And On Feb 12th...

...Christmas came. Not really because Christmas is about the Son of God becoming fully human for us while remaining fully divine! But, yesterday we received packages and letters from home via MFI - all of them had been sent before Christmas and nearly all of them were Christmas cards or presents. It was so wonderful. I wept. Seriously I did. Not out of sadness but out of gratitude - it meant so much to Kel and I. Water bottles, bug spray, games, photo cards, a treasured Nativity set and so much more.

But you know, Christmas presents arrived yesterday for other people in the Dominican Republic as well. During Tropical Storm Noel, many many people lost everything that they owned, but slowly, order is being restored and needs are being met. The trick is that we who have busy lives sometimes forget things that aren't right in front of us. I know I do. Living down here though provides us with a constant reminder of the needs that exist, and indeed existed long before the storm.

However, following Noel, COTN received funding to purchase a large number of beds for families who lost theirs in the storm. And yesterday, and all last week in fact, we have been distributing those beds. While many more people still need one, there are families who tonight will not be sleeping on the floor. And there are families tonight who will not have 8 people in one queen sized bed because now they have 2 beds in their homes. It is a beautiful thing. And it got me thinking...and asking questions...and here is what I found out:

Roughly $150 US buys a new bed with a frame (or legs).

Roughly $300 US covers the cost of installing a concrete floor in a home, which dramatically improves the health of the family and helps protect the home and belongings in storms. We know of nearly 300 families in our villages that currently have dirt floors.

Roughly $350 US puts a sturdy new metal roof on a home. Many of the homes in our villages have terribly inadequate roofs that do little to protect from the elements. We again know of nearly 300 families in our villages that need a new roof.

It's surprising isn't it? For $650 US a family can receive a new roof and a concrete floor which would significantly improve the living and health conditions of the family. Do you know how quickly the average American blows through $650? It's wild. I have had the opportunity to visit homes and meet families that call themselves blessed and yet have none of the blessings that we often refer to back home. The commodities that they trade in are love and family unity and community support, not iPods and big yards and clothes from Nordstrom. And so I'm left to wrestle with the joy that I receive from the things that I have knowing that there are those who don't dream of having even half of what I do. Don't get me wrong, I have not landed in a place of shunning money and possession. I'm just wrestling with reconciling how much we have with the extreme needs of the people I'm meeting. Wealth is an extremely important asset that when used for good, produces powerful results. For example, without your support, Kelly and I would not be able to be down here, participating in this work and asking these questions - COTN would not exist and would not be able to help the people that they are helping without the redistribution of wealth.

Kel and I read a book recently off of a recommendation from some friends, called "The Irresistible Revolution". It's about a group of folks in inner-city Philly that are living and working with the homeless, and about their thoughts on Biblical mandates of wealth. It's great and terrible all at once because it is so energizing to think of people doing that and at the same time, creates a discomfort in our potential complacency when it comes to considering those who have less than us. I hope you read it.

I also watched a short film before I left by Rob Bell on wealth. My dad showed it to me. It's about 12 minutes long and is incredibly poignant and direct. I learned that over 92% of the world doesn't own a car. I learned that to provide water, basic health and nutrition to everyone in the world would only cost around $20 billion dollars which is how much Americans spend on ice cream each year. He talks about our God who tells us not to put our hope in money but to delight and hope in the Lord who blesses us abundantly with all that we need. It's a fantastic movie. He reminds us of the danger of thinking that "our world" is "the World". I hope you check it out.

But my thoughts don't stop with the surprising facts and anecdotes of inequality. I am reminded of people the world over who are doing whatever they can to share what they have - The Gates Foundation, Paul Farmer, World Vision, Agros, the folks working in the Guatemalan land fill, COTN, Josiah Venture, Brethren In Christ Church, Homes Without Borders, the guy in Laos who is helping create sustainable agriculture for a people group totally rejected by their government, the 60 people we were at MTI with, and on and on and on. Kelly and have had tons of conversations regarding dozens and dozens of organizations, groups, individuals and grass roots efforts out there using their money for the glory of God. And we feel it too as your money supports us.

Yet, still I feel like Jacob wrestling the angel. At the end of the night, I am no closer to peace than when the sun set. How do we as a large community become agents of change. How do we truly transform our concept of what we need to live? How do we live out the call to the church in Acts to live communally, sharing all resources with those in need? How do we support a global economy if we are all just only living on exactly what we need?

And we want to invite you to wrestle with it too. Of course your money is important but it's the discussion that we want...and if you really start to grapple with it, we want to invite you to come down here and spend some time with us. Maybe you'll come alone, or maybe you'll put a team together. Who knows. But come. See the ministry that you've endeavored to support through Kel and I. See the people whose lives you're helping to change. See the dilemma that we're facing about the inequitable distribution of wealth in our world. Come and be changed. May the Lord of all good things keep us from the sin of comparison and grow in us a spirit of generosity.

With Gratitude,
M&K

"If you, then, though you are evil, know how to give good gifts to your children, how much more will your Father in heaven give good gifts to those who ask him." - Matt 7:11

"Therefore I tell you, do not worry about your life, what you will eat or drink; or about your body, what you will wear. Is not life more important than food, and the body more important than clothes? Look at the birds of the air; they do not sow or reap or store away in barns, and yet your heavenly Father feeds them. Are you not much more valuable than they? Who of you by worrying can add a single hour to his life?" - Matt 6:25-27

"All the believers were together and had everything in common. Selling their possessions and goods, they gave to anyone as he had need. Every day they continued to meet together in the temple courts. They broke bread in their homes and ate together with glad and sincere hearts, praising God and enjoying the favor of all the people. And the Lord added to their number daily those who were being saved." - Acts 2:44-47