Decreasing

This is what's rocking my world lately:
http://shaungroves.com/2011/06/meeting-the-neighbors-next-door/

And these are the faces of some that need help: http://www.compassion.com/sponsor_a_child/default.htm?referer=80312

This is just one of the many ways God has been showing me that I need to decrease myself so that others may increase.

Lately Dustie and I have been devouring books: During April and May we went through Crazy Love & Forgotten God by Francis Chan, Christian Athiest & Weird by Craig Groeschel and The Hiding Place by Corrie Ten Boom. During that same span of time, we were full speed ahead in the planning process of building a house, as well as updating the one we live in now.

One night, after talking to a friend who would be our builder & even picking out the plans for our dream home, we drove home (about an hour drive) and listened to the end of Crazy Love. We weren't even finished with the book when the Holy Spirit convicted both of us & we knew that we weren't supposed to build this house right now. Chan was talking about how truly impoverished people live in tents w/ dirt floors, filthy water, etc. (well, just look at the pictures in Shaun Groves' blog) & here I am joking about how I'm just a "poor Pastor's Wife" who "needs" more than one bathroom and wants each of my babies to have their own cute little nursery. Can we say...CONVICTION!??! Talk about putting things into perspective!

I'm a little hesitant to even post this part b/c I do not want to be mistaken. Please don't think I'm saying it's bad to build a house, or that God doesn't want us to have nice things b/c that's not what I'm saying at all. In fact, I don't think that is true. I know that this is MY personal conviction at this time, and maybe one day, when our glorious 2 bedroom is bursting at the seams, it will be the right time to build. All of this was just a personal shove by the Holy Spirit to get me to WAKE UP! I have been SO consumed by a society telling me that we should live a certain way and my kids should have certain things and I believed it. I completely bought every word. Yes, I know my Bible says to not live like the world, but never did this concept of, "me going without so that others could have" fall on me so heavily. Ever since God opened my eyes to this, He has given me opportunity-after-opportunity to practice what He has shown me. Little-by-little, I think He is helping me to GET OVER MYSELF and focus more on others.

What does this look like for my family? Well, my sweet husband rarely WANTS anything & he is already living on budgeted amount each week. I'm more of the one with the WANTS, so this means, no extra Target trips to "see what they have." It doesn't matter if it's all from the dollar section! 30 dollars is 30 dollars! It means trying my hand at this crazy couponing thing (no, I'm not "extreme," nor will I ever have enough time to be "extreme," but every small bit helps). It means...*gasp!* my next baby will have to share a room with Jax! It means, we will wait till our kids are a little older before we refinish our hard wood floors. It means I don't get the newest name brand handbag or accessory. It means my child doesn't need 3 different bathing suits for this summer & he can even wear the 2 he had last summer since they still fit. It means, I need to learn to cook. It means dropping our Dish Network package to the basic channels-yeah, that's right, we got a package they "don't have." Anyways...you get the picture. All these small steps (I haven't really missed anything so far. I think they were just kinda my lifestyle habits.) are small things our family can do so that we can give a little more than our tithe, or sponsor a child overseas who needs shoes...or to EAT, or to bless others in any way that God may see fit.

Groeschel says, "The Church exists not for us, but for those who don't yet know Him. It is changing lives and the world. It loves radically, serves sacrificially and gives extravagantly." My prayer is that God would show His love to others through me and my family and my church.

This process of sanctification can sure rock my world sometimes. I think I'm doing awesome & God shows me another way to know Him more. I'm so thankful for it and I'm thankful that God loves me enough to change me and continue to work on me!

"He must increase, but I must decrease." John 3:30