IJM Campaign Update

Thank you to all of you who have donated to my campaign page for International Justice Mission. I still have a few weeks to go before my deadline, but we have reached the goal! 

I am so excited! Now, I know that we can surpass my goal, because only 15 have donated. That's alot of money raised from 15 people. If I could get 20 more people to give just $5 then we'd raise an extra $100 just like that. So I am asking again. Check out the campaign page for more info on International Justice Mission and the great work they are doing around the world.

Campaign Page

Book Review: Christmas at Harringtons

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Christmas at Harringtons
by Melody Carlson

I have been trying to read all things Christmas this season and I came across this free e-book in the last few weeks. I am not a huge Christmas novel fan, but I figured I would give it a shot. It is the season after all, and I'm no Scrooge. So I downloaded it.

I started reading it yesterday on my lunch break and was able to finish it by bedtime last night. It was an easy read for sure. But I also found it very enjoyable and unexpected!

The storyline is certainly unique. A woman who just gets out of prison is befriended on the bus trip as she heads out in hopes of starting over with life. Beginning with that trip, nothing happens quite as she imagines, but she finds her faith again and the truth is revealed and proclaimed in more than one way.

Much like Les Miserables it deals with the issue of forgiveness and second chances. Is a criminal always a criminal? We are so quick to judge without knowing all the facts, or even when we do, we still judge. You will think twice about how you would respond to the situation that arises.

Overall, good simple read with a good message!

IJM Freedom Campaign Launch

In conjunction with my Black Friday article I decided that words alone are not enough. I need to act. So in my boycott of consumerism this year I have started a campaign to raise funds for International Justice Mission. I am seeking to raise $500 by the beginning of January. You can donate by going to my campaign page at the link that follows. Feel free to forward it to your friends as well.

https://ijmfreedommaker.org/campaign/657/The-True-Meaning-of-Christmas

I am not opposed to Christmas gifts. I enjoy giving and receiving as well. But at some point enough is enough. When we can't tell the difference between needs and wants, when we can't be satisfied and content with all we have been given, when we can't even dedicate one entire day to being grateful without looking to buy more...we need a change.

I have struggled with the question of how much is enough. Is it ok to spend so much on myself when others are starving? There is no clear cut answer but I believe that God does bless those who look to Him. I believe He blesses those who have little materially, in different ways than He blesses those who have much materially. In some ways, they may understand God's faithfulness more than I ever will. I don't think it's a matter of how much a person has because God gives to each of His children differently. We were born in a country that has abundance, but it wasn't our choosing. Some are born into poverty, but that isn't their choosing either. I think what is important is that we all come to the understanding that nothing we have is truly ours and our hands should loosely hold anything given to us.

I think Tozer sums it up nicely in an excerpt from The Pursuit of God. "The man who has God for his treasure has all things in One. Many ordinary treasures may be denied him, or if he is allowed to have them, the enjoyment of them will be so tempered that they will never be necessary to his happiness. Or if he must see them go, one after one, he will scarcely feel a sense of loss, for having the Source of all things he has in One all satisfaction, all pleasure, all delight. Whatever he may lose he has actually lost nothing, for he now has it all in One, and has it purely, legitimately and forever."