Cheapskate Girl Breaks Bad

If you've read my blog, you know how I dearly love all things cheap. Goodwill and the $1.50 theater are at the top of my list of places that I heart beyond belief.

I HATE paying full price for a movie ticket. I mean $9.50? Are you serious?! I know I'm beginning to sound like the Grinch before his miraculous heart expansion, so I'll move on.

Today I paid full price to see a movie for the second time. Christmas miracles do happen. The movie was The Blind Side. I love, love, love this movie, and if you haven't seen it you need to pack up the whole family and go see it tomorrow. Tomorrow or at least before the kids go back to school.

This is a secret...you really can't tell...but even my hubby got moist-eyed. It's truly the most wonderful movie about family, marriage and giving that I've ever seen.

My favorite line was LeAnn's hubby saying: "I've seen that look before. She's about to get her way." What's yours?

Giving Out of Abundance

It's almost here! It's almost here!

Some things always bring back the joy of childhood no matter how old you are. Christmas is one of those childhood restorers every year. More than the lights and decorations and gifts, it’s a reminder of hope. In a tough year, we’ve all needed the reminder that God doesn’t look down on earth and shrug His shoulders. He sent His son Jesus to show us just how much He loves us, cares about our every concern and meets our greatest need—relationship with Him. Emmanuel, God with us…ahhhh!

He is the greatest gift ever, but nevertheless, as I said in my devotion today, it is a treat to give to our children. Their gifts are all wrapped and waiting under the tree (including Santa gifts for those big boys, because you have to believe to receive!). Their stocking stuffers are sitting in a bag under my bed just waiting to be stuffed. I'm anticipating the giving and watching my loved ones receive.

Even though it's been a tight year financially, Barry and I are able to give. We're giving more out of the abundance of our hearts than our wallets, but we're thankful that it's time to give and that there's enough.

That's because the truth is that we're rich. Hang with me while I explain. We're not at all rich compared to most Americans, but we're rich compared to most of the rest of the world. There will be many loving parents on Christmas morning around the world, however, who long to give to their children--who long to be able to "scrape together" some gifts or a special meal--but literally cannot.

It's because of these parents and their children that our family gives to Compassion. Each month our child, Manuel, receives $38 through Compassion that helps not only him but his whole family.

Our family gives out of the abundance of our heart and the abundance of the Gift we've been given, not out of our great material riches (we have 2 teenagers after all!). How about you? Could God be calling you to give to a needy child? Maybe God is speaking to your heart, too. You can bring joy into this Christmas season and for a whole life time by sponsoring a child through Compassion.

If God is speaking to you about a different kind of Christmas giving this year, please just do it now. Click on the button below and start a child sponsorship through Compassion.

I know that our family can't outgive God, but our gifts to Manuel each month are a way that we say "Thank you, Jesus, for what you gave for us" all year long.

Merry Christmas friends!!

In Celebration of an Oxymoron

There was a startling contradiction in our local newspaper today--good news! Just was my spirits started to lag while reading about government corruption, murder and the destruction of the planet, a little glimmer of light exploded from the editorial page.

A title caught my eye, "Hoping One Tree Grows into Many Gifts", and the story that followed refocused my thoughts on the Reason for the season.

Kimberly Ortenzio, a local woman, had bought a new, pre-lit tree to decorate this Christmas and was faced with what to do with her old artificial tree. Although she thought about taking it to the Salvation Army, she decided that she wanted to make a more personal connection. Instead, she listed it in the "free" section of Craig's List (have I mentioned about a thousand times how much I love Craig's List?) and included that she wanted it to go to a family with children.

The response was overwhelming and heartbreaking:

"...single mothers with children who couldn't afford a tree or presents; those with mentally handicapped children or sick children; fathers out of work or mothers laid off; a family with five children, one with six; a grandmother asking for it for her unemployed daughter and two grandkids; a family who gave away their tree when they moved here--never dreaming that they would not be able to afford one when Christmas came."

Suddenly, the simple act of making more space in her attic had become a calling. Kimberly and her 8-year-old daughter narrowed the list down to four families and emailed for more information. Each family's situation was dire, and there was no way to choose.

So Kimberly and her daughter went from donating to giving. They bought 3 more trees, lights, ornaments and gifts for the families. Even though their family isn't wealthy, they gave extravagantly. When they could give no more, they started telling all their friends about the need and generated more giving.

All this is very good news, but it gets even better. We can't out give God! Kimberly says, "As Christians, we are taught to give unselfishly to others and God will see that our needs are met. It couldn't be more true!"

Kimberly makes crafts to pay for her family's Christmas. After giving the extra trees, she had unexpected orders that provided the money for all that extra giving. Amazing.

I love that this good news made it in amongst all the usually reported dismal news in the newspaper. It's made my day, and I hope it makes your day too!

God and Man

I'm sitting in the half darkness reading in the light of the Christmas tree. The fog outside just lends to the silence and coziness inside. I love this time of year.

Here are the words that I'm pondering:

"Mary didn't know whether to give him milk or give him praise, but she gave him both since he was, as near as she could figure, hungry and holy.

Joseph didn't know whether to call him Junior or Father. But in the end he called him Jesus, since that's what the angel had said and since he didn't have the faintest idea what to name a God he could cradle in his arms....

Don't you think...their heads tilted and their minds wondered, 'What in the world are you doing, God?' Or, better phrased, 'God, what are you doing in the world?'" --Max Lucado

Emmanuel, God with us.... My mind can't even wrap around it, but my heart unfolds and blossoms to the truth.

Our family walked up to the beautiful chapel and looked up in awe. Soaring spires, intricate stained glass and the workmanship of artists made us wonder at the labor and cost.

As the music began, I followed the program carefully reading each scripture word by word.

And the glory of the Lord shall be revealed, and all flesh shall see it together; for the mouth of the Lord hath spoken it. Isaiah 40:5

Behold, a virgin shall conceive, and bear a son, and shall call his name Emmanuel: God with us. Isaiah 7:14, Matthew 1:23

For unto us a child is born, unto us a son is given: and the government shall be upon his shoulder: and his name shall be called Wonderful, Counsellor, the Mighty God, the Everlasting Father, the Prince of Peace. Isaiah 9:6

Hallelujah! for the Lord God omnipotent reigneth. The kingdom of this world is become the kingdom of our Lord and of his Christ; and he shall reign for ever and ever, King of Kings, and Lord of Lords. Hallelujah! Revelation 19:6, 11:15, 19:16

By now you've probably guessed. My parents had invited my family to attend a performance of The Messiah with them at Duke Chapel.

It was three hours that lift my spirit, filled my soul and focused my heart--just right in preparation of the celebration of the birth of our Messiah.

It's funny to me as I reflect on the dedication of talent that it took to create both The Messiah and the Duke Chapel. Sometimes I think that our generation is so prideful. We think we've got insights into God that others didn't long ago. These works of art, though, remind me of a bygone time when everything was committed to God--art, literature, architecture, governments....

Going to the performance was a call to my heart to focus. I need to focus not only on the season but on committing all that I have to my precious savior. What are you being called to commit this season?

God's Perfect Work

Oswald Chamber's words once again spoke directly to my situation today. He says, "It is a snare to imagine that God wants to make us perfect specimens of what He can do; God's purpose is to make us one with Himself....If it was God's will to bruise His own Son, why should He not buise you? The thing that tells for God is not your relevant consistency to an idea of what a sait should be, but your real vital relations to Jesus Christ, and your abandonment to Him whether you are well or ill."

I've been both well and ill in the last two days. I struggled mightily with disappointment yesterday as I received another rejection letter from a publisher, but I was filled with joy this morning with a much-needed financial blessing.

It's easy for me to praise in times of joy, but yesterday was a test. For quite a while, I could feel emotions of disappointment and failure mingle with anger and bitterness toward God. Writing this book is something that I've wanted so much and something that I also felt was a desire created by God.

I don't know why God is choosing this path for me, but I finally addressed my soul as it roiled with emotion, "Be at rest once more, O my soul, for the Lord has been good to you." (Psalm 116: 7)

Although I'd like to narrowly define "good" as getting my way, I know that God is not a cosmic Santa but rather a wise heavenly Father. He gives me good truly good gifts even though I'm sometimes on the naughty list! In this case, God's good gift is that I not write a book right now. It took a few hours, but I really do trust that this is true.

I don't want to boast at all, but I was happy to read Oswald's words this morning and know that my real, vital relation to Jesus was intact after my disappointment. The reason that excites me is not at all because I've done something wonderful but rather that it reveals God's work in me. My usual, past m.o. has been to withdraw from relationship rather than to face the negative emotions and lay them at His feet. Lord, continue Your work! (Although, Jesus, I'd like to request a little reprieve from disappointment asthe means if that's possible.)