A Call to Us Lovers of Christ

How much of our giving is really getting?

How much of our offering is really receiving?  

And if our giving is getting and our offering is receiving, is it really counted as righteous, counted as cost?  

Us lovers of Christ are to be, should really, be a reflection of Christ.  Oh but we get it so wrong.  

We give to help the hurting yet walk away ourselves with our own hands or our own stomachs full.

Christ gave to have His very self poured out.  And the emptying of Himself did not stop Him from giving it all.  

What if all this that we are getting for giving was instead given to those hungry, hurting and those whose souls were as thirsty as their parched mouths?  What if we truly reached out as Jesus did, to touch and to heal and to give of ourselves instead of reaching out to take back?  How many lives would be turned right around?  How many souls would be satisfied?  

We hand over our portion set aside yet still have more than enough for ourselves.   We live hand in hand with the lost, the broken, the desolate and weary yet we fail to notice.  We fail to see and fail to care all while claiming to be a missionary, a minister, a Christ-lover.  Oh, we have it all wrong.

Instead of asking “What would Jesus do?” why don’t we set aside our opinion and ask “What did Jesus do?”  Because if Christ is who we claim, then Christ should be who we seek.  

Jesus didn’t love from a distance, He walked alongside the least of these.

Jesus reached out and touched the untouchable leper.  He saw the soul behind the wounds.

Jesus allowed the outcast to come right up beside Him and He healed, taught and poured out.

And when the time came to give it all, He sweat drops of blood as He cried to His Father to remove the cup.  But when the cup remained, He drank it full.  He paid the price.

In return He received nails and a crown of thorns.


When His offering was placed on the cross He didn’t walk away with….

a “free” book
a baked good
candy
soup
a filled basket
pride
a boost in ego
a tax write off.

But we do.  And we claim it as Christ-like.  


But what if when we gave and received if we’d give again?  What if that “free” book was prayed over and given to a lost soul?  What if that baked good was given to the family struggling to feed a table full?  What if that candy was placed in the hands of a child whose parents shamefully say no at the check out because they can’t afford more than the apples and ramen noodles?  What if the soup was placed in a bowl of the elderly couple whose frail hands and trembling legs can’t much stand to cook a healthy meal?  What if the basket was given as a thank you to the teller or the cashier or the waitress?  What if the pride and boost of ego was traded for the giving of more until humility sets in?  And what if the tax write off was matched to give once more?


What if we gave before there was something in return to receive?

What if we met a need before it was seen by most?


Us lovers of Christ can be used by Christ to really be like Christ.  We have the ability to reach a lost and broken world if we should set aside ourselves long enough to not get in the way.  Our God who is all-knowing has things to show us, things He needs our eyes to see.  He wants us that claim Jesus to live with eyes open, not willfully blinded.  He has hurting hearts that need His healing touch through us.  He has uncharted territory for us to walk, as His feet, to reach lost and lonely souls in need of a Savior.

What if our giving was really just that, giving?

And what if our offering was what it should be, like that of Christ’s,  a sacrifice?

“This is how we know what love is:  Jesus Christ laid down his life for us.  And we ought to lay down our lives for our brothers.  If anyone has material possessions and sees his brother in need but has no pity on him, how can the love of God be in him?  Dear children, let us not love with words or tongue but with actions and in truth.  This then is how we know that we belong to the truth.”  1 John 3:16-19 NIV

“Christ sacrificed his life for us.  This is why we ought  to live sacrificially for our fellow believers, and not just be out for ourselves.”  1 John 3:16 MSG

Why the Duck Dynasty Calendar Made Our Wall

Our family calendar is an important thing in our home.  Not only does it keep us all on track but it’s where I record everything from big events to seemingly little memories.  As I begin a new calendar, I take time to go back and reminisce through the year before.  Whatever calendar is chosen will remain year to year to look back upon for memories - it’s kind of a big deal.

Since December of last year I had my chosen calendar ready to take its new place on our door.  It had inspirational quotes and I was loving the design.  I’m one for details and mostly everything that makes a shelf or a wall in our home must match or have special meaning.

For Christmas my husband got a Duck Dynasty calendar: camouflaged and complete with the bearded men themselves.  I’m a fan of the show but not so much to the extent of hanging the calendar in the center of our home. Truthfully, I didn’t think he’d even ask but he did and the great debate began!  We jokingly went back and forth about which calendar would make the wall for the year.  I laughed until I realized he wasn’t kidding about hanging the camouflaged, bearded men photos to look at every day for the next twelve months and then reminisce on for…well the rest of our lives.  This would be the calendar that would hold many of our baby’s firsts and many of our lasts as parents to a toddler.  It would be the calendar to hold our girl’s first year of soccer and her start of school.  Milestones, moments, memories, captured for a lifetime.

One of my favorite men from the show is Uncle Si.  In an attempt to win me over, Randy turned to a page with a photo of the wild-eyed old man.  And for that reason, it made our wall.  Not because of my “old man crush” but because of what it said:

“If you’re too busy to duck hunt, you’re too busy.”

That was the end of the great calendar debate.  He won.  Because those words pierced my heart.  You see, these are men who stay rooted regardless of fame or fortune.  They have been known to turn down interviews simply because it was duck season.  They have been known for their open belief in and outspoken stand for God.  God, family and ducks come first just as it always has.  And this heart needed that kind of reminder.

The past year had added a lot to our schedule and I had strayed from the roots in which my foundation was laid.  There wasn’t enough time for the things that mattered most.  There was much coming before the hearts in our home, before family and some things even before God.  I may not duck hunt (yet…I do have my request in to my husband!) but I was too busy for my foundation which means I was too busy.

“You shall have no other Gods before me”

Exodus 20:3

“Let your roots grow down into Him, and let your lives be built on Him.  

Then your faith will grow strong in the Truth…”   

 Colossians 2:7

The calendar hangs on our wall and is a continual reminder of the simple things in life.  Reminders to be “Happy, Happy, Happy” and that family always comes first.  Along with a few quotes about squirrels and rednecks which I’m claiming as reminders to not take life so seriously and laugh a little.  Or a lot.

Transitioning from staying busy to staying simple is not as easy as it may seem.  There are habits to change and forgiveness to be received.  There are changes to routines and filtering out of things that became expected.  There are lessons for this home schooling mama to teach as well as lessons for this mama to learn.  There is a lot of humility and even more grace.  But it is all well worth it.  I love more deeply, laugh harder and see God more.  Even our dog found a new home by my side.

When we stretch ourselves too thin, there isn’t much room for us to fill.  

Keep it simple, stay grounded, grow your roots down deep and you will find more life and love than you ever imagined.  

If you’re too busy for that, you’re too busy!

“He fills my life with good things!”

Psalm 103:5