Things you should watch, and read, and hear (and a giveaway!)

Here's the story: I lost my computer charger and my computer has been dead for almost a week. Today I finally bit the bullet and bought a new charger, so I could (you know) actually do my work. So that's been fun. Also, only being home for a week amidst weeks of camp means a whole lotta crazy in a short period of time. NOT a break, in other words. Currently, there are approximately 12 teenage boys loudly cheering for the Spurs and/or Heat in the other room. Which doesn't make for a relaxing evening; although the good news is that my kids are sleeping through the crazy like champs.

So far this week I've had 2 root canals and five fillings, tomorrow I have to go to the office and then Adam is taking some boys camping this weekend. In other words, I'm exhausted and all I really want to do is take a pain killer for my terrible swollen and painful teeth, and go to bed. Which, in fact, is what I would be doing if I wasn't wasting time here, and also editing pictures. Sigh.

Anyways, enough complaining. I've been saving up some links and reading material for y'all. And even, if you can stick with me all the way to the end, a giveaway!

*First of all, if you haven't already seen this video of Caden and Jayci and the boys doing one of the camp cheers, you should watch it pronto. Because, I'm not even being biased when I tell you it's the cutest thing ever. 

*This next clip is the trailer for a film put together by some friends of mine called After the End. It's powerful stuff y'all, and I cannot even wait to see the whole thing.

After the End : Trailer from Untold Creative on Vimeo.

A few more of my favorite posts from around the web the last couple weeks:
*The Rhythm of Grace from SheLoves
*Want to Change the World? Sponsor a Child from Christianity Today
*Thinking about Robbers from DL Mayfield

I just finished reading The Kitchen House (loved it) and Personal Papers, and I'm currently reading The Lacuna by Barbara Kingsolver. Next up is Gone Girl.

I also just finished reading A Little Salty to Cut the Sweet (by my sweet friend Sophie, aka BooMama).  And I completely loved her words (I knew I would), they are such a beautiful and funny reminder of the importance of family, and the ways our stories intersect in such poignant God-orchestrated ways. Best of all, she included some delicious-sounding recipes at the end, which I cant wait to whip up have Adam make me.

Finally, my good friend Rolando just put out his first EP. You guys know how much I love some good Christian rap, and Ro is the real deal. You can check out his website at Love is my Religion, and be sure to download his music too (ps - I took that picture. You know, it's whatever).

And now, the moment you have been waiting for (and y'all know it can take me a minute to get there). . . The Giveaway! I have one copy of BooMama's fabulous book (A Little Salty to Cut the Sweet), and a copy of Rolando's new CD for one of my lucky friends. Consider it a thank-you for sticking around even when I'm MIA and/or incoherent in my ramblings. Enter the giveaway using Rafflecopter below, and I'll pick a winner on Monday (ish . . . because y'all know how good I am at staying on top of things).

a Rafflecopter giveaway

Throwback Thursday: Cultivating the Soil

I clearly havent been doing a very good job of keeping everything up-to-date in the blog department. So I figured why start now with the new updates? I'll just share an old post instead; after all, it is throwback thursday (also, how cool to re-read this on the other side of the cultivating season. God is so gracious to us!)

originally posted February 2010

For the last few weeks I've been in somewhat of a funk (and by "somewhat" I mean "majorly"). I think it's a result of feeling stuck in our house and unable to move downtown. I was honestly (yikes to writing this down) feeling angry at God. Because why would He give us this vision for serving and living in the city, and then not provide a way for us to get there?

Not to mention that it was frigid-cold and I have been cooped up in the house for days on end with my defiant 17 month old. I felt like my ministry was non-existent. What I was doing didn't matter. I used to go downtown and volunteer and work with the kiddos 3 or 4 days a week at least. Now it's one day on a good week. So why would God be moving me AWAY from what I was certain He had called me towards?

But then this week, the Lord did an amazing thing. No, He didn't sell our house. Or provide us a house downtown. . . He changed my perspective and transformed my heart.

Sometimes we can get so overwhelmed by the size and abundance of our vision (or God's blessing) that we forget how much time and work it can take to get there.

Take, for example, the Israelites. In the description of the Promised Land in Numbers 13:23, the Word says: "They cut off a branch bearing a single cluster of grapes. Two of them carried it on a pole between them." Um hello? A single cluster of grapes that has to be carried on a pole by two people? Those must have been some freakin' huge grapes people. I mean, not even I'm that out of shape that i can't just pick up a cluster of grapes and carry it all by my lonesome.

For the Isrealites, the huge grapes were a promise of an abundance in the land they were going to inherit. But fear, and disobedience, prevented them from immediately laying hold of that abundance. In our lives, we see these ginormous grapes, this vision we've been given for our ministry in the city. And I'm all like: "well great, I love giant grapes, lets do this thing . . . "

However, I learned this week that grapes take a long time to cultivate. Three out of four seasons during the year, the vines aren't producing fruit. In fact, sometimes they look downright dead. Because maybe it's not the right season for fruitfulness. Sometimes you have to cultivate the soil. Or prune the vines. Or wait. . . But just because something looks dead, doesn't mean it IS dead. Because scrape the surface, and you'll the green that's germinating and hiding within.

I realized that even when my life might LOOK dead, and I might not be producing fruit like I want to be, things are happening. God is cultivating the soil and working under the surface to grow my roots. To prune me. To strengthen me. To prepare me.

With that realization, my heart and perspective were transformed. Because this season is just as important as the fruit-producing season. In fact, without this season, there would be no fruit. So I will rest in the work (which sounds like an oxymoron) that Christ is doing to prepare me. And I will anticipate and envision and pray for those big grapes, that promise, the vision I know He's given us.

What about you, what is He cultivating in you during this season of your life? I'm praying that you will remember that it's all important for the harvest. And those people who are in their fruitful season, they might LOOK more exciting and "good" and like they're doing more for the kingdom, but you never know what's happening and what God is doing below the surface to work in those who might LOOK like they're dead.

"I am the vine; you are the branches. If a man remains in me and I in him, he will bear much fruit; apart from me you can do nothing." - John 15:5

Camp 2013: The First Week

As it turns out, we got all our forms for the first week of camp. Some of them mere minutes before we left, but still. All the forms and kids filled every single available seat in our cars. We're half-way through camp now, and I'd forgotten how much I love it here, particularly because my babies sleep so well while we're here. It's shocking how much better they sleep here. I guess I need to run them around outside and let them participate in giant water balloon tosses and food fights daily, and THEN they will sleep for me.

Anyways, if things are a little quiet here over the next couple weeks it's because we're in the midst of our seventh year of camp. SEVEN! I am also exhausted from all the walking and chasing Caden and swimming and such; so for now, just a few quick pictures from our first couple days here with 24 neighborhood kids. Next week, we bring 20 more.

*Despite the fact that I apparently haven't taken a single picture of him, Caden is in fact here at camp with us. He loves it, of course. 

Congested

My head and sinuses feel about as congested as our front porch right now. That is to say, crowded to the point of bursting. The pressure, it's next-to-unbearable. I'm not sure if I'm just suffering from a nasty head-cold, or maybe allergies or something, but I'll just go ahead and tell you that I feel Terrible. Yup, with a capital T.

Technically, this is our first summer HERE at our house in the hood. The first summer we lived here, I was super-duper preggo with Caden, and we spent most of the time at camp. Then last summer we were at camp all summer. This summer, however, we are splitting our time between camp and home. And y'all, somehow I was completely unprepared for the complete chaos that is summer in our home.

 

Statistics say that many kids in “at-risk” and poor communities will go hungry during the summer months, without the breakfast and lunch they are usually provided in their schools. Now, to be fair, these statistics can never be as nuanced and complex as the reality of the kiddos’ lives entails. I don’t know how many kids would actually be hungry/not-hungry etc, or how accurate all of those statistics really are. But let me tell you, we've been feeding some kiddos. Some kiddos who can straight-put-down the food. And most of them are here from sun-up til sun-down, and would stay past then if we let them. 

Sometimes lunch is peanut butter sandwiches and dinner is ramen noodles. The kiddos usually make me noodles, careful not to put in too much hot-sauce since, admittedly, I'm a little bit of a wimp. But somehow in the making and serving and sitting down around the table together, our communion over even a meal of noodles leads to deeper community, and finds us staring into the heart of Jesus. 

So as busy as we are, as tired and congested as I feel in this moment, I am grateful. And also looking forward to being at camp next week. That way, you know, we can keep things a bit more low-key. Ha.

Have I mentioned we are bringing 65 kids from the neighborhood to camp this summer? Don't worry, it's spread out over four weeks. And I'm pretty sure we've collected permission slips for five of those kids so far, despite handing out at least four forms (to replace lost ones) to each kid who wants to come. Hmm, that reminds me - I should go try and collect more forms right now. Pray for me?

I know I'm a little sporadic around here, and I almost didn't post today until I decided not to put too much pressure on myself to write something GOOD and DEEP, and instead just give myself permission to write ANYTHING. So here I am, thanks for joining me.

The Little Blue Box

(originally posted January 2011)

Anyone who knows me at all knows that my car is somewhat of a, well, junk-collector. In fact, last time the kiddos rode in my dad’s car they said: “Becca, your car ain’t never been this clean.” Out of the mouth of children comes truth my friends.

When we pulled up to April’s temporary residence the other day, children literally poured from the house and packed themselves into every crevice of my car. They were determined it was going to snow and they could come spend the night at our house. Besides feeling slightly panicky at the thought of Toddrick (who most likely needs some ADHD medication or at the very least a little Super-Nanny) running around my house, I was pretty convinced that Tuesday night was not going to bring snow (and lo and behold I was right. As usual).

Oh my rabbit trail.

Anyways, while the kids were in the car, they discovered all manner of knick-knacks and trash-like items, which they were determined they should keep. In fact, I let them have approximately 19 diet coke cans in order to hide my major slight problem from Adam. Oh I kid. But seriously, sweet little Ray-Ray found a tiny little blue box (which at one point held earrings, which are now lost. Probably somewhere in my car). He begged me to let him keep it. I peeked inside to make sure it didn’t contain my missing earrings, and then readily agreed. Because, you know, one less thing for me to throw away.

After much ferrying and transporting of items and people from residence to apartment and back again (a journey which involved being tailed for a good 10 minutes by some undercover cops. Who were very sneaky and under-cover-like hiding in the Bluffs in an unmarked car holding 4 white guys in black caps and gov’t plates). We finally dropped April and the babies back off. We were just getting ready to pull out of the driveway, when Ray Ray came running back out to hand me the little blue box. Despite my assurances that it was for him to keep forever, he insisted that I take it, whispering in my ear that there was a present inside. Grinning and winking at him, I took the box and hurried to the car in an attempt to escape the frigid cold. It’s like I never even lived in Canada with my low tolerance for sub-zero weather.

Pulling out of the neighborhood, I peeked inside the box, and saw a crumpled up one dollar bill. And in that moment, I melted into a puddle on the ground. I mean that gift, my friends, was one of the truest expressions of loving kindness and sacrifice I have ever received. All of a sudden, I was able to understand Jesus’ words about the widow who sacrificed everything. Giving her few coins when it was all she had. Sacrificial Giving. The kind of giving that Jesus described in Luke when he said: "All these people gave their gifts out of their wealth; but she out of her poverty put in all she had to live on" (Luke 21:4).

So what does it look like in my life, in your lives, to give sacrificially? I dont even know the answer to that. But I know that we are all living in poverty in one way or another: be it relationally, personally, materially, spiritually . . . So out of my lack, out of my poverty, I will give.

“I will not sacrifice to the LORD my God burnt offerings that cost me nothing." (2 Sam 24:24)

What I'm Into: May

Happy Memorial Day weekend everyone! Judging by the amount of traffic in Atlanta yesterday and today, y'all must be going some places. 

Also, it's possible I started something new. Because, you know, why not? I just wasn't loving my 52 week project and I thought I might as well just start taking a picture a day again, I usually do anyways. I'm collecting them all on a new tumblr site instead of trying to keep them up to date here. Anyways, you can go check it out right here if you're interest: Stanley Clan 365.

And now, a reading update (if this isn't the most well-written and cohesive post ever, than I dont know what is).

*Toddlers Helping at Parenting: Illustrated with Crappy Pictures. This, this is our life currently. It's exhausting.
*Why City Living is Beautiful Too - from my girl Shannan at Flowerpatch Farmgirl.
*I've been really interested in reading Jen Hatmaker's 2-part series on Adoption Ethics. I think she also said there will eventually be a part three. For now, check out Part One and Part Two.
*Downward Mobility - DL Mayfield
*Searching for Pentecost 
*The Bloggess - Me and the Internet

Speaking of reading, I also signed up for Good Reads. Because again, why not? It's not like I dont already have entirely too many things to unsuccessfully stay caught up on. If you're on Good Reads too, look me up - I'd love to see what you've been reading too!

*Linking up with Leigh Kramer.

Throwback Thursday: Jump

Once, almost four years ago, Adam and I had some friends who made a video about our lives. It's funny to look back on it for a few reasons: 1-We are now actually living in the city (yay for realized dreams!) and 2-I'm wearing the same shirt today, clearly I am very up-to-date on all the latest styles.

BVtv: Jump from Broken Voices on Vimeo.