the best deal
When I was a kid, my mom and I would often go to the grocery store together. As she taught me how to compare prices to find the best deal, she would stroll up each aisle with a list of items in one hand and a calculator in the other. She knew how to make each coin count and how to find the best deal. Now, as my husband and I step out into the unknown as church planters, I face a palpable fear of the uncertainties—some of which are financial. No matter how tightly I hold the calculator, however, I can’t control the future.
abundance
The other day I took my son to a baseball-batting cage and paid for eight sets of 25 pitches. To our pleasant surprise, when the round finished, the balls kept coming—and coming. The machine had malfunctioned, and as a result it kept delivering an abundance of pitches. This reminded me of the time a friend’s 5-year-old daughter woke up and said, “Last night I had the best dream. I was at the beach and more toys than I could ever hope for washed up on the shore for me to have!”
a sure investment
I sat on the gift-shop bench while my family looked for souvenirs. We had just finished climbing nearly 300 steps of spiral staircase to the top of a towering memorial. As I leaned against the wall, the display nearest me caught my attention. Filled with clear packages of coins and bills, it offered a selection of replicas of dated money no longer in circulation. One particular piece—the triangular two-bit—especially intrigued me. Similar only in color to a current coin, I mused on its worthlessness in today’s market.
use what you have
In 2008, economists confirmed that the UK was in recession. Sure enough, in time, as many as one in ten people lost their jobs, and the normally bustling “high streets” fell silent as many well-known companies became insolvent.
laying claim
My mother has developed a habit of occasionally asking us what items we would want once she leaves this earthly existence. Responding with lighthearted humor to her musings on death, and her tendency to be a bit of a packrat, my sister and I tell her not to hide any money in the house because we plan on selling it fully furnished when she dies. When I realized the other day that she still had a grapevine wreath my dad and I had made more than 20 years ago, however, I half-jokingly told her to write my name on it.
guard these well
Japanese-born baseball player Ichiro Suzuki, having led professional leagues in Japan and the US in hitting, is arguably one of the best hitters to ever play the game. One could say he has a special bat—literally. The Mizuno sports equipment company custom-makes bats for Ichiro by hand. They use Tamo wood grown on the Japanese island of Hokkaido, and Ichiro cares for them like Stradivarius violins. He even uses a custom-made suitcase that’s shockproof and moisture-free to protect them.
freeing money
Among the poor, I’ve often encountered extravagant generosity. In the Amazon jungle, locals stretched their meager resources to provide me with daily meals. One evening they prepared fresh monkey stew and though it was not something I cared to eat, it was a costly delicacy for them. Within the slums of Mexico or Indonesia, you’ll often discover individuals who, because they have so little to horde and protect, exhibit the grace of generosity.
a destructive god
There are two essential spiritual truths that we ignore at our peril. The first is that a variety of “gods” seek our allegiance. The second is that we take on the qualities of the gods we worship. Jesus described money as one of these alternative gods, and the secular world is now telling us how worshiping this god affects us.…
earthly loss, heavenly gain
What is the most valuable thing in your life? Some would say family—a spouse, children or parent. Others would list career, education or material possessions. Those struggling with sickness would likely say that health tops the list. Jesus illustrated this same question with two tiny parables (Matthew 13:44-46).
He told of two people who stumbled upon treasures. In both tales…
our homes . . .
It matters not whether we live in ramshackle huts,
or in luxurious bungalows,
as long as God’s love freely springs from within our hearts,
and we grow wherever it flows.
It matters not whether we live in the hills or mountains,
or along the coasts or river banks,
as long as we live in righteousness until Christ returns,
and always give God glory…
clean utensils
Have you ever been dining at a restaurant—sitting before a plate of appetizing, mouth watering food, when suddenly you discovered (to your horror) that your utensils were encrusted with food from a previous customer? Yuck! That plate of food suddenly didn’t appear to be so delicious after all. Upset, perhaps even angry, you probably expected a set of clean utensils,…
living light
When Dee Williams decided to downsize she sold her 3-bedroom house and moved into an 84-square foot “tiny house.” This transition liberated her from a monthly mortgage payment. She now owns her home—which cost a fraction of the price—and pays just hardly anything each month in heating costs. Before moving in, Dee purged many of her possessions. Old photos, love…
free solo
A recent article in National Geographic Magazine published remarkable images of climbers as they scaled the sheer rock face of Yosemite’s 2,916- ft. (889 meters) El Capitan. Astonishingly, some of the climbers make portions of the ascent without safety ropes in a death-taunting exercise known as “free solo.” These guys literally live on the edge.
Some of the most hard-core climbers…
no brown m&m’s
When rock band Van Halen was riding the wave of popularity, they insisted that a bowl of M&M’s be provided for them backstage at their concert venues. Yet every brown M&M had to be removed from the bowl. If the band arrived and found even a single brown M&M in the bowl, they would cancel their performance but still receive…
who are you?
Charles Taylor has a big ego. The former president of Liberia once attended an African conference in full combat gear, riding into town as his armed bodyguards jogged alongside his car. When he was accused of being a gunrunner and diamond smuggler, Taylor shamelessly addressed his people clothed in angelic white. But Taylor’s atrocities finally caught up with him and…
