Move-Out Cleaning

Being a college student, I'm very transitory. In about a month, I'll be moving into the fourth semi-permanent residence I've had in the past two years. Moving is exhausting! I've spent several evenings after work already trying to organize and get rid of junk so that I can fit myself and my stuff into an even smaller two-bedroom apartment, this time with two roommates instead of one.

I find myself inwardly complaining, But I just did this! I already got rid of all my junk, when I moved out of my dorm just a few months ago! It's true, I did. But apparently I didn't do as good of a job as I thought. I'm trying even harder now to pare down, and I've lowered my standards of what counts as "junk." That pair of shoes that I've had for several years and worn maybe twice? I let them stay last time, because I was just sure I'd regret getting rid of them. Sure, they're great shoes, but this time--to the consignment store they go.

Just a few months ago, I lugged 3 trash bags full of clothes (they-still-fit-but-they're-from-8th-grade-and-let's-face-it-I'm-never-wearing-that-again clothes) to St. Vincent de Paul. I felt pretty good about it! But now, going through again with higher standards for the clothing I want to keep, I find myself getting rid of even more. I've got bags full of craft materials I'll never use that I can pass along to kids and young mothers. Cute mementos, doo-dads, lotions, candles (who knew how much stuff a 20-year-old could accumulate?)--all in trash bags and give-away bags.



And yet I still somehow have so much stuff! Could it be that a year and a month from now, when my new apartment lease is up, I'll be doing this all over again and getting rid of even more? I don't doubt it.

Why am I telling you all this?

I'm writing this blog because through the process of cleaning, kind of like throwing out the leaven before the Days of Unleavened Bread, I'm seeing a spiritual principle that, I think, applies to all of us in our Christian walks.

The principle is this: We always have more work to do. We always have more sinful "junk" in our lives that we need to get rid of in order to draw closer to God. We may think we have done a pretty good job of cleaning ourselves up as we examine ourselves one year, but that doesn't mean that the next year we'll take a look at ourselves and think, wow! I'm completely de-junked! No, we all know that's not true at all.

Sometimes, it's because God is merciful and doesn't open our eyes to see all of the filthy and ill-fitting garments all at once, because He knows we can't handle it yet. Sometimes, it's because we've chosen not to notice the sins that have become deeply ingrained in our spiritual closets--things we're used to, things that make us feel comfortable.

But slowly, day by day, we should be getting rid of everything that clutters our lives, "every weight, and the sin which so easily ensnares us" (Hebrews 12:1), to make space for God.

I really look forward to one day settling down in a house that I own, and not having to worry about moving for awhile. But truth is, while we're alive, we're all pretty transient.

We're all cleaning to move out. Move out of this physical, ephemeral existence and into our eternal home in God's spiritual family. The ultimate lesson is that nothing physical that we can own or get rid of really matters. What matters is our hearts--that they are clean and pure before God, and that we don't let them get crowded with junk that will stand between us and Him.

"Therefore we were buried with Him through baptism into death, that just as Christ was raised from the dead by the glory of the Father, even so we also should walk in newness of life. For if we have been united together in the likeness of His death, certainly we also shall be in the likeness of His resurrection, knowing this, that our old man was crucified with Him, that the body of sin might be done away with, that we should no longer be slaves of sin. ... Present yourselves to God as being alive from the dead, and your members as instruments of righteousness to God." (Romans 6:4-6,13)

Shared on MercyInk, Growing Home, and Time-Warp Wife.

Philanthropic Friday: Rebuilding Oklahoma

I'm sure we've all been closely following the devastation caused by the EF5 tornado just outside of Oklahoma City, OK, on May 20. 24 killed, 377 hospitalized, schools and homes destroyed...  Above all, as always, residents badly need your prayers. Parents have lost children, children have lost parents, lives and homes have been permanently damaged. What's needed most is hope. If you'd like to donate to help rebuild their lives, money is generally the best way to assist in providing clothing, food, and supplies to those in need,  unless you live very close.

Photo: Paul Hellstern, The Oklahoman, May 20, 2013

• Send a personalized message of hope to be hand-delivered to families in Moore, OK. Text HOPE to 38383 and you'll be asked to send a message with words of support--maybe your favorite scripture, maybe just let them know you're thinking of them. This service is provided by DoSomething.org.
• Give blood. Disasters like this where so many are injured and treated at hospitals create high demands for plasma donations. Do your part by giving blood at your local blood bank or hospital. To find one near you, search your city on the AABB website.
• The Red Cross has set up shelters for those whose homes were destroyed by the tornado. To support their efforts, you can donate in several ways--via their website, by texting the word REDCROSS to 90999 (to have the donation included on your cell phone bill), over the phone by calling 1-800-RED-CROSS (1-800-733-2767), or even by donating frequent flyer miles that they can use to fly volunteers and staff into emergency areas. For Delta, email delta.bids@delta-air.com with your SkyMiles number, the number of miles you want to donate, and specify the Red Cross as the charity. Click here to donate US Airways miles, and here to donate United miles.

• Support teachers and help rebuild Moore schools. Two schools were completely destroyed and more were damaged. The website DonorsChoose.org helps teachers raise money for needs in the classroom. They are doing a special project to help teachers and students in Moore. "When teachers in Moore are ready, we will help them create classroom recovery projects for critical supplies such as clothing, food, books, therapy resources and classroom furniture. These teachers know best what their students need, and we can empower them to rebuild their classrooms. Your donation will be sent directly to teachers in Moore, OK, empowering them to restock their classrooms and help their students recover." If this is something you're interested in getting involved in, click here.
• The OK Strong Disaster Relief Fund was established by Governor Mary Fallin, "in coordination with the United Way of Central Oklahoma... to assist with the long-term needs of victims devastated by the May tornadoes." If you'd like to donate to this fund, head to the United Way website portal here.

• For an extensive list of other ways to donate, see this article from US News.

Thanks for your generosity and your prayers!

Portraits of Proverbs 31: Abigail {Part 2}

Last week, we discussed the story of Abigail in 1 Samuel 25 and how she exemplifies the lesson of Romans 12:21. "Do not be overcome by evil, but overcome evil with good."

Today, I'd like to talk about some of the more specific lessons we can learn from Abigail and her dealings with Nabal, with David, and with the rest of her household. We'll start with the core issue: love.

What is the love that God expects from us, and how is it evident in Abigail's story?

Love is an active choice (not merely a fuzzy emotion) that we owe to every person because we all have the same loving Father.

In 1 Samuel 25, Abigail shows love for David, for Nabal, for her household, and for God through her wise and generous actions. She would not have been killed in David's planned slaughter, because David only vowed to kill all Nabal's males. But Abigail could not stand by and let this happen, even if the course of action she took was action more dangerous to herself.

Picture yourself as a teenager going down to the basement to tell your older brother that dinner was ready, and he was going to have to stop playing [insert gory masculine video/computer game] right before he clobbered a whole bunch of bad guys. Now multiply that by 127 and you've got Abigail's encounter with a furious David. Her love for her husband and her household (I like to focus on her husband, because I think her respect for a man who, from a human perspective, deserved no respect whatsoever, is an incredible example) were obvious in the courageous stand she took to pacify David.

I used to wonder why on earth an intelligent, graceful woman like Abigail would be married to a fool like Nabal. Then I found in my research that according to the customs of the day, Abigail and Nabal's was almost certainly an arranged marriage. (Duh, Erica!) It's reasonable to assume Abigail's family benefited from her marriage to him, as he was a very wealthy man. God blessed her through it because of her character and faith, but her marriage to him (and even her marriage to David afterwards - see v. 43-44) was not ideal.

So, while Abigail did a commendable job of showing respect and love for her very undeserving husband, it's good to keep in mind that he was not the kind of husband God would have wanted her to choose. We today are blessed with the ability to choose our own mates, and we should take that task very seriously. How should we, as Christian women, use our ability to choose who we date and marry to ensure the most spiritually and physically nurturing lives possible for ourselves and for our children?

For example, carefully consider:
-Does he put God first, even above you?
-Does he make wise decisions, and seek God's guidance and sound advice in making those decisions?
-Does he love and respect you, and all other people?

Back to Abigail.

Abigail showed love for her husband by protecting him in the way she could and trusting his fate to God. In the same way that David, no matter how horrid Saul was to him, would never kill God's anointed, Abigail, as horrid as her husband was being, would never stand by idly when she could do something to prevent his death. She selflessly saved him and all the males in her household from death due to his foolish actions.

In both cases, David and Abigail knew that if Saul or Nabal were to die, it would need to be clearly by God's hand. Because she loved and respected God, Abigail, by extension, loved and respected her husband, regardless of his own personal merit.

She also showed love and respect for David in stopping him from taking foolish, bloody action that would have brought bad results for both her family and for him. Her love for God are also evident here, as she respected his will and his laws and did what she could to keep David from breaking them.

Thus, Abigail exemplified love for her mate, for all people (see John 3:16 and 15:12), and for God Himself (see Deuteronomy 11:1 and Mark 12:30).

She also demonstrates active love--her love was not just a feeling (and possibly not really a feeling at all, in the case of Nabal) but a choice demonstrated by action seeking the good of the other parties (see Romans 12:9-10, Romans 13:10, Matthew 7:12, and James 2:15-16).

Jesus told His disciples shortly before his crucifixion and death, "A new commandment I give to you, that you love one another; as I have loved you, that you also love one another" (John 13:34). Jesus's love was the ultimate active love, as He not only felt it and spoke of it, but acted on it through teaching, through healing, through forgiving, and through giving His priceless, perfect life as a payment to cleanse us from our death-deserving sins.

Abigail's self-sacrificing love is a beautiful example to apply to our lives today. In what areas of your life can you improve to make your love look a bit more like hers?

Philanthropic Friday: WFP {The Syria Crisis}

The goal is to bring you a different charity every week that I think you may be (or that I think you should be (; ) interested in donating to or volunteering for. I tend towards skepticism when it comes to spending my money, so I usually hold off on donating to charities until I've done a lot of research and I'm certain that they're honest and that the majority of their money really does go to where they say it does.

I'll do my best to bring you only the best charities, but please understand that as much research as I do, I still might miss things. So if there's something you think I or other readers should know about an organization, please keep in mind that viewpoints may differ on many issues, but please do share the information with us so everyone can make a decision accordingly on whether or not they feel comfortable donating.

We'll start with an organization very close to my heart: The United Nations World Food Programme (WFP).

According to their website, "The World Food Programme (WFP) fights hunger worldwide, saving lives during emergencies while building a better future for the next generation. WFP is funded solely by voluntary donations."

They are a very large humanitarian agency (they claim to be the largest fighting hunger) and traditionally they have received most of their funding from governments around the world. Of late, however, individual private donors and businesses have given increasingly significant amounts of aid. Care to add your name?

First of all, take a look at this Hunger Map and learn about where the world's greatest needs are, and where WFP works. Click on any country to see its hunger status and what programs WFP has in the area.

The focal point: The Syria Crisis is the current focus (and has been for awhile). WFP is aiming to feed 2.5 million displaced people in Syria and 800,000 refugees in neighboring countries every month. Plus, they're providing snacks at school to kids in refugee camps. That's a lot of mouths to feed, and they need $19 million USD every week to do it. Your help is urgently needed! Donations can be given through Paypal to make it safe and convenient.

• Click here to donate to the Syria Crisis and help WFP feed 3.3 million who have been affected by the tragedy. (You can read more about the crisis itself on this page so you can understand and pray about the conflict.)
• Click here to donate to help the children in Zaatari Refugee Camp continue to receive snacks in the classroom--they are currently only funded until the end of May, and they urgently need your help to keep the program going.
• Aside from the Syria Crisis, you can also donate to the WFP "Fill the Cup" program. $1 feeds 4 kids a nutritious meal. The money you donate to this program goes to whatever area has the greatest need, or you can select a specific program to donate to.

Besides the Syria project and the many other programs WFP runs to which you can donate, they also have some awesome sponsors that enable you to help even if you're unable to give money.

• I challenge you to the Hunger Quiz! All you gotta do is answer 5 questions and a child will get a hot meal. Look how precious this is and tell me you don't have 1 minute and 15 seconds to take a quiz. (Not to brag or anything, but I got a 5 out of 5 my first time taking it... this is my appeal to you competitive people... can you ace this?? You might be surprised!)

• Freerice is an online vocab game. For every right answer you give, Freerice donates 10 grains of rice through WFP. I'm a huge nerd so I love that I can play this game in French or Spanish or Italian. (Or even Korean. But that would be... well... not very productive for me.) You can also start groups to play the game and donate together so you can watch even more rice accumulate! Bored in a meeting? About to fall asleep in lecture? Well, you could be doing something productive and feeding the hungry. So do it. :)
• Also, be sure to sign up for email updates (just enter your name and email address at the top of the WFP home page)! You'll get cute pictures and updates about projects every now and then, usually not more than once a week.