A Look Back...

This week, besides taking down my Christmas decorations, I will be looking back at 2010 and evaluating it. I will also be looking forward to 2011 and planning for it. Today I’m looking back:

This year it was clear that God was working on several areas of my life with me. Primarily, generosity, gratitude, and trust. As so often happens, these were the areas I was feeling prompted to work on myself!

Gratitude: I have been so grateful this year for God’s provision, for His ever-presence, for His interest in the smallest details of my life. I do not have the words to explain to you my gratitude for how God has provided for us since late 2007 when the housing market began its collapse. And if that weren’t enough, He has provided for us this year by Dan’s appraisal business increasing more than we could have imagined! It’s not back to the old levels, but it’s way ahead of 2007, 2008, 2009 levels.

Generosity: The day the earthquake struck Haiti in January 2010, my thoughts immediately went to an orphanage that I had seen on TLC’s show “Adoption Stories”. There were several episodes involving this orphanage and I remembered the director’s name, Dixie. I also remembered her flaming red hair! I could not remember the name of the orphanage. I googled on what I thought it was and found it. Thank God none of the children had been injured, and although they were all very shaken, there was no major damage to their buildings. I felt this overwhelming desire to help, but was a novice at organizing a charity drive. I decided to just do it, and we collected eight boxes of general donations to send to Haiti. Then, this past summer, two friends and I joined together for a Flip-Flop drive for the orphanage to celebrate our birthdays. Our goal was 162 pairs of flip-flops and we collected well over 300 pairs. Wow! What a great experience that was! This past week I went to Family Support Resources to wrap Christmas gifts for kids living in the 20 group homes managed by FSR. I came away with a great idea for a charity drive for their kids… look for details later this week.

Trust: I read a book this summer that revolutionized my prayer life, and my trust in God. The book suggested that instead of praying and asking for the resources we need for our daily life, we should be thanking God in advance for supplying those resources. In His time. From sources He chooses. Our job is to trust that He will provide and to wisely use what He does provide. Wow, that really spoke to me and beginning that day I changed my prayers. I no longer ask God to send us appraisal orders. I thank Him for the orders we’ve received, for the orders we will receive, and I pray for wisdom in using those fees the way He intends us to use them. This has made a huge difference in my attitude.

This year has been exciting in a variety of ways. Dan has taught me more about the administrative side of appraisals so I can be a partner of sorts in DEK Appraisals. He plans to teach me more next year, which I’m looking forward to. I like to be a contributor to the success of his business.

I spent time with friends this year, read lots of books, enjoyed time with my kids and granddaughter. I didn’t cross-stitch as much I wanted to, but there’s always next year.

In 2010, I really felt the difference of being out from under some of the stress-load of the previous three years. I felt it emotionally, spiritually, mentally, and physically. It was wonderful! It’s funny how you don’t realize the weight of the stress until it starts to lift. You actually feel lighter.

All in all, 2010 was a fantastic year. Now, I can turn my thoughts toward 2011…

Looking for a Way to Give This Year?

I receive the Dave Ramsey eNewsletter each month. Yesterday’s issue had some really good ideas of ways we can be generous, not only this time of year, but any time of the year. Some of them won’t cost you a dime.

If you decide to participate in one, please comment on my blog and tell me how it went. If you have some good ideas of ways we can give, please share them with us through a comment.

1. Buy several winter jackets at a discount retail store and deliver them to the homeless in your community.
2. Pay the power bill for a family who is struggling financially.
3. Purchase a restaurant gift card for a young couple who are new parents, and offer to babysit their kiddo for free.
4. When checking out at the grocery store, hand the cashier some cash and tell her you want to pay for a needy family's groceries.
5. Take a single mom on a Christmas shopping spree for her kids.
6. Clean the home of a shut-in and cook for them. Stay and chat with them over dinner.
7. Bless your pastor with a Christmas bonus.
8. Call your church and ask them if they know a family in need of gifts this year. Then, purchase a gift for each family member and drop it off at their doorstep on Christmas Eve.
9. Shovel snow, rake leaves, or pick weeds for an elderly couple in or near your neighborhood.
10. Next time you fill up your gas tank, give the clerk $50 and tell him you want to pay for someone else's gas bill

319 Pairs of Flip-Flops Are on the Way to Haiti Orphanage!

Thanks to all of you our flip-flop drive was a resounding success! On May 25, 2010 I announced that my friends Beth and Nancy and I were holding a flip-flop drive to celebrate our 54th birthdays. The drive was to support the God's Littlest Angels Orphanage in Haiti. Our goal was 54 pairs of flip-flops each for a grand total of 164 pairs.

Your response blew our socks off! We collected 319 pairs of flip-flops in all sizes, colors, patterns and $50 in postage donations. This translates to eight boxes filled with flip-flops. Thank you does not seem enough to say to describe our gratefulness for your generosity.

Keep watching this blog for another giving opportunity in January 2011. And again, thank you for making our birthdays so memorable!

Book Review: In a Heartbeat by Leigh Anne & Sean Tuohy

Wow. That's my review. Wow. I really enjoyed this book. I couldn't put it down. If you saw the movie The Blind Side or read the book by the same title by Michael Lewis, you may think you know the Tuohy family. You don't. This book is written by the couple about their family. Yes, it's also about their adoption of Michael Oher. But it's so much more than that.

This is a book about giving. It's a book about giving small that turns into giving big. It's a book about looking at the people right in front of us, recognizing their needs, and choosing to do something to help them. It's about making generosity a part of our life day-to-day. It's about a family that is not perfect, far from it. But, it's a family that recognizes how blessed they are and a family that is determined to use those blessings to bless others.

The thing that I admired most about this book was their willingness to put themselves out there. Warts and all. Character flaws and all. Imperfections and all. It's the kind of book that makes you look at yourself and realize "I can make a difference too!"

I highly recommend this book. If you do read it, I'd enjoy hearing your comments.

What a Response!

Check out the current total on our flip-flop drive for the orphanage in Haiti! We're so thrilled at the response. Our drive continues until August 26, so if you want to contribute there is still time. We're also accepting donations for the postage to get all of these flip-flops to the orphanage. Thank you to everyone who has contributed, you're the best!

A Season of Service

Since I read "One Simple Act" by Debbie Macomber earlier this year, I've been focusing on how I can be generous in my life. I want generosity to be an everyday act in my life. This doesn't mean that I'm going to dole out one dollar bills to strangers on the street everyday, or pledge money to cure cancer, it means that I want to exhibit kindness and generosity each day through some (usually small) act.

Yesterday, I heard a man on KLOVE talking about the Season of Service event taking place in Phoenix in March 2011. I don't know the details, they're not what caught my attention. What intrigues me is the term season of service. That describes exactly what I want for the theme of this phase of my life. I want to share. To serve. I want to be generous all the time. I want it to become second nature for me to continually be thinking of how I can help others, friends and strangers alike, every single day.

I'm determined to pursue this within the realm of reality. Meaning I'm not going to set extraordinarily high standards for myself thus dooming myself to failures. I'm going to be real. Some days my act of generosity may be talking to a friend on the phone for 10 minutes. Other days it may be talking to her for one hour. Some days it may be sitting down to jot a quick note to a friend and place it in the mail. Other days it may be sending her a really long email. Some days it may be buying an extra can of food to start a stash for the holiday food drive. Other days it may be collecting flip-flops with my friends to send to Haiti. Hopefully every day it will include praying, not only for the prayer requests I receive, but for God to show me additional, out-of-the-box ways to express His generosity to me by being generous to others.

I'm quite serious about this. I feel convicted about this. God keeps putting this in front of my face this year. Kindness is one of the Fruits of the Spirit. I need to display kindness in my life, along with love, joy, peace, patience (really?!), goodness, faithfulness, gentleness, and self-control. (Galatians 5:22-23)

Here I go... wish me success!

Flip-flop Drive Update

As you can see from the totals to the right, our flip-flop drive for God's Littlest Angels Orphanage in Haiti is progressing well. Just a note, if you  want to participate I have a bargain alert for you. Michael's is offering their flip-flops at 50% off this week 6/13-19. What a deal! Thank you to those of you who have already donated.

Join Us For a Birthday Flip-Flop Drive for Haiti

Nancy Custead, Vicki Koons, & Beth Ryall

are inviting you to join us

this year as we celebrate our birthdays by paying it forward

we’re turning 54 and our goal is to collect 54 pairs of flip-flops each

making our total goal 162 pairs of flip-flops

we’ll accept all sizes: men’s, women’s, kids, toddlers

new or very gently used

we’re donating the flip-flops to

God’s Littlest Angel Orphanage in Haiti

the drive will take place May 24 – August 26

to donate & for information on collection sites, please leave a comment on this blog

thank you for your generosity and for joining with us as we celebrate our friendship and our birthdays!

for information about God’s Little Angels check out http://glahaiti.org/

you’re welcome to forward this information to anyone interested in participating in our drive

book review: One Simple Act by Debbie Macomber

One Simple Act (Discovering the Power of Generosity) by Debbie Macomber

Debbie Macomber is one of my favorite authors. I seldom read fiction and even more rarely read fiction written by a female. She is the exception to the rule. Her books are entertaining and very easy to read.

In this, her second non-fiction work, she discusses the power of generosity and the characteristics necessary to become generous:

Leap from the springboard of gratitude

Participate in the mystery of sharing

Perform acts of encouragement

Develop the habit of good deeds

Expand the impact of forgiveness

Release the power of believing the best

Experience the bounty of open-handed giving

Practice the art of listening

Celebrate the privilege of inspring hope

Share the spirit of Christmas

Bestow the gift of caregiving

Donate the bounty of time

Present the offering of prayer

Enjoy the sharing of faith stories

Cultivate the heart of service

Give God the last word in how you invest your life

There are many scripture references throughout the book. Each chapter also ends with "Simple Acts of..."; practical examples of how to practice that chapter's theme.

This book was encouraging in that I found out that I do practice some generosity in my life. It was inspirational in that it gave me many more ideas of how to be generous... every day.

This is a very easy read and will leave you inspired to reach out to others in a variety of ways that can fit into even the busiest lifestyle.

You can find "One Simple Act" at Costco, Sam's Club, the Christian inspiration section at Barnes & Noble or Borders, or at your local Christan Bookstore.

book review

The Blind Side by Michael Lewis

When we went to see the movie, The Blind Side, the first thing I said as the lights were coming up was, "I have to read this book." So first, a disclaimer, I have never seen a movie based on a book that is better than the book and this is no exception.

When I bought The Blind Side, I thought I was buying a book about the life of Michael Oher. Was I wrong! The movie focuses on Michael Oher's life with the Tuohy family, but the book's focus is more broad. This book tells the story of a remarkable young man who overcomes a severly disadvantaged childhood, the generous family that sets out to help him and comes to love him, and the changes in football strategy that led to the importance of the left tackle position. All of these elements converge in The Blind Side to tell a story of hope.

I have to be honest, there were at least three chapters in the book that I just skimmed. These chapters dealt with the changes in professional football from 1973 to the 2000s. I like football, but I'm not at all into the rules, the purpose of the positions, coaching methods, or any of that. Even though I didn't really read these chapters, I read enough to understand the impact of the evolution of football and how it contributed to making Michael Oher's story a success story.

I highly recommend this book. It drives home the point that everybody, and I mean everybody deserves a chance. For every Michael Oher that makes it out of the hell hole of poverty, there are dozens, maybe even hundreds that don't. He made it out partly because of his athletic abilities. The book makes the point that how do those with other talents ever make it out? The kids that are musically talented, the kids that are technologically gifted, the kids that could have great careers in business? Because their talents are not readily visible, they probably don't stand a chance.

It's sober reading, but it's a great story.

Updates

1. God's Littlest Angels: We're still collecting items for the orphanage. I have two boxes packed and ready to go. My hope is to have everything mailed by 2/19. Thank you so much to everyone who has donated. My plan is to hold a flip-flop drive this summer for the orphanage, that's the shoes they all wear, and then in the fall I'm going to hold a specific donation event also. If you want advance notice, email me and I'll put you on my orphanage mailing list.

2. $5 savings plan: I am so excited about the $5 savings plan. We saved $65 in January, yippee! I've decided to take the money at the end of each month and put it in our savings account. I'm not comfortable keeping it here at home. I know every month will be different, but I think $65 was a good start! In case you think I'm going to bore you with a total each month, don't worry! I won't update this again until the end of the year.

3. The Christmas Jar: The Christmas Jar was about 2/3 full and getting heavy, so I rolled what I could and returned the rest of the coins to it. I will turn in the rolls and then put the bills in the jar. I never thought about how heavy a quart jar filled with coins would be! I plan to roll at the end of each month. Other than counting the coins out for the rolls, I'm not counting the rest of it. I figure God knows how much money needs to be in the jar, and I don't need to know.