We came to this decision last week and told our parents as soon as we were ready to commit to going. This isn't something we planned for a long time, although we knew we wanted to be ready when the opportunity was presented. Looking back, there are many circumstances in our lives which we feel prepared us for this decision.

At the end of February we received an email from our friend and business partner. He had been contacted from a friend from his church. http://rockglobalmissions.com/ethiopia/ A woman named Kristen was desperately raising support for a YWAM mission with the Kara tribe in Ethiopia.

Here's the story: The Kara (pronounced Karo) people have a long history full of tradition and superstition. They believe they are a "pure" tribe. When children are born in the tribe that are seen as imperfect they are believed to be "mingi" or "cursed". Children can be mingi for a number of reasons: born out of wedlock, conceived of a married couple without permission from the elders of the tribe, or if the child's teeth (either set) grow in from the top first rather than the bottom. In order to maintain the "purity" of the tribe, these children are destroyed--either abandoned or thrown in the river to drown.

Long story short, the Kara people have agreed to safely surrender their children, having them removed from the tribe and allowing them to live. But there was and remains today an urgency that could not be ignored. A small team moved quickly to set up a make-shift orphanage and rescue some newborn infants. http://www.ljurban.com/ Although the team was successful in securing temporary housing and care for nine children between the ages of 18 months and five years old, they were too late. Two infants were destroyed within days of their arrival.

Our dear friends and their three children are preparing to leave as soon as possible. We want to help them get there. We have some things to take care of before we can go, but then we will be the team--our two families--to raise an orphanage and help these children. Another team is committing to five years, living with the Kara people to bring truth and light and hopefully bring an end to these needless killings.

Our plan is to leave in August. By then our youngest son will be nine months old--old enough to safely receive a much needed vaccination against yellow fever. The safety of our own three children are of course our first priority, but our hearts have been forever changed by learning of these kids on the other side of the world that need our help.

We explained to our kids (ages 6 and 4 by next week) that the Lord tells us "Therefore go and make disciples of all nations," (Matt. 28:19a) and what "God our Father accepts as pure and faultless is this: to look after orphans and widows in their distress." (James 1:27). We cannot ignore the call we know the Lord has put on our hearts. . .

We will be looking to sponsors to raise the needed support for this mission, but first we need to let go of the material things of this world. We are making a list of things to sell, things to give away. All of our resources will be going in this direction. If you are interested in being part of our team, either by prayer or financial support, it would be greatly appreciated.

Eating of the Good Land
I just read this email I received and I felt sad to read the plight this woman had with diet, weight, nutrition, exercise, etc. Millions of Americans feel the same way and have the same struggles.

Here was my response: I understand not liking fruits and vegetables and I know you promised you won't like them, but I have just one point to make. The food industry in our wonderful country is not set up to keep people nourished with healthy, satisfying foods. ("Satisfying" is definitely important isn't it? But, so is nourishment.) No, the food industry in the US has one primary goal: profitability! This means fruits, veggies, snack food, restaurant food, whatever, has to be able to travel well and look a certain way in order for it to sell. This is the goal. I would love for you to try something: find a farmers' market near you or an organic, natural food store and try some of the fruits and veggies sold there. Better yet, since it is August in America, see if you can find a friend or neighbor who has grown something in their own garden. Trust me: I do NOT like tomatoes from the grocery store, but a homegrown tomato is delicious! Try it with a little salt or even salad dressing. Buying produce at the grocery store that is shipped on average 1500 miles and may not even be in season where you live will not taste good!

I have really been enjoying Barbara Kingsolver's book Animal, Vegetable, Miracle. It is truly a delicious read. She makes a fabulous comparison to telling a teenager it is really better to wait to have sex for when it is right. (She doesn't say "according to God's plan" here, but that is what I am thinking.) Point being, eating foods as God intended, in their season tasts way better! Anyway, I was recently pondering this in a conversation I had with the Lord, and lo, and behold, I stumbled upon this passage:

And the Lord said unto Joshua, This day have I rolled away the reproach of Egypt from off you. Wherefore the name of the place is called Gilgal unto this day. And the children of Israel encamped in Gilgal, and kept the passover on the fourteenth day of the month at even in the plains of Jericho. And they did eat of the old corn of the land on the morrow after the passover, unleavened cakes, and parched corn in the selfsame day. And the manna ceased on the morrow after they had eated of the old corn of the land; neither had the children of Israel manna any more; but they did eat of the fruit of the land of Canaan that year. And it came to pass, when Joshua was by Jericho, that he lifted up his eyes and looked, and, behold, there stood a man over against him with his sword drawn in his hand: and Joshua went unto him, and said unto him, Art thou for us, or for our adversaries? And he said, Nay: but as captain of the host of the Lord am I now come. And Joshua fell on his face to the earth, and did worship, and said unto him, What saith my lord unto his servant? And the captain of the Lord's host said unto Joshua, Loose thy shoe from off thy foot; for the place whereon thou standest is holy. And Joshua did so. (Joshua 5:9-15 KJV)

So let's see. The Lord rolled away the reproach of Egypt (the world) and the children ate the produce of the land of Canaan (THE GOOD LAND) and they didn't have to eat manna anymore! Then, the Lord's host showed up and said, you're standing on holy ground! Wow!

Much grace and mercy to you! He has already accomplished everything needed for us to walk in newness of life! Be encouraged!

Putting it all on the line

I quit using my clothes dryer on May 7th and embarked on a new journey in the land of "Mount Washmore." The truth is: I am loving it! Any excuse I can find to be outside to do housework and I am all over it!

I made an initial investment of about $20, buying clothesline, clothespins, hooks, pulleys, and a laundry basket. My goal: to makeup that $20 on my natural gas bill with PG&E the first month. The benefits so far have been even greater than I bargained for. I have brought my natural gas bill down from $47 to $26. In addition to the economic benefits, I could probably sing praises for doing laundry "European-style" all day long. Of course, it doesn't hurt that I live in sunny Sacramento, California. My clothes are dry in about the same amount of time as using the dryer.

The big question for many is not about saving money, however, it is about saving time. Is it really worth it? Let me count the ways. . . I am a procrastinator at heart. I have always been pretty good about keeping up with the washing step--it grosses me out to have smelly, dirty clothes sitting around. Then, I can also keep up with "rebooting" the laundry--rotating the wet stuff to the dryer. My problem lies in the next two final steps: folding the laundry and putting it away. I inevitably ended up with a pile at some point during the week on my couch, dining room table, bed, wherever. UGGGHHHH! So the best news (next to saving cold, hard cash) is that my new method seems to have cured me of my procrastination. I basically do a load a day. I have enough line space to hang one really large load or sometimes two smaller loads at a time. I only have one laundry basket. (This is enough for our modestly-sized home.)

As much as I would love to say I am invested solely for the planet, for future generations, for energy conservation and lowering my personal carbon footprint, I am afraid we live in a culture that still cries loudly for immediate gratification and personal benefit. Having said that, I can say without reservation I remain committed to this cause for reasons difficult to put into words. The smell, ahhhhh the smell of sheets freshly dried on the line, the crisp feel of clothes I would never have taken the time to press, the brightness of the whites (without additional chemicals), and my kids want to help! It looks like fun to hang the laundry, and in a way, it is. There is more to the aesthetic of line-drying--a "somebody's home" kind of feeling that takes me to another place in another time. Many of our own mothers hung the clothes on the line. Why did they stop? There is joy in the work.

On Sunday, June 24th the Sacramento Bee had a front page piece on the rising costs of utilities. They reported consumers enjoyed two decades of low natural gas prices before they started climbing several years ago, according to the director of the University of California Energy Institute in Berkeley. According to the federal Bureau of Labor Statistics between March 2002 and March 2007 natural gas costs have risen 70.68%.

My family (4 people--2 adults and 2 kids) does about 7 loads of laundry per week. I have a natural gas dryer. I also have a natural gas hot water heater. My newest plan: on June 15th, I switched to washing all laundry in cold water only. According to research conducted by Procter & Gamble, households can save up to $65 a year by making this switch. (Based on national average electric cost (2/07), water heater at 140F, warm to cold switch, and 7 loads/wk.) So, my goal is to shave another $5 per month off that PG&E bill.

Happy line-drying!

Traveling somehow enables one to view life in a clearer light, uncluttered by the noise and confusion of a busy day. On a recent trip to my hometown, I made the discovery of what I truly desire to attain in my final years. It seems a long way off at the ripe age of thirty-three, but in order to achieve my quest, I must begin my pursuit today.

After observing some elderly friends and relatives, it was apparent the sense of frustration--frustration in a failing body, a forgetful mind, a lack of control of the myriad of changes before them, fear of losing a loved one, of losing independence--waging an inevitable war against the soul. Ironically, as the flesh deteriorates physically, it manifests itself further spiritually.

What am I talking about? As I quietly listened and tried to empathize, I firmly resolved: when I am old, I want to be so filled with joy that nothing else will come out. I no sooner uttered the words aloud to my mom than we both agreed in unison, it must start today. So thus began my quest--to have abundant joy overflowing.

The Lord is so good. It appears to be no coincidence the way He has begun to radically help me with my pursuit. In fact, I believe the answer is in Him. Okay, but now what? Joy is in the beautiful list of fruits of the Holy Spirit and through faith this is a free gift to those who accept Christ. All that said, let's be practical. Do you know any Christians--or anyone at all for that matter--that lives joy?

If I am truly crucified along with Christ, baptized in Him and in the Holy Spirit, if His accomplishment in defeating death, sin and the devil is truly "finished" as He says it is, if His kingdom exists today and He in fact is on the throne at the right hand of God, how could any of us who believe not be joyful?