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The past few months I have read 3 excellent books that discuss the topic of having too much stuff.  And it has motivated me to wage a war on excess in every area of my life.   For several reasons.  I want to give more.  I also want to DO more.  And I want to quit picking up crap all. day. long.

 

The first book is More or Less: Choosing a Lifestyle of Excessive Generosity by Jeff Shinabarger.

More or Less is the first book I read about the idea of excess and having far more than we need.  And it was this book that initially sparked my desire and awareness to BUY less and DO more.  Sometimes it’s all our stuff that gets in the way of our being able to do more.  And it all starts with the question “What is enough?” A few quotes from the book (among many) that I loved.

“Excess is that thing we could give away today, and it wouldn’t change a single aspect of our tomorrow.  Excess is more than what we need–and in turn it may be exactly what someone else needs.  Anything more than enough is excess.  Excess is margin.  Excess is more than enough.”

“Many of us don’t want our stories to end with just an understanding that we have been given much.  We want to do more with what we have; we just don’t know how to combat a culture that defines so much of what we think we need.”

“The sad truth is that while others fight for survival, we all want a little bit more.  When we get more we tend to spend more, which results in wanting more.  Meanwhile, we throw away what others need for survival.  It’s a disturbing circle of want and need, but we have the ability to change the cycle.  The change beings when we acknowledge that our excess creates an opportunity to address the needs of others.”

“I must create new habits that challenge my view of enough by forcing me to look through the lens of the suffering and therefore cause me to reexamine my personal lifestyle of excess.”

 

The second book is 7: An Experimental Mutiny Against Excess by Jen Hatmaker.

This is the first book I’ve read by Jen Hatmaker and I’m a HUGE fan.  I’m pretty sure if we lived next to each other we’d be really good friends.  We think a lot alike.  7 is a true story of how Jen (and her husband and kids) waged a war against excess in 7 areas of their lives over a 7 month period.  It was fascinating, hilarious, and inspiring.  One of my favorite books I have read recently.  A few quotes I loved:

“I’m trapped in the machine, held by my own selfishness.  It’s time to face our spending and call it what it is:  a travesty.  I’m eary of justifying it.  So many areas out of control, so much need for transformation.  What have we been eating?  What are we doing?  What have we been buying?  What are we wasting?  What are we missing?  These questions grieve me, as well they should.”

“My children are young–still entirely impressionable.  It is not too late to untether them from the lie of ‘more'”

“I’m going to bed tonight grateful for warmth, an advantage so expected it barely registers. May my privileges continue to drive me downward to my brothers and sisters without. Greater yet, I’m tired of calling the suffering “brothers and sisters” when I’d never allow my biological siblings to suffer likewise. That’s just hypocrisy veiled in altruism. I won’t defile my blessings by imagining that I deserve them. Until every human receives the dignity I casually enjoy, I pray my heart aches with tension and my belly rumbles for injustice.”

“I could blame Big Marketing for selling me imagined needs. I could point a finger at culture for peer pressuring me into having nicer things. I might implicate modern parenting, which encourages endless purchases for the kids, ensuring they aren’t the “have-nots” in a sea of “haves.” I could just dismiss it all with a shrug and casual wave of the hand. Oh, you know me! Retail therapy! But if I’m being truthful, this is a sickening cycle of consumerism that I perpetuate constantly.”

“We top the global food chain through no fault or credit of our own. I’ve asked God a billion times why I have so much while others have so little. Why do my kids get full bellies? Why does water flow freely from my faucets? Why do we get to go the doctor when we’re sick? There is no easy answer. The why definitely matters, but so does the what. What do we do with our riches? What do we do with our privileges? What should we keep? What should we share? I better address this inequality since Jesus clearly identified the poor as His brothers and sisters and my neighbor.”

 

The third book is Living Well, Spending Less: 12 Secrets of the Good Life by Ruth Soukup.

I had the opportunity to read this book before it was released to the public (it’s officially released on Monday, December 29th).  And I quickly decided reading and critiquing pre-released books would be a job I definitely wouldn’t mind.  This book wasn’t what I expected, in a good way.  It was full of substance, hope, and inspiration to take control of life.  Ruth writes regularly on her blog Living Well Spending Less and she is a good woman with a good heart.  A few quotes I loved:

“It is not the wealth–or the stuff–that kills us; it is the wanting, the longing, the absolutely insatiable desire for wealth, possessions, power, and status that eventually take over our hearts and minds, leaving room for little else.  Whether or not we can afford it is totally irrelevant.  What matters is the desire of our heart.  Regardless of the never-quite-enough message society wants to give us, a live consumed by always wanting more is not the Good Life.”

“Discovering the Good Life is not just about learning to spend less, but about actually changing the desires of our heart, shifting our priorities from wanting and hoping for the best of everything in this world to deeply longing to store up differing kind of treasure.”

“I have found that overturning a lifetime of consumption while the rest of the world still screams at me to keep wildly spending does not come without hard work, serious soul-searching, and lots and lots of intentional prayer.  I have fervently and frequently prayed for God to change my heart, to lead me where he would have me go, and to take away my desire for the things of this world.  I’m still praying that prayer.

It is a terrifying prayer because, quite frankly, I love the things of this world.  I’m not eager to give up my nice house with its loverly decorations, granite countertops, and 600-thread-count sheets.  Storing up treasures in heaving is all well and good, but I still want to drive a nice car, wear nice clothes, and continue Instagramming all my social-media-worthy moments on the latest version of the iPhone.”

 

I’m determined to spend the next few months putting in the work to de-clutter our home.  To give away things we don’t need.  To get rid of things that don’t bless and enhance our lives.  And to quit bringing in more things we don’t need.  Room by room.  Cupboard by cupboard.  Drawer by drawer.

I’ve already started this the past few months (I can only do a little at a time or I get overwhelmed and apathetic) and my kids aren’t quite as excited about it as I am.  Whenever Carter (who is 5) can’t find something of his now, he starts to wail and says “You gave it to the homeless shelter.”  Most of the time he’s right.  Or I put it in the garbage and hid it under a paper towel.  Because he hasn’t cared one bit about it for the past year.

 

The truth is, getting rid of or giving away things we don’t need (or use) opens up space for us to do things that really matter.  And spend money on doing things together instead of stuff strewn about the house.  And finding resources to help people who need the help.

 

I love this quote by mother Theresa.  We can pray for God to change things.  But the truth is, change comes from us.

I’m waging a war on my personal excess and a change of heart.  And I’m determined to stick with it.

If there’s one thing I can get behind, it’s a company whose intent is to help people.  And that’s exactly what the founder, Andy, of Weavesleeve is trying to do.  To help the artisans in Guatemala preserve their culture.  And help consumers by giving them a minimalist product that is functional and has personality.

 

The story behind the Weavesleeve is what I love.  And the heart of why the company started.

In Andy’s words:

“During one of my visits about two years ago, I was spending time with some Guatemalan families I’ve grown close to and we began talking about weaving. All the women in these families know how to weave, but when I asked if they were teaching their children none of them replied in the affirmative. They simply said that it wasn’t profitable to weave and their time was dedicated to doing other things that could provide a living, so they hadn’t passed on the tradition to their children by teaching them.

When I left from that visit I thought long and hard about that conversation. It was troubling to know that the Guatemala that I knew and grew to love over a decade ago was changing, and that a country so culturally rich was in danger of losing that uniqueness.The wheels in my head started turning, trying to come up with something to help preserve their culture.

Over the last two years, I have made several trips to Guatemala specifically working on a way to help these people sustain themselves by weaving. I realized that selling unaltered pieces of handwoven textiles or table runners wasn’t going to be the answer. I needed to reach a larger demographic, and that’s where WeaveSleeve stemmed from.  We take their handwoven art and transform it into handwoven sleeves to carry around everyday things.

Not only do WeaveSleeves help preserve a culture, they also help to show off each person’s own uniqueness. By offering over 50 color choices, you can finally carry something with you every single day that more closely fits your own style.”

 

You can watch a short video about Weavesleeve here.

 

Weavesleeve is currently ONLY found on Kickstarter.  Haven’t heard of Kickstarter?  Another thing I LOVE.  Kickstarter is a space where entrepreneurs can bring their ideas to life.  They launch a campaign on Kickstarter with a product they want to provide to the public.  And they can give it a “test drive” on Kickstarter.  To see if people like it.  If it’s a company/dream/goal/product worth pursuing. They start by choosing a funding goal–how much money they want to raise.  And then people can “back” the product by pledging to donate a certain amount of money.  But you don’t get the product and your card is never charged if the funding goal isn’t met in the designated time.  If you love the product, it motivates you to get other people to back the product as well.

 

The great news about Weavesleeve is the funding goal has ALREADY been met.  Which means a.) people want it! and b.) now everyone who “backs” the product will get the reward! (on whatever level you “back”).

 

Devin Graham, also known as Devin Supertramp, is a video-making ninja (seriously, check out his videos on Youtube–they’re insane). He sent a few of his team members with Andy to document Guatemala and some of the artisans making the Weavelseeve.  You can watch those videos below:

A behind the scenes video.  I love behind the scenes stuff.

Devin’s main Guatemala video.  That place is beautiful.  I should probably travel there someday.

And this one is just fun.  Andy takes some of the Guatemalan artisans to their first amusement park.

 

I read a quote by Donald Miller that I think of every time I see a good guy trying to sale stuff.

“I don’t want to be a salesman, but I also don’t want to forfeit the public square to snake-oil salesmen.  I honestly think more good creators should sell more of their stuff as a way of helping the good team take more ground.”

 

This, my friends, is good stuff and it helps the good team take more ground.  You can read all about it and get yours on the Kickstarter website today!

A woman named Kelli, who I do not know, but follow on Instagram, recently launched a campaign called TIME=LOVE.  It encourages us to just give people our TIME which in turn shows them our LOVE.  Isn’t that so true?  In conjunction with this campaign, she posted a story about a man she met.  His name is Al.  This story shook me.  To the core.  Because I still have so far to go.

 

She said:

“A few months ago, I noticed a man sitting outside of church–on the same bench–week after week. You know that feeling you get deep down inside….that prompts you to do something that you’re not always comfortable doing?! Yea, well that happened.

So, I walked up to this man who was sitting on the bench, with what seemed to be all of his personal belongings stuffed tightly in plastic crates, wrapped with bungee cord. I introduced myself and conversation grew effortlessly. His name was Al. And Al was awesome. His laugh was infectious and his love for people and Jesus was so inspiring. I walked away thinking he is the epitome of “Even though……I will” Whatever those dots represent between those words [I have no money, Lost my job, Living on the streets]….I WILL get back up. And getting back up meant small steps like getting to Church every single weekend. That was inspiring to me.”

(photo credit:  Kelli from kelliandvanessa.com)

My favorite line:  “You know that feeling you get deep down inside….that prompts you to do something that you’re not always comfortable doing?!”  I’m pretty sure it’s following those feelings that always leads to things we could never imagine.  Things that change us.

 

It’s one thing to raise money for the homeless, visit the places they live, say hello to them on the street, and give them money or food or in-kind donations.  It’s an entirely different thing to stop, have a conversation with them, and give them our TIME and complete attention.  To show we really care about who they are and what story they have to tell.

 

After reading about Al, I realized my heart still needs a lot of changing.  And my willingness to be uncomfortable needs some definite work.  I found myself wondering if I would have done the same in that situation.  First of all, would I have even noticed Al?  And, would I have stopped to talk to him?  Like, really talk to him?  And ask about his story?  Unfortunately my answer was “probably not”.  I need to change that.

You can read the entire article here.  It’s worth it.

 

And on a sort of related note, I read an article about making donations to food banks that totally changed my perspective.  Because I am completely guilty of being the person who donates whatever I just want to get rid of.  Things we never got around to eating.  Not putting much thought into the fact that there are people whose lives literally depend on the food donated to food banks.

 

Take a look at this article before you make a donation to your local food bank.  It may change your mind about thoughtlessly throwing things in a bag or bin to make you feel like you’re making a difference.  And it has great ideas on things they actually need.

 

 

I hear people bag on Facebook a lot.  Which I understand.  But my usual response when people say Facebook makes them feel bad is “You’re following the wrong people”.  That and “don’t ever read the comments”.  Why do people think the comment sections in Facebook are a space they can say whatever they want without regards to the human people they’re hurting on the other end?  Facebook comments are usually a breeding ground for Satan’s army.  Just don’t read them.

 

The truth is, there are (and can be) a LOT of good things on Facebook.  Like these videos I’m sharing below.  All things friends of mine shared on Facebook.  We can and MUST use the Internet for good!

 

These are sure to lift the soul and inspire us to create a better day!!  Definitely worth watching.

For more inspiration, check out these TED talks definitely worth listening to!