Know Thy Neighbor

From UnDocumented.tv:

"According to the Billy Graham Center, less than one in ten immigrants will ever be welcomed into the home of an American. Given that Christians have been commanded to welcome strangers, that’s a pretty embarrassing statistic. So we’re challenging you to change it: invite an immigrant (or a whole family) over for a meal or for coffee as a chance to show kindness and to learn. (If you are an immigrant yourself, you’re responsible to be hospitable, too: invite someone whom you suspect might not know a lot of immigrants to join you and your family for a meal).

How?
Odds are you know someone whom you suspect has immigrated from another country, even if only as a casual acquaintance. Maybe there’s a family at your church, your work, or your school (or your kids’ school). Set a time, prepare some food, and invite them over! We know: this seems a bit awkward, we need to get past this if we are truly are going to be a Church who welcomes the stranger.

Don’t make it a project, but a chance to build a relationship from someone who might really be blessed by your hospitality, and from whom you might have a lot to learn. Without being obtrusive or asking anything that you think might make them feel uncomfortable, ask what made them decide to come to the United States, what it took to get here, and how their experience has been in the United States. Keep an open mind—you’re here to learn, not to judge—and most of all have fun.

Go Deeper…
Why limit this to one meal? Real transformation happens through relationship, so think of other opportunities to build a friendship. If you’re lucky, you’ll get invited over for a meal (Mexican chilaquiles and Filipino chicken adobo are my favorites, but I’ve really come to enjoy Rwandan ugali, too).

The second part of Jesus’ Great Commandment is to “love your neighbor as yourself” (Luke 10:27), and the story he tells afterwards, of the Good Samaritan, makes clear that our neighbor needs to be defined broadly, even to include those of a different ethnic group, whom we didn’t previously know, who are in need. But it’s actually really hard to love your neighbor if you don’t know your neighbor. For whatever reason, even in communities with many immigrants, it’s not uncommon that immigrants know very few native-born citizens and visa versa. By doing something as simple as inviting an immigrant (or, if you are an immigrant, a native-born citizen of a different ethnic group) over for a meal, you can help to change that. In the process of obeying the biblical mandate to extend hospitality, you might just find that you have invited in an angel in disguise (Heb. 13:2); at the very least, we expect you’ll find that you have a lot to learn, and might end up with a new friend, too." 

Some Really Good Words

Our friend Todd is going through his third bone marrow tranplant in his fight against CLL.  Last week he wrote an amazing post about grace.  To read that post (and you should if you haven't already), click here.  To follow their on-going story, go to http://www.kritiostodd.com/. 

Grace.  Strength.  Faith.  I just love the Smith family. 

That was Much Better!

A year ago at this time, I felt overwhelmed by excess.  The combination of Christmas followed by Jonah's birthday two weeks later had filled our home with an enormous amount of plastic crap (ie: toys) that we did not need.  I remember telling some friends that the excess of all the "stuff" we had acquired in that two week period felt heavy, even oppressive.  I swore that we would do things differently the following year. 

The good news is that I did not forget that yucky feeling all year long.  So as Christmas rolled around this year, I made intentional choices to tame the beast of excess - or at least to make some strides in that direction.  For example, I was very selective in my choice of gifts for the boys: I steered clear of toys that I lovingly refer to as "plastic crap," I shopped in museum gift shops, book stores, and teacher supply stores rather than Toys R Us to find unique and longer-lasting items, and I only got the boys a few things each (mostly games, puzzles, and learning toys).      

Jonah was very pleased with his Magic Science Kit which allowed him to mix fizzy potions.

Nicolas was happy with some new games and puzzles.

 And Riley liked opening up a couple of new hoodies (an article of clothing that he insists on wearing every day).

The grandparents did great this year, too - only getting the kids one thing each.  Overall, the gift-giving aspect of Christmas just felt much better this year!  

As for Jonah's birthday...I warned him early on that he would not be having a big party this year. Last year's outrageously expensive party at Chuck E. Cheese with the accompanying 20+ gifts from all of the guests had enough excess to make us all a little crazy.  So this year we went sledding (Jonah's idea) and he brought along just three friends.  Jonah is a very social little boy, so it was challenging for him to not invite everyone he knows, including all 29 of the kids in his kindergarten class.  But it was a good lesson in restraint for him and I think he'd be the first to say that he had a really terrific time at this year's festivities.  In fact, we all had a great time - especially Riley who, as it turns out, is quite the little daredevil on a sled!

Look Who's Six!

Happy Birthday Sweet Boy!

Ode to JibJab

I know we are well past Christmas, but I never quite got around to posting these.  They are fun and funny and I figured there's probably a relative or two out there that would get a kick out of watching them.  The first two videos were created by my dad.  The third one was created by Sade at The GreenHouse. With Jonah's new found obsession with breakdancing, the first one is entirely too perfect.     

http://elfyourself.jibjab.com/view/J2qDTyDzok6lhDvOHLoj

http://sendables.jibjab.com/view/lIqTxCAmvjJ4RX48EOUv

http://sendables.jibjab.com/view/syCfNC502ZV5gQNq

One last Christmas post (family-style) coming soon...