Advice I'll Live By

I have something written and ready to post, but then I saw this, and it's much, much better. I think these are the most profoundly soothing words I've ever read on the internet. You'll enjoy it even if you don't have kids or are far removed from the days when a trip to the grocery store was like an episode of Survivor. Enjoy, and I'll be back in a few days.

http://momastery.com/blog/2012/01/04/2011-lesson-2-dont-carpe-diem/

My 2011 Book List

I spent most of 2011 reading, but you wouldn’t know it from my book list. Six months of the year I read short entries for a devotional book—640 of them—written by Compassion International staff from around the world. Here are quick reviews of the books I managed to finish the rest of the year:

My older kids and I finished the fourth and fifth Harry Potter books, The Goblet of Fire and The Order of the Phoenix. Five down, two to go, and my kids are still bribing me with snacks and neck massages so I’ll keep reading to them. Also finished the last three books of the Narnia series with the older kids and can’t wait to start again at the beginning with the younger ones in a year or two. Though I swore my allegiance to The Magician’s Nephew, it doesn’t get any better than The Last Battle’s description of the afterlife. I will read it again and again. I also started Lewis’s The Screwtape Letters, but it’s so mind-boggling that I can only read about a page at a time. Was there ever anyone more brilliant than C.S. Lewis? I think not.

Although if anyone could come close to filling Lewis’s creative-genius shoes (at least in the Christian arena), I vote for Eugene Peterson. I know I’m biased because he published The Message with The Navigators, but listen to this, from A Long Obedience in the Same Direction, which I finally read this year:

“Every day I put love on the line. There is nothing I am less good at than love. I am far better in competition than in love. I am far better at responding to my instincts and ambitions to get ahead and make my mark than I am at figuring out how to love another. I am schooled and trained in acquisitive skills, in getting my own way. And yet I decide, every day, to set aside what I can do best and attempt what I do very clumsily—open myself to the frustrations and failures of loving, daring to believe that failing in love is better than succeeding in pride.”

That one’s a must-read, along with another book I should’ve read a long time ago, unChristian: What a New Generation Really Thinks about Christianity by David Kinnaman and Gabe Lyons. The chapter on homosexuality is worth the price of the book. I’ll go ahead and call this one my favorite of the year.

But also in contention were Nicholas Carr’s two books, The Shallows: What the Internet Is Doing to Our Brains and The Big Switch: Rewiring the World from Edison to Google. Though the former has gotten loads of press (deservedly), I actually found The Big Switch even more fascinating. If you’ve ever wondered if the internet is held together with nothing more than paperclips and chewing gum, this is the book for you.

On the recommendation of Carr, I read The Gutenberg Elegies: The Fate of Reading in an Electronic Age. Written in 1994, this book was not so much out-of-date as it was eerie at predicting the future technology to come and how it would affect our reading. (And no, I don’t have a Kindle.)

So I’ll now read anything Nicholas Carr writes, just as I’m committed to anything Francis Chan writes. This year he wrote on hell. Umm, OK. Erasing Hell was definitely not the feel-good book of the year, but it did challenge me deeply in my view of God. And if Francis writes a book on geology, I’m gonna buy it. I just am.

Predictably enough, I added some new parenting books to my arsenal:

• Spiritual Parenting by Michelle Anthony (which equipped me with the go-to question, “What needs to be done here?”),

• Five Conversations You Must Have with Your Daughter by Vicki Courtney,

• Six Ways to Keep the ‘Little’ in Your Girl by Dannah Gresh, and

• Sticky Faith: Everyday Ideas to Build Lasting Faith in Your Kids by Kara Powell and Chap Clark.

All were worth reading, though none was as helpful as Sticky Faith. I highly recommend this one to parents who are looking for practical ways to pass down lasting faith to their children. More on this in future blog posts.

And finally, in the “just-for-fun” category, I picked up Heaven Is for Real by Todd Burpo, not at all intending to read it, but I finished it in one night. I’m a believer. And last, and least, actually, Jacqueline Kennedy: Historic Conversations on Life with John F. Kennedy was mildly interesting in places, but really not worth the time it took to get from the inter-library loan. More than anything, it was eye-opening to see how much things have changed in 50 years.

On my list for 2012:

The Hunger Games (We’ll see if I make it through the whole series)

The Search for Significance

Unbroken

More C.S. Lewis

More The History of the Ancient World (Will I ever find out why Rome fell?!)

When God Shows Up

What’s so magical about Christmas?

What other time of year can you walk the streets, singing at the top of your lungs about Jesus, ring the doorbell of a complete stranger, walk in their house, hand them a gift bag, give them a hug, and pray God’s blessings on them?

We got the idea for Christmas caroling back in June. At family camp, we talked about ways to “push back the darkness” in our neighborhoods and cities, and caroling was one of many ideas offered. We held onto the idea for six months until it was finally time to carry it out last night. Twenty-eight families were invited, and only a few declined. This was turning into something big! I was feeling good! Then I heard the weather forecast.

You can imagine, after six months of thinking about something and a month of actually planning, how sick I felt when I heard heavy snow and strong winds were making their way to us the same time the caroling was set to begin. As a few people dropped out during the day, I feared the worst. I began a swan dive into self-pity, full of “What are you doing, God?” types of questions, before my 10-year-old daughter said, “I think God may be testing you, Mom.”

“OK. Testing me on what?”

I don’t remember exactly what Addison said, but God spoke loud and clear. Couldn’t the name of the Lord be exalted just as well by 12 people as by 80? Was this about me and what a crowd I could draw, or was it about glorifying Him? Oh, the conviction! I also remembered the encouragement of my friend Kate, who said that she doesn’t like being in charge of things either, but every time she is, God always shows up. So I stopped feeling disappointed, recruited more prayer, took a deep breath, and waited for God to show up.

He didn’t show up in spite of the snow. He showed up in the snow. It was perfect. Picturesque. The kind that Hollywood movie-makers would kill for. To all of us, it clearly felt like a gift from Him. We had 72 carolers, 43 of them kids who slid across the streets and threw snowballs and made snow angels in the middle of the road. They also rang doorbells and delivered treats and sang their hearts out.

A lot of the doorbells went unanswered. A time or two we ended up singing to the barking dogs in the yard. But then there were the doors that opened. The old woman who stood outside in her housecoat and offered us cookies. (When Kevin asked her if she was saving them for someone else, she said they were just in case someone stopped by. Thank you, God, for having us stop by!) One woman in an apartment tried to coax us all inside and give us money. One of the few cars we saw pulled over, opened their windows, and listened to us for a minute before driving off with a wave. And how cool it was that when people asked where we were from, we just yelled, “Colorado Springs!” We represented many different churches, but last night we were just their neighbors, people offering songs and cookies and hope and joy with no agenda.

When I’ve walked these streets in the past, I’ve pictured the poor as single moms and filthy little kids and unemployed addicts. Last night I was reminded that the poor are often elderly women who live alone in small, dark, odd-smelling houses with round-the-clock television. These are women that I, the non-hugger, hugged last night. These are women whose faces kept me up in the night. This was a night I will never forget.

“Pushing back darkness” can’t be measured in numbers of doors answered or amount of carolers who showed up—but when God shows up, it's guaranteed.

It's the Most Wonderful Day of the Year!

It must be my year of discovering favorites. I can now tell you my favorite day of the year. It’s the day my kids get out of school for Christmas break. I begin counting down the days some time in October. My heart really starts racing as we reach Thanksgiving break. And then there are those three weeks of school that separate Thanksgiving and Christmas. I feel like the Little Engine Who Could. Only I’m not so convinced I “could” as I keep chugging along, feeling the steam pour out of me, but trying to keep moving on, one step at a time, until . . . we . . . reach . . . the . . . finish.

It’s during that last week that I start to consider homeschooling: an end to all of the frantic costume-making, party-planning, concert-attending, present-buying, lunch-packing chaos. (Then I remember how nice it is to have the kids out of the house while I work on my Christmas letters, wrap presents, and attempt to earn a little money to pay for their presents.)

And then that glorious Friday arrives. (Probably it would be sacrilegious to call it “Good Friday,” huh?) The teachers’ gifts are delivered, the mittens for the homeless are collected, the classroom gift-exchange game is played, the treats are devoured, and it’s time to go home. And crash. For the next 2 ½ weeks. No alarm clock! No carpool! No homework! No sports practices! No lunchboxes! Really, I’m not sure we need presents at all. These are all the gifts I need.

Thank you, Jesus, for coming into our world. Thank you for saving us from our sin. And thank you, thank you for Christmas break.

(P.S. Don’t forget to watch the Bronco game Sunday afternoon. Could be another miracle in the making!)

Football, Faith, and Favor

There’s a bumper sticker we see around here that says, “If God’s not a Bronco fan, then why’s the sky orange?” I don’t think God’s a Bronco fan. I don’t know if He cares about football at all. But I believe He extends His favor on certain people at certain times to teach the rest of us.

From what I’m seeing on Sunday afternoons, His favor is on Tim Tebow. Yes, add me to the list of bloggers who feels the need to share an opinion about this guy. If you don’t care about football or haven’t been following the Broncos' season (shame on you), the past 13 weeks have been like a Hollywood movie: third-string quarterback—Tebow—is unexpectedly bumped up to starter after a 1-4 start to the season, goes 6-1 with all of those wins coming in the last heart-stopping quarter of the game or in overtime. It’s made for great TV, a lot of analyst critiquing, and some fun Sunday afternoons on the Joneses’ couch.

Besides being a fierce athlete, Tebow happens to be one of the most outspoken Christians in all of professional sports. What I love about him is that it’s not his mouth that’s doing the talking; it’s his life. The orphans, the critically ill children, the poor that he serves probably don’t care much about whether he throws the ball funny or not. They’re probably not real interested in what the critics are saying or wondering to themselves if Tim’s faith is authentic or just for show. They don’t have to wonder.

He’s also an unashamed virgin at age 24, believing that sex should be saved for marriage—even when you're an NFL quarterback. He’s humble, giving credit in every interview to everyone but himself. He’s secure; no matter how hard the critics blast him, he stays positive and keeps smiling. And the thing I like most? By all accounts, he’s the hardest worker on the team. His teammates, time and time again, call him “the real deal.”

Tim Tebow does more than provide entertainment on a dreary winter day. He inspires. He inspires me. He makes me think about what kind of Christian I want to be. What if I lived out my values every day instead of just talking about them? What if I smiled and treated people kindly, even if they hurled insults at me and questioned my authenticity? What if I was the hardest worker around? What if I was known for my excellence, my hard work, my commitment to being the best I can be? What if all of us who follow Christ were to do these things? We don’t all have a national platform like an NFL quarterback, but we all have others watching us, wondering if we’re “the real deal.”

Tim’s only 24 years old, but I want to be like him when I grow up. Even if he loses the next four games, is injured, or is traded and never makes another appearance on a football field, he’s affected me and thousands of others. Broadcasters and sports writers keep referring to him as “magical.” That’s not magic, folks, that’s the favor of the Lord. You just wonder how long it will take before they start wondering if there’s not something to all this God stuff.

Less Mouth, More Limbs

I start this entry mindful of a pastor’s wise instruction to begin every prayer by asking forgiveness for our own self-righteousness. I’m sure there’s self-righteousness in what I’m about to write. Forgive me, Lord.

A few nights ago, two messages landed in my inbox at the same time. One was from a Christian organization decrying the use of the term “holiday sales” in Walgreen’s Thanksgiving ads and their triumph when Walgreen’s announced they would switch to “Christmas” in the coming weeks. The other message was from a Christian ministry describing the jobs, accessible transportation, affordable housing, and the hope they are providing for the poor in inner-city Phoenix.

One group of Christians is offering a list of “Naughty or Nice Retailers” and where they stand on the “War on Christmas.” For a suggested donation of $150, you can buy a pack of “It’s OK to Say Merry Christmas” buttons. I wonder what the group of Christians in Phoenix could do with that $150? How many families could that feed? How much gas could it buy to get people to work? Beyond that, I wonder which would speak more to a watching world that is skeptical—even sick and tired—of Christians?

Rick Warren writes in the book unChristian:

“My passion is to help the next generation of church leaders guide their congregations in taking on the world’s biggest problems: spiritual emptiness, egocentric leadership, extreme poverty, pandemic disease, and rampant illiteracy. [Notably absent: winning the “War on Christmas.”] All governments, businesses, and non-profit organizations combined have failed in solving these. The only group large enough to handle these problems is the network of millions of local churches around the world. We have the widest distribution, the largest group of volunteers, local credibility, the promises of God, the power of the Holy spirit, and the inevitability of history.

My dream is that thirty years from now, the church will be known more by what it is for than what it is against. For some time now, the hands and feet of the body of Christ have been amputated, and we’ve been pretty much reduced to a big mouth. We talk far more than we do. It’s time to reattach the limbs and let the church be the church in the twenty-first century.”

Preach it, Pastor Warren! We’re listening.

My New Favorite Holiday

I have always been a Christmas girl—love the lights, the music, the ornaments, the parties, the presents—but I’m considering switching my allegiance. I’ve decided to make Thanksgiving my new favorite holiday.

There are things I’ve always enjoyed about Thanksgiving. Days off school are good for any reason. A holiday that always falls on Thursday is quaint. I like turkey. Being together with extended family is always a blessing. (I especially enjoyed that when I had little babies, having so many people around increased my odds of sneaking in a mid-day nap.) And I’m a huge fan of the Macy’s Thanksgiving Day Parade. I don’t think I’ve missed it since I was 4 or 5. I used to dream of performing in the parade with the Rockettes—not knowing, of course, that I would grow up to be a short-legged, rather inflexible five-foot-three.

But the real reason for my switch is that I think Thanksgiving just might be God’s favorite holiday. Is there anything that delights Him more than our thanks? Sure, He changed the course of history by intervening in our world, which we celebrate at Christmas. And yes, we remember at Easter how He revealed all His power and glory by raising Jesus from the dead. Those were mighty displays of love by God toward us. But a day dedicated to giving thanks helps us display our love toward Him.

Like all our traditions, Thanksgiving has gotten mucked up with our cultural entrapments, football games and Black Friday shopping, and even parades. But everyone is at least aware that it’s a holiday that exists for the purpose of giving thanks. Our economy may be dismal and our politics may be a mess, but we Americans know we still have more to be thankful for than anyone else in the world.

“And do you see how thankful we must be? Not only thankful, but brimming with worship, deeply reverent before God.”

—Hebrews 12:28b, The Message