Lenten Preparation Pt. 2

photo comes from www.worldmapper.org

Conviction.

Last week in my New Testament class, Dr. Rowe presented to us a website, which really challenged my views of the world. I've always been sort of aware of the poverty situation in America and the world. But I've never felt as convicted as I have felt the last week to do something about it. Not that I, one person, can change the overwhelming statistics of people who are dying on a daily basis because one of their basic needs are not being met.  The map above one of the maps Dr. Rowe showed us in class. This represents the population, in 2002, of the world who live on less than $2/day. That $2 would be spent on the basic needs of food, shelter, and water. Medicine, clothing, books, and other "luxuries" would not be a priority to a family living at this level. Another source I came across reported that about half the world's population lives on less than $2.50/day.

The more I read, the more my heart sank. I cried. And I knew that even though I can't change the numbers, that I could maybe change it for one person or for a family. For now, that will have to be good enough.

Lenten Commitment.

This brings me to the commitment I am making for forty days. Originally, I wanted to spend the forty days of Lent in a total fast. But due to health reasons, I have been advised not to do that at this time. (At some point in my life, I WILL do this...) I am a 100% healthy, 23 year old female. But I do have to watch some of my vitamin, sugar, and protein levels--doctor's words. 

For the forty days of Lent, I will be living on an amount between $2-$2.50/day. I figure the easiest way to do this is to budget between $14-$17.50/week for my necessities. More often than not, I will stick to the $2/day budget. I realize this isn't a total sacrifice--my housing is fully paid for; I have my own means of transportation; I have more clothes in my closet than I could ever truly need; I have adequate health insurance and access to medicine if I need it. So no, I don't think that what I am about to engage in is a true representation of what someone who is truly hungry is experiencing. And I'm not so sure that it will truly make a difference...but I'm not sure that is the point in all this. 

Food is so integrated into our daily lives; we survive off of it, we spend time in conversation around it and we just really enjoy food. In a lot of cases it is something we struggle with; it can be sinful. For many years of my life this was the case; I found more comfort in food than I found in talking and sharing in my life with God. When i was feeling sad, happy or anywhere in between, food was my friend. I'd say this held true in my life until about 3-5 years ago; definitely 3 years ago.

I will begin this practice on February 13 (Ash Wednesday) and will end on March 24, rather than March 30; that's 40 days straight. Who knows, maybe I'll go the full 46 days. But I will not take Sunday's to celebrate the "mini-Easter"it represents.

I will also be taking a daily multivitamin to ensure my vitamin levels are maintained. (I'm hoping you all will hold me accountable to make sure I am doing this in a healthy, holy way).

As I've been preparing myself mentally for this I have thought about some of the sacrifices I will have to make. It really doesn't seem like it will be that hard to live on a couple bucks a day. But it's a greater sacrifice than that. And there are some fuzzy lines.

• It means absolutely no eating out...so when friends go out to eat, I will go but will not eat with them. 
• What do I do if someone offers to buy me food? Well, I'm technically not paying for it, so I guess that would be okay. (Please do not offer to buy my food!)
• it means no diet coke. this is something i've been trying to give up for a long time and have had recent success in cutting down on the amount I consume. I'd also like to say that the fact the $1.50 I've spent on a 16 oz. diet coke in the Refectory is a representation as to how much a good percentage of the world lives off of on a daily basis.
• no shopping. that's right, no more clothing (no matter how cute that dress is/will be) My one exception will be Spring Break, because there are plans that have been in the works for months now. I'll have to think and reflect more on how to make this apart of my Lenten journey.

With the money I will be saving (including the shopping trips and eating out), I plan to donate an amount to an organization who supports individuals and families that are living at this level. My thoughts are either Heifer International (based in Little Rock, AR) or UMCOR (United Methodist Committee on Relief). Both are excellent organizations and are working toward lowering the percentage of people dying from hunger.

I'm not sure if this has been laid upon my heart because of my upcoming trip to Uganda this summer, or not. African countries are some of the leading countries in poverty, infant death, and deaths due to hunger. I'm not sure what I will get out of this, or if I am supposed to get anything out of it at all. But I hope and pray I am able to stick to this commitment. 

I am still working on outlining some of my goals for the forty days and will post those soon.

Lenten Preparation Pt. 1

I first want to say that I struggled as to whether or not I was going to share this with the world wide web or if this was something I was going to do in private. But, I have decided that I am going to need people to hold me accountable to my commitment for several reasons of which I will go into more depth at a later point in this blog.


Lent.
I have to be honest, Lent isn't something that I have really ever fully participated in. The last two years I didn't "give something up," instead I added a spiritual discipline to my daily routine. Unfortunately, they didn't stick as I intended them to. And honestly, being in seminary has made it somewhat difficult to stick to my spiritual disciplines (ironic, i know!). I digress.

40 days of preparation. 
For those of you who aren't familiar with the season of Lent, the forty day time period represents the time that Jesus spent in the wilderness being tempted by Satan (Matt 4:1-11; Mark 1:12-13; Luke 4:1-13).
Lent is a form of repentance; a special time of prayer, fasting, and preparation for the coming celebration of the Resurrection of Christ (Easter). It is a time to focus on one's relationship with God. The truth is, this should occur daily; it shouldn't take the special preparation of Easter Sunday for us to focus our time around God--God requires and wants us to walk DAILY with him. Not just 40 days out of the year.

I'm not going to say much more, as my intent isn't to go on a preaching tangent. Although, I'm sure I could (if it weren't for my current readiness for sleep). I'm excited to experience Lent at Duke this year. I'm expecting it will be a different experience for me--being surrounded by numerous theologians and fellow seminarians.

Okay, so my original intent was to go ahead and share with you what my goals for Lent were this year. However, I think I am going to hold off a day or two. I don't want it to be a super, super long blog post and with what I have already said, it would turn into that. So, be looking for a "Lenten Preparation" part dos, soon!

Until then,
Goodnight, Blessings, and all my love,
Corey


"Blessed is anyone who endures temptation. Such a one has stood the test and will receive the crown of life that the Lord has promised to those who love him. No one, when tempted, should say, "I am being tempted by God"; for God cannot be tempted by evil and he himself tempts no one. But one is tempted by one's own desire, being lured and enticed by it; then, when that desire has conceived, it gives birth to sin, and that sin, when it is fully grown, gives birth to death. Do not be deceived, my gloved." James 1:12-16

identity in Christ.

first post of the "new year!" here goes nothing.


As I have begun my second semester in seminary, I have also been doing some deeper reflection into my first semester; things I learned that I want to do differently for study purposes. I have also been taking a deeper look into most every area of my life. I am asking myself questions I've never asked before, seeking/finding answers I never knew existed (a lot of times to only be in the form of more questions), and am continuing to search and discover new ways of experiencing God daily.

Identity. In a previous post I mentioned I had lost my sense of identity. I may have been wrong. Or maybe I just needed to be reminded of who(ms) I was/am: After being reminded countless times of the fact that I am a child of God, I still couldn't remember who I was. It seems so silly to me now, I should know that. I DO know that. How could I forget, after all I have been through and after all the blessings, who(se) I was. Friends, I didn't get it the first time I was reminded of my baptism (yes, I am referring to several sermons last week as we celebrated/remember Jesus' baptism). It took the third time (something to note about me, is that I tend to be skeptical and need to be told/affirmed in something several times before I am willing to even think about accepting it) for me to get it. While there are many things in society that could so easily define me, and while some people may even define me by those things (I include myself in those "some people"), I am not truly defined by them. And while I am somewhat "defined" by what I do, what I wear and what I say (what I mean here is that these things do reflect upon who I am, but they don't indefinitely define who I am), what truly defines me is the fact that I have taken on the name Christian. That through my Baptism, I responded to the offer Christ had been offering me since my birth (and even before--Jeremiah 1:5). I began denying the definitions the world put on me and allowed Christ to begin to define and instruct me. I lost sight of that (and have many times) but what a blessing and joy it was to be reminded of that last week. Remember your Baptism and be THANKFUL. I am so thankful.

I want to remind you that this doesn't mean I have it all figured out or that I am perfect (Lord knows I am nowhere close!); in fact I'm pretty sure it means I have even less of a clue than those who do not "take up their cross and follow [Christ]" (Matthew 16:24). It does mean that I have the opportunity to follow Christ, to listen to his Word, to respond to that Word, and to live towards a holy life. I don't have every detail of my life figured out, and as much of a planner as I used to be I am learning the joys of spontaneity and flexibility. While I am not always receptive, I am constantly listening for God's voice and direction in my life.  I may not know what tomorrow will bring, or what exactly this call in my life is going to entail of, but I rest assured that as long as I follow in the footsteps of Christ that I will be just fine.

I am excited about the opportunities, as vast as they are, that lie ahead of me. I am (mostly) comfortable with the uncertainty of my future and cannot wait (literally, I am pretty impatient) to see what the next year, five years, ten years, etc look like and how I will continue to carry the name "Christian" with me daily.

Remember your Baptism and be thankful.
All my love,
Corey