ah-ha!" moments, and a whooole lot of Bible reading. And it's a journey that continues on... and hopefully one we will never come to the end of while living on this planet!

But in addition to all of these things, it's a journey that we'd like to share. Why? Because it's thanks to people like Francis Chan (author of Crazy Love), Matt Chandler (The Village Church, Dallas, TX) and David Platt (The Church at Brookhills, Birmingham, AL) who were willing to share what God has done in their lives with their congregations and, really with the world via the internet, that has challenged us on levels that we've never been challenged before. And we hope that you will be challenged by how we are challenged!

I think that the title of David Platt's book most accurately defines this journey: Radical.

God has called us to this. Sure, our ultimate goal is to reach the lost on the foreign field. But He has called us to live radical lives, right here, right now.

I hope you'll join us. It's an awesome ride!


(Here are some books we recommend: Crazy Love by Francis Chan and Radical by David Platt.... but only read them if you want your life to change :) Oh, and while you're at it, go ahead and "youtube" Matt Chandler. God is using these men in a big way!)

The Faith We Don't Have

I've seen it happen on more than one occasion.

God moves. The Spirit leads. Hearts are tender. We're willing to give, to go, to pray.

Then the emotions fade. The music stops and the three point sermon is forgotten. The bills come. The vacation is around the corner. And it's just not doable right now.

Oh that we would keep our eyes on the Lord! It's so easy after a spiritual high or after a faith commitment to be persuaded by the lures of satan. When we are at our highest spiritually, he's on high alert. He knows that he can quickly dilute our ambitions with the slightest trial. He can't have our souls, but he can sure keep us from bringing other souls with us.

We are so easily persuaded.

I heard a pastor once say, "There is always someone waiting on the other side of your obedience." How many times was that person left waiting because we decided to take the safe route? We decided it would take too much to do what God had asked. It was too risky.

My prayer lately is that God would help we take that leap of faith. That leap where I have absolutely no clue where I'll land, all I know is that God is waiting on the other side to catch me, to show me great and mighty things, and to teach me. He wants to show me that He can. He will. I just have to let Him.

That's where I believe the church is today. It's comfortable. We have our buildings. We have our cushioned pews. We have our landscaping and paved parking lots. The numbers are up. The giving is steady. So we're good.

Where's the faith?

Where's the part of us that says, "Ok, God's provided our needs, so lets see just how much we can give!" Instead we budget for the luxuries. We have the fancy flyers to lure them in so our numbers will grow. We have the programs and we say, "Well we have to do these things in order to appeal to the people. If we don't do these things they won't come."

Jesus never printed fancy fliers. He never put on a show. He never took a poll to see what color sandals He should wear to be accepted. He never begged people to follow.

He just said, "Follow me." And you either followed or you didn't. Your choice. You didn't get to customize your journey or decide where He took you or when. He just said, "Follow me." If you didn't like it, you didn't have to follow.

I don't think that message has changed today. But we've somehow come to the conclusion that we need to appeal to people. Is that not us relying on ourselves rather than God? It's like saying, "God, you're really not enough to draw these people in. We need a little somethin' extra."

Maybe that's why we're stale and stagnant. We've preoccupied ourselves with pleasing people and we've lost sight of God. We've lost sight of His plan and His ways. We're more concerned with the program than with the people. We're keeping up with the Jones'.

Missions is a great example of this. It's estimated that only 5 out of every 100 churches are involved in missions. How disgusting that must be to God. The purpose of the church IS missions. That's the great commandment! That's what Jesus commanded we do! Yet how many churches are satisfied with reaching just their own congregation? How many churches give to missions but aren't engaged in missions? What a shame that the average person in the church pew has no idea the need and the importance of missions. Missions is nothing more than a slide show and a 5 minute spill every so often. May God have mercy on us, how we've failed.

It takes the average missionary three years to get to the field. Three. Years. YEARS! Why? Because so much of their time is spent begging for someone to catch their vision. Pleading their case to reach the nations. They are often put in a position where they basically have to sell their vision in hopes of gaining someone who will partner with them. Someone who will see the need and accept the call.

Shouldn't it be the other way around? Shouldn't the church be searching for missionaries to send? Shouldn't they be so intent on reaching the nations that they don't care if the grass is cut and the lines in the parking lot are repainted and the people are pleased with the carpet color and the bulletins are printed each Sunday? They don't even care if "the budget allows". They just want to be sure that the nations are reached before it's too late. They're willing to step out and take a leap of faith and trust that God will provide the resources. He will meet the need because it's His heart to reach the lost. That is after all why He sent His one and only Son to die for the sins of the world.

Not so we could be comfortable when we sit in the pew on Sunday morning, but so the lost and dying around the world could hear the Good News. So the children dying of Aids in Africa could have hope. So the rejected widows in India could have life again. So the lonely men and women in the cities of Europe could have joy. So the oppressed women and children of the Arab nations could have a redeemer. So the complacent and self-centered American could have something REAL to live for.

So the WORLD could have eternal life.

God have mercy on our comfort-driven, complacent selves. May we catch HIS vision before it's too late.

travelling on the big boat

So support raising has been....well...slow.

BUT we are VERY thankful to those who have partnered with us so far and praise the Lord for family and friends who support us and pray for us.

In our own minds and according to our plans, we had hoped to be further along than we are at this point. I was talking to God about it and telling Him how it was a bit discouraging because our hearts are already onto the next step in our journey but physically we are "stuck" here.

That's when it hit me:
God doesn't want us on the speed boat.

Let me explain. When we were in Brazil, we were on a huge, three level boat with a capacity for over 500 people. It was very big....
and very slow.

To travel from on end of the river to the other, going downstream, in high-water season (when all the odds are in your favor), it can take an excess of 5 days. Upriver in low water season can be 7 or 8 days at best!

Along the way are stops--both planned and spontaneous. Of course you have your ports that are mapped out and you can pretty well count on stopping there at some point on the journey. People get on and people get off. Barrels are unloaded and others replace them.

Some stops however are completely unplanned for.

We don't always know WHY we are stopping. At one point on the boat, we were randomly stopped by the federal police for a drug search. We floated in the middle of the river, circling with the flow for a good three hours while they searched from bag to bag, only to leave empty handed (well, they did find a "little weed" in an Argentine's bag but apparently that is acceptable??).

That was not on the schedule.

And we don't always know WHAT we are waiting for. One night on our trip downriver, around 2:00 in the morning, we stopped on the bank of the river. We knew it wasn't a planned stop because it wasn't an actual port. We watched as some barrels were unloaded and a few people got off, replaced by a few who joined us. We were there probably no more than 20 minutes but it was still a delay to our trip.

That was not on the schedule.

However, the advantage of this big, slow boat is there is plenty of time to rest. With 5 days (or more) and nothing but beautiful scenery and wildlife surrounding you, you find yourself relaxing in your hammock as you swing from side to side (bumping into the random people who have crowded next to you of course). Watching people. Reading books. Talking to God.

While it's an enjoyable experience for the roaming traveler, it's certainly not going to work out too well for a person with a schedule to follow. If you've got a time line, you might as well throw it away.

Of course there are some much faster boats. Some can get you downriver in just a couple of days or from one port to the next in a matter of hours. Pay enough money and sacrifice your own personal space and you can be where you want to be, when you want to be there. The down side is, your packed like sardines with a bunch of people you don't know, little room to move much less enjoy the ride and the beauty that surrounds you. But you get where you're going, right?

I think this is much like our own "journey to the field".

Our preference is a direct shot, no stops, no unexpected delays. We "know" where we want to be and "where" God wants us so we want to take the quickest route we can and fly past those "inconveniences" so we can "do God's will for our lives".

Why is it then we often find ourselves docked on the side of river.... waiting... and waiting. And sometimes we don't know why or what we are waiting for and we look around and we question. We ask "God, why am I here when I could be there serving You? Don't You see what a waste of time this is?? Don't you see what I could be doing for You??"

But all along He's right on schedule.

He's asking us to relax. To take in the journey and enjoy the scenery. Look around and watch the sunset. Rest in our "hammocks" as He orchestrates the details of our trip--including those "unexpected" delays.

Let Him work.

Dive into His Word.

Share with those on the same boat.

Enjoy the scenery.

Having said all of that, I'll count this is a lesson learned. With God's help, I'll be more like I was on that Amazon River-- basking in the beauty of God's creation and looking for opportunities to draw closer to Him and share with others where I am now.

The fact of the matter is, it's ok to look ahead and be excited about what God has. Even on that big boat there were moments of anxiousness, when we were ready to "be somewhere" despite our incredible surroundings. But our focus should be the here and now. Like Paul says in Philippians 4:

11 Not that I speak from want, for I have learned to be content in whatever circumstances I am. 12 I know how to get along with humble means, and I also know how to live in prosperity; in any and every circumstance I have learned the secret of being filled and going hungry, both of having abundance and suffering need. 13 I can do all things through Him who strengthens me.


Thank you all for your prayers and encouragement. They mean the world to us!