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10.18.2010
the great run
Awhile back my friend Kristen encouraged me to train for the half marathon with her. She's a running champ- and said she'd be my running partner. :) So we paid the money and signed up for the Detroit half and began training. We ran some- then she got married and went on her honeymoon and we went up north for a few weeks... then we got into a regular running routine. We had so much fun running together... it was great to be able to share so much about our lives on the runs. It definitely bonded us. So a little over a month ago I had a sore hip after a 5 mile run and then 2 days later was scheduled to do a 10 miler. Even though I was in pain I decided to run through it- we were up north on a BEAUTIFUL trail that took us through the back trails... amazing! Well, when we finished that run I was in SOOO much pain. I actually didn't lift the boys for a week. I kept them in the nursery upstairs and brought things up to them. It was so depressing! For the next 3 weeks I really didn't do anything beyond the norm... last week I did a lot of walking- an average of 4 miles a day- my car wasn't working and I needed to get out and see my friends!
So Saturday we went to the expo to get our stuff even though we weren't going to run.... well, we walked in and it's all about running. I felt the adrenaline kick and looked at Kristen-we knew we were gonna do it! So bought some discounted running clothes and planned our attack.... maybe we'd just walk it... or walk/run... we weren't really sure.
So 6 AM yesterday morning Kristen and Scott picked me up and we drove 2 miles to the start of the race. The morning was cool and it was still dark. There were about 18,000 other runners who signed up to race as well.... so lots and lots of people were downtown!
So you check your stuff in and then go to the "corral" where you get into the groups according to your pace. They let the handicap runners start first- they have this really cool hand bikes that allow them to do the course. Then the "A" runners start- the ones who finish before we finish the HALF! And then they let each group start within about 2 min of each other.
The best thing about the Detroit marathon is that you get to run into Canada. So around 7:40 AM we ran over the Ambassador Bridge- it's this beautiful suspension bridge that goes over the Detroit river- we were able to see the sun coming up over the horizon- views of downtown Detroit and Windsor, Canada... so beautiful! Then we ran a couple miles in Canada- and then we ran through the tunnel to get back into the US. The tunnel is 1 mile under the water- it's so stuffy and gross! It felt so great to come out of the tunnel and get fresh air! This was about mile 7- At this point we were both feeling great and decided to just run the rest of the race. (We had walked some in the beginning to save our bodies to finish the race). The race took us through Mexicantown and Corktown and then back downtown. Then the marathoners split from the half marathoners and we finish out the last .5 mile.
The race was soooo fun and I am so glad we did it! It was so great to have a goal to work towards all summer and then accomplish it.
So while we were running I told Kristen, "I had a baby in 2008, one in 2009, and ran a half marathon in 2010... not bad!?!?"
So Saturday we went to the expo to get our stuff even though we weren't going to run.... well, we walked in and it's all about running. I felt the adrenaline kick and looked at Kristen-we knew we were gonna do it! So bought some discounted running clothes and planned our attack.... maybe we'd just walk it... or walk/run... we weren't really sure.
So 6 AM yesterday morning Kristen and Scott picked me up and we drove 2 miles to the start of the race. The morning was cool and it was still dark. There were about 18,000 other runners who signed up to race as well.... so lots and lots of people were downtown!
So you check your stuff in and then go to the "corral" where you get into the groups according to your pace. They let the handicap runners start first- they have this really cool hand bikes that allow them to do the course. Then the "A" runners start- the ones who finish before we finish the HALF! And then they let each group start within about 2 min of each other.
The best thing about the Detroit marathon is that you get to run into Canada. So around 7:40 AM we ran over the Ambassador Bridge- it's this beautiful suspension bridge that goes over the Detroit river- we were able to see the sun coming up over the horizon- views of downtown Detroit and Windsor, Canada... so beautiful! Then we ran a couple miles in Canada- and then we ran through the tunnel to get back into the US. The tunnel is 1 mile under the water- it's so stuffy and gross! It felt so great to come out of the tunnel and get fresh air! This was about mile 7- At this point we were both feeling great and decided to just run the rest of the race. (We had walked some in the beginning to save our bodies to finish the race). The race took us through Mexicantown and Corktown and then back downtown. Then the marathoners split from the half marathoners and we finish out the last .5 mile.
The race was soooo fun and I am so glad we did it! It was so great to have a goal to work towards all summer and then accomplish it.
So while we were running I told Kristen, "I had a baby in 2008, one in 2009, and ran a half marathon in 2010... not bad!?!?"
10.15.2010
a decent article on money
t's important to be financially responsible. Considering the fact that we haven't had an income in 3 years, you might want to avoid anything I have to say. :) I do think I've learned to be a "wise" spender... Anyway, I think that this article does a good job at looking at how and why people spend money and how they could save. I would like to add my perspective too. In my travels to foreign countries, and in living in Detroit, I have seen a great amount of poverty. And I know I can't fix this problem, but I do think I can enter into the pain of it and not be absent from the truth that people are actually poor and in need. So I continue to ask the questions.... How can we stop desiring for ourselves more and desire for equality? How can we stop looking to gain for "us" and "ours" and look for ways to help "them" and "theirs"? When did we divide the family of Christ... the community of Acts 2... into our individual family units? Can we go back to the church family God intended? I'd argue that he intended for us to live with our "arms wide open".... that he intends for us to literally take in people and help them with "our" money- and we all know that what's ours is really His. Which bring me to my next point... if all we have is really His... do we really live that way? Just askin'.
Anyway, enjoy the article.
My 10 Dumbest Money Moves -- And How You Can Avoid Them
by Stacy Johnson
Thursday, October 14, 2010
My 28-year-old niece and I were recently talking about money. She's (finally!) become interested in accumulating more and spending less, and because I've been in the personal finance business in one capacity or another since before she was born, she logically assumed that I've always done everything right and know exactly what to do at all times.
Confession time: I've blown it big on more occasions than I care to mention. In fact, most of what I've learned about money I didn't learn in books or by being a CPA, stock broker, or financial reporter. I learned it the hard way — by making stupid decisions and missing opportunities.
So for her sake, and maybe yours, I've put together the following list of 10 mistakes — most of which I've made — that you really should try to avoid.
1. Not having a goal
Whether sitting in your car or standing at the airport, you'd never start a trip without a destination in mind. The same logic applies to money. You should decide exactly what it is you'd like to accomplish, then remind yourself of that goal early and often. Are you trying to buy a house? Become self-employed? Save for your kid's college education? Retire in your 50s? Whatever it is, write it down, picture it and share it with anyone else who you're counting on to help you accomplish it. Your goal isn't money — money's paper. Create goals — both short-term and long-term — then decide how much money you'll need to reach them. Take it from someone who wandered aimlessly for years: goals work.
2. Not having a spending plan
If you have a job of any kind, you can bet that your employer tracks every dime they make and every dime they spend. Granted, they have an incentive to do so — both income and expenses affect their income taxes — but it's only logical to want to know where your money is coming from and where it's going.
Tracking and categorizing your expenses with a budget — or spending plan, as I prefer to call it — is the single greatest tool you have to accomplish your money-related goals. A plan that includes what you intend to spend on things like entertainment, food, housing, etc., vs. what you actually spend allows you to fine-tune your finances and find places to save. Not doing this is like driving with your eyes half-closed: You might reach your destination, but you're certainly going to take more time getting there.
If you're not writing down every penny of money coming in and money going out,
go to this page and download one of many free budgeting worksheets we link to there. Then read 4 Reasons Budgets Fail and How to Create One That Won't.
3. Attempting to derive self-esteem from possessions
Although we all know that money doesn't buy happiness, very few of us act that way. Instead, we seem to go out of our way to appear successful by driving the right car, living in the right house, and wearing the right clothes. Nothing wrong with nice things — if you can afford them.
But here's something that life has taught me. It's a quote from my most recent book, Life or Debt 2010: You can either look rich or be rich, but you probably won't live long enough to accomplish both.
Attempting to derive self-esteem from possessions is dumb on two counts. First, it's expensive.
More important? It doesn't work.
4. Doing what everyone else is doing
One of the world's wealthiest men, Warren Buffett, said, "Be fearful when others are greedy; be greedy when others are fearful."
During the recession-induced stock market rout that began in the summer of 2008 and bottomed in March of 2009, the Dow Jones Industrial Average plunged all the way from 10,000 to 6,600. It was at that time that I bought most of the stocks I now own in my online portfolio. I didn't buy then because somebody on TV told me to — the "experts" were as fearful as everybody else. I bought then because I'd missed similar opportunities in similar downturns before, and I was determined to learn from that mistake this time.
Likewise, when the housing bubble was at its zenith, many of my friends were buying as many houses as they could possibly borrow for, even though it should have been apparent that prices were over-inflated. Now they're broke — and I'm shopping for real estate. Again, not because I'm smart, but because I've also missed that opportunity before. Hence this recent story Why You Should Buy Stocks and Houses Now.
It's common knowledge the economy runs is cycles of boom and bust — yet when times are good, everyone seems to believe that trees grow to the sky. When they're tough — like they are now — the same people stand like a deer in the headlights.
If you're convinced the economy is going to zero, buy guns and canned goods. But if you can reasonably expect a recovery some day, invest — even if that day is a long way away, and even if it's possible things could get worse before they get better.
5. Starting to save large and late rather than small and soon
If you're 25 and you save just 5 bucks every day ... call it $150 a month ... and earn 10 percent, by the time you're 55, you'll have $340,000.
If you wait till you're 45 to start accumulating that same 340 grand, you'll have to save $1,700 every month for 10 years. True, you can't earn 10 percent today, at least without risk.
But over time and by taking a measured amount of risk, you can.
6. Paying interest to buy things that drop in value
There are only two situations where paying interest makes sense, at least mathematically. The first is when the purchase goes up in value at a rate greater than the rate of interest you're paying to finance it. Example: You borrow money at 5 percent to finance real estate that you think might return 8 percent on your overall investment. Other examples might include a business loan or a student loan — in other words, something that's going to return more (at least potentially) than it costs in interest payments.
The other situation where paying interest makes sense is when you can earn more on your cash than you're paying in interest. Example: After taxes, I'm only paying about 3.5 percent to finance my house. Since I think can make more than 3.5 percent after-tax in the stock market, I'll forgo paying off the mortgage, even though I have the cash.
Obviously there are times when we have no choice but to borrow. The point is that unless the math works out, the less you borrow, the better.
7. Turning down free money
If your employer is offering matching money when you participate in your company's 401k or other retirement plan — and you're not participating to the extent necessary to get the full match — you're literally refusing free money, not to mention ignoring an opportunity to get a tax deduction and grow your retirement savings tax-deferred.
There are only two kinds of people who turn down free money: people who really, truly can't afford to put up the money to get the match, and people who aren't thinking it through.
And yes, I've been one of those people.
8. Buying a new car
Everyone knows that cars drop 15-25 percent before you get them home from the showroom. Which makes it odd that so many people continue to buy one. My girlfriend just bought a 2009 BMW that still smells new for $26,000 — about $7,000 less than a new one would cost, and they look pretty much identical.
This is one mistake I can happily say I haven't made — I've never spent even that much on a car — or owned one that new.
If you're buying a car for transportation, it doesn't have to be either new or fancy. Cars are depreciating assets: the less you spend on one the better, especially if you're borrowing money to do it.
9. Buying more house than you need or can afford
It's practically gospel: spend 25 percent of your gross income on a mortgage, regardless of what size house you really need. While spending the maximum possible amount you can afford will make real estate agents happy, will it make you happy? When you buy more square feet than you're going to actually live in, you're required to insure them, furnish them, clean them, heat them, and cool them. All of that costs money, time and stress.
Buying a big house makes sense if you're trying to make a leveraged bet on the future of housing prices — or if you're trying to impress your friends.
If you're not doing either, buy what you need and put the money you save into more productive things, like meeting your financial goals.
10. Not protecting your good credit
Credit is like lots of things in life: simple to screw up, a bear to fix. And even though you may think it doesn't matter, some day it might, and probably will. If you've already messed up your credit, take the time and steps necessary to fix it and then keep in good shape.
That was my list of dumb moves to avoid, but I'll bet there are plenty of things that you could add. So let's hear it!
___
Anyway, enjoy the article.
My 10 Dumbest Money Moves -- And How You Can Avoid Them
by Stacy Johnson
Thursday, October 14, 2010
My 28-year-old niece and I were recently talking about money. She's (finally!) become interested in accumulating more and spending less, and because I've been in the personal finance business in one capacity or another since before she was born, she logically assumed that I've always done everything right and know exactly what to do at all times.
Confession time: I've blown it big on more occasions than I care to mention. In fact, most of what I've learned about money I didn't learn in books or by being a CPA, stock broker, or financial reporter. I learned it the hard way — by making stupid decisions and missing opportunities.
So for her sake, and maybe yours, I've put together the following list of 10 mistakes — most of which I've made — that you really should try to avoid.
1. Not having a goal
Whether sitting in your car or standing at the airport, you'd never start a trip without a destination in mind. The same logic applies to money. You should decide exactly what it is you'd like to accomplish, then remind yourself of that goal early and often. Are you trying to buy a house? Become self-employed? Save for your kid's college education? Retire in your 50s? Whatever it is, write it down, picture it and share it with anyone else who you're counting on to help you accomplish it. Your goal isn't money — money's paper. Create goals — both short-term and long-term — then decide how much money you'll need to reach them. Take it from someone who wandered aimlessly for years: goals work.
2. Not having a spending plan
If you have a job of any kind, you can bet that your employer tracks every dime they make and every dime they spend. Granted, they have an incentive to do so — both income and expenses affect their income taxes — but it's only logical to want to know where your money is coming from and where it's going.
Tracking and categorizing your expenses with a budget — or spending plan, as I prefer to call it — is the single greatest tool you have to accomplish your money-related goals. A plan that includes what you intend to spend on things like entertainment, food, housing, etc., vs. what you actually spend allows you to fine-tune your finances and find places to save. Not doing this is like driving with your eyes half-closed: You might reach your destination, but you're certainly going to take more time getting there.
If you're not writing down every penny of money coming in and money going out,
go to this page and download one of many free budgeting worksheets we link to there. Then read 4 Reasons Budgets Fail and How to Create One That Won't.
3. Attempting to derive self-esteem from possessions
Although we all know that money doesn't buy happiness, very few of us act that way. Instead, we seem to go out of our way to appear successful by driving the right car, living in the right house, and wearing the right clothes. Nothing wrong with nice things — if you can afford them.
But here's something that life has taught me. It's a quote from my most recent book, Life or Debt 2010: You can either look rich or be rich, but you probably won't live long enough to accomplish both.
Attempting to derive self-esteem from possessions is dumb on two counts. First, it's expensive.
More important? It doesn't work.
4. Doing what everyone else is doing
One of the world's wealthiest men, Warren Buffett, said, "Be fearful when others are greedy; be greedy when others are fearful."
During the recession-induced stock market rout that began in the summer of 2008 and bottomed in March of 2009, the Dow Jones Industrial Average plunged all the way from 10,000 to 6,600. It was at that time that I bought most of the stocks I now own in my online portfolio. I didn't buy then because somebody on TV told me to — the "experts" were as fearful as everybody else. I bought then because I'd missed similar opportunities in similar downturns before, and I was determined to learn from that mistake this time.
Likewise, when the housing bubble was at its zenith, many of my friends were buying as many houses as they could possibly borrow for, even though it should have been apparent that prices were over-inflated. Now they're broke — and I'm shopping for real estate. Again, not because I'm smart, but because I've also missed that opportunity before. Hence this recent story Why You Should Buy Stocks and Houses Now.
It's common knowledge the economy runs is cycles of boom and bust — yet when times are good, everyone seems to believe that trees grow to the sky. When they're tough — like they are now — the same people stand like a deer in the headlights.
If you're convinced the economy is going to zero, buy guns and canned goods. But if you can reasonably expect a recovery some day, invest — even if that day is a long way away, and even if it's possible things could get worse before they get better.
5. Starting to save large and late rather than small and soon
If you're 25 and you save just 5 bucks every day ... call it $150 a month ... and earn 10 percent, by the time you're 55, you'll have $340,000.
If you wait till you're 45 to start accumulating that same 340 grand, you'll have to save $1,700 every month for 10 years. True, you can't earn 10 percent today, at least without risk.
But over time and by taking a measured amount of risk, you can.
6. Paying interest to buy things that drop in value
There are only two situations where paying interest makes sense, at least mathematically. The first is when the purchase goes up in value at a rate greater than the rate of interest you're paying to finance it. Example: You borrow money at 5 percent to finance real estate that you think might return 8 percent on your overall investment. Other examples might include a business loan or a student loan — in other words, something that's going to return more (at least potentially) than it costs in interest payments.
The other situation where paying interest makes sense is when you can earn more on your cash than you're paying in interest. Example: After taxes, I'm only paying about 3.5 percent to finance my house. Since I think can make more than 3.5 percent after-tax in the stock market, I'll forgo paying off the mortgage, even though I have the cash.
Obviously there are times when we have no choice but to borrow. The point is that unless the math works out, the less you borrow, the better.
7. Turning down free money
If your employer is offering matching money when you participate in your company's 401k or other retirement plan — and you're not participating to the extent necessary to get the full match — you're literally refusing free money, not to mention ignoring an opportunity to get a tax deduction and grow your retirement savings tax-deferred.
There are only two kinds of people who turn down free money: people who really, truly can't afford to put up the money to get the match, and people who aren't thinking it through.
And yes, I've been one of those people.
8. Buying a new car
Everyone knows that cars drop 15-25 percent before you get them home from the showroom. Which makes it odd that so many people continue to buy one. My girlfriend just bought a 2009 BMW that still smells new for $26,000 — about $7,000 less than a new one would cost, and they look pretty much identical.
This is one mistake I can happily say I haven't made — I've never spent even that much on a car — or owned one that new.
If you're buying a car for transportation, it doesn't have to be either new or fancy. Cars are depreciating assets: the less you spend on one the better, especially if you're borrowing money to do it.
9. Buying more house than you need or can afford
It's practically gospel: spend 25 percent of your gross income on a mortgage, regardless of what size house you really need. While spending the maximum possible amount you can afford will make real estate agents happy, will it make you happy? When you buy more square feet than you're going to actually live in, you're required to insure them, furnish them, clean them, heat them, and cool them. All of that costs money, time and stress.
Buying a big house makes sense if you're trying to make a leveraged bet on the future of housing prices — or if you're trying to impress your friends.
If you're not doing either, buy what you need and put the money you save into more productive things, like meeting your financial goals.
10. Not protecting your good credit
Credit is like lots of things in life: simple to screw up, a bear to fix. And even though you may think it doesn't matter, some day it might, and probably will. If you've already messed up your credit, take the time and steps necessary to fix it and then keep in good shape.
That was my list of dumb moves to avoid, but I'll bet there are plenty of things that you could add. So let's hear it!
___
10.12.2010
child rearing update numero uno
I'm excited to share that Bentley is doing much much better! The pulling of hair has completely ceased. Exhale. He's listening so much better. He still beats up on Clayton a little bit, but we're working on it! He's also into the "helper" stage and he tries to mimic what I do- and he doesn't understand that I'm a bit more gentle when I do things- so he ends up pushing Clayton over. :)
Anyway, I just wanted to say that things are much better. :)
Anyway, I just wanted to say that things are much better. :)
birthday reload
So apparently when you blog from your phone you can't edit that post on your computer. Weird. Anyway, here's the pics from my birthday. Thanks, Scott!
10.11.2010
Burundi Bound-update!
So the four of us will be flying to Burundi for a 6 week stay in Jan/Feb. I am sooo excited to go! You can see Burundi is just south of Rwanda. It's a tiny little country.
View Larger Map
We will be flying into Bujumbura and driving to Kibuye. I couldn't find it on google maps. It's located at 6000 feet in rural Burundi.
I love to travel and see the world. I guess it's in my blood. Thanks, Dad! I grew up seeing his slideshow of the 8,000 mile bike trip (a ROAD bike in 1975!)- from Detroit, MI to LA Paz, Bolivia- so it's been a part of who I am-
David and I had hoped to have a 2nd child that would be a year old -to get required vaccinations for this trip- and Clayton was born 6 days before the estimated deadline of "end of December 2009". Seriously. It really did work out that way.
So here we are- 2.5 months before departure- trying to plan it all out. It will be about a 25 hour flight journey- so this could get really interesting. :) I'll definitely have to blog!
Anyway, here's our support letter- and we'd love for you to join us on this journey in whatever capacity- excitement, prayer, funds- we welcome it all!
Dear Friends and Family,
As most of you already know, we are headed to Africa this winter. We will be spending 6 weeks in Kibuye, Burundi. This is a trip we have been planning for several years. I am currently in my 4th year of medical school. There is a shortage of medical professionals at Kibuye Hospital and in Burundi as a whole. So I will be working with the doctors there to bring quality medical care to the patients. Adrienne will be taking care of Bentley and Clayton, and helping out in whatever way she can with the children’s program run by World Relief. In addition, this trip hopefully will give us broader exposure to the medical needs in poorer areas in the world to enable us to see what role we can play in bringing medical care to people in need.
I will be working at Kibuye Hospital, an 82 bed general hospital in a population area of 250,000 people. There are 10 health centers that refer to Kibuye and have radio contact with the hospital for service by the ambulance. Hope Africa University (HAU) in Bujumbura has established a Health Sciences division for training nurses and doctors. Kibuye Hospital is one of three teaching hospitals for the HAU medical school. In addition to general medical services, Kibuye Hospital has a program of outreach into the community to help the handicapped (particularly the blind); a child survival program run by World Relief; and a small factory that produces a high protein cereal to prevent and treat malnutrition.
We would like to invite you to partner with us in this trip. We need your prayer. It is not going to be an easy trip. I will be working long hours at the hospital. It will be our first long international trip with the boys. Would you join us in prayer? Pray that God uses this trip to help us to define the role that foreign missions will have in our lives going forward. Pray that God uses us to meet needs in Burundi, that we can be of service to the people and the mission there. Pray that we advance the cause of Christ by our service in Burundi. Pray for health and safety--Burundi is not an especially safe country to visit. Pray for the people of Burundi, that the work of Christ would be done among them.
In addition, we would like to invite you, to join us in funding this trip. Travel to Africa is not especially cheap which is one reason we have elected to go for six weeks instead of 3-4 weeks. We would also like to be able to leave a financial gift with the hospital when we leave to fund further operations there.
Love
David and Adrienne
and Bentley and Clayton
If you would like to donate, please send a check made out to FMWM (Free Methodist World Missions) with Crawford-Africa in the Memo line to:
VISA Ministries
Attn: Alison
PO Box 535002
Indianapolis, IN 46253
To support by credit card, click here
View Larger Map
We will be flying into Bujumbura and driving to Kibuye. I couldn't find it on google maps. It's located at 6000 feet in rural Burundi.
I love to travel and see the world. I guess it's in my blood. Thanks, Dad! I grew up seeing his slideshow of the 8,000 mile bike trip (a ROAD bike in 1975!)- from Detroit, MI to LA Paz, Bolivia- so it's been a part of who I am-
David and I had hoped to have a 2nd child that would be a year old -to get required vaccinations for this trip- and Clayton was born 6 days before the estimated deadline of "end of December 2009". Seriously. It really did work out that way.
So here we are- 2.5 months before departure- trying to plan it all out. It will be about a 25 hour flight journey- so this could get really interesting. :) I'll definitely have to blog!
Anyway, here's our support letter- and we'd love for you to join us on this journey in whatever capacity- excitement, prayer, funds- we welcome it all!
Dear Friends and Family,
As most of you already know, we are headed to Africa this winter. We will be spending 6 weeks in Kibuye, Burundi. This is a trip we have been planning for several years. I am currently in my 4th year of medical school. There is a shortage of medical professionals at Kibuye Hospital and in Burundi as a whole. So I will be working with the doctors there to bring quality medical care to the patients. Adrienne will be taking care of Bentley and Clayton, and helping out in whatever way she can with the children’s program run by World Relief. In addition, this trip hopefully will give us broader exposure to the medical needs in poorer areas in the world to enable us to see what role we can play in bringing medical care to people in need.
I will be working at Kibuye Hospital, an 82 bed general hospital in a population area of 250,000 people. There are 10 health centers that refer to Kibuye and have radio contact with the hospital for service by the ambulance. Hope Africa University (HAU) in Bujumbura has established a Health Sciences division for training nurses and doctors. Kibuye Hospital is one of three teaching hospitals for the HAU medical school. In addition to general medical services, Kibuye Hospital has a program of outreach into the community to help the handicapped (particularly the blind); a child survival program run by World Relief; and a small factory that produces a high protein cereal to prevent and treat malnutrition.
We would like to invite you to partner with us in this trip. We need your prayer. It is not going to be an easy trip. I will be working long hours at the hospital. It will be our first long international trip with the boys. Would you join us in prayer? Pray that God uses this trip to help us to define the role that foreign missions will have in our lives going forward. Pray that God uses us to meet needs in Burundi, that we can be of service to the people and the mission there. Pray that we advance the cause of Christ by our service in Burundi. Pray for health and safety--Burundi is not an especially safe country to visit. Pray for the people of Burundi, that the work of Christ would be done among them.
In addition, we would like to invite you, to join us in funding this trip. Travel to Africa is not especially cheap which is one reason we have elected to go for six weeks instead of 3-4 weeks. We would also like to be able to leave a financial gift with the hospital when we leave to fund further operations there.
Love
David and Adrienne
and Bentley and Clayton
If you would like to donate, please send a check made out to FMWM (Free Methodist World Missions) with Crawford-Africa in the Memo line to:
VISA Ministries
Attn: Alison
PO Box 535002
Indianapolis, IN 46253
To support by credit card, click here
10.01.2010
what's with the potlucks?
I learned a lot from our dear friends at The Village in Tucson, AZ. Our pastor and his wife live in a community house and they had us over a few times a week while we lived there. This experience changed my life. I was able to be part of a larger "family." Sue made the most delicious food and I was always greeted with bright smiling face- people who had genuine concern for my life. We sat around this huge wooden table (that was BUILT in their house)and shared our lives. It was such a refuge when I was teaching. I never imagined God was using these experiences to train me in righteousness:
When David and I lived in Ann Arbor we started a potluck with our dear friends Dale and Julie. The church had this great building on the property called "the lodge". So every Thursday we invited the GYP's (Grads/young/professional) group to join us for delicious eats. The purpose behind the potluck was to include people from all different places in life to come together once a week and eat together. There are some great things that happen over a meal. I loved our Thursday night potluck at the church. We laughed together, cried together, and did life together. It was so fabulous! After dinner we'd go to the basement and rock climb, and some would stay late to watch The Office... So Dale and Julie had one kid at the time, and one on the way and there came a point where it was too difficult to drive in, so they decided to stop coming. Later David and I decided to move to Detroit and so also had to leave the potluck. But here's the beauty in all that: I am happy to say that 2 years later the potluck lives on! This should be our desire whenever we are part of starting something new.... that it would continue ESPECIALLY in our absence. I think it's a testimony of a couple things: first when there is a need and you are part of developing the solution to the need- if it's "for real"- it will last- it's a great mark of leadership- that you were able to delegate and create a self-sustaining group.So praise be to God that the pot luck still meets at Huron Hills Church in Ann Arbor, MI.
A couple weeks ago at dinner Chris and Leigh shared their hearts during "house night"- they fear that when David and I are in Arizona and then Africa (Dec-Feb) that they'll miss seeing the neighbors regularly. They struggle to engage people- but when people are around they do engage. Does that make sense? So anyway, they suggested a pot luck that we would host at the house and invite our neighbors. It is with great excitement that I can share we are 2 weeks strong in this initiative! We had about 15 people hold hands as we prayed over our meal last night.It's so great because once again it isn't about us and our agenda- it's about being facilitators of a need that already exists. We've lived here for over a year now and have had some solid time to engage with our neighbors- and it's so much fun to start going deep.
I love potlucks. I love food. And l love people. So this is good, it fits... and God is working in the VDP hippie commune. :)
When David and I lived in Ann Arbor we started a potluck with our dear friends Dale and Julie. The church had this great building on the property called "the lodge". So every Thursday we invited the GYP's (Grads/young/professional) group to join us for delicious eats. The purpose behind the potluck was to include people from all different places in life to come together once a week and eat together. There are some great things that happen over a meal. I loved our Thursday night potluck at the church. We laughed together, cried together, and did life together. It was so fabulous! After dinner we'd go to the basement and rock climb, and some would stay late to watch The Office... So Dale and Julie had one kid at the time, and one on the way and there came a point where it was too difficult to drive in, so they decided to stop coming. Later David and I decided to move to Detroit and so also had to leave the potluck. But here's the beauty in all that: I am happy to say that 2 years later the potluck lives on! This should be our desire whenever we are part of starting something new.... that it would continue ESPECIALLY in our absence. I think it's a testimony of a couple things: first when there is a need and you are part of developing the solution to the need- if it's "for real"- it will last- it's a great mark of leadership- that you were able to delegate and create a self-sustaining group.So praise be to God that the pot luck still meets at Huron Hills Church in Ann Arbor, MI.
A couple weeks ago at dinner Chris and Leigh shared their hearts during "house night"- they fear that when David and I are in Arizona and then Africa (Dec-Feb) that they'll miss seeing the neighbors regularly. They struggle to engage people- but when people are around they do engage. Does that make sense? So anyway, they suggested a pot luck that we would host at the house and invite our neighbors. It is with great excitement that I can share we are 2 weeks strong in this initiative! We had about 15 people hold hands as we prayed over our meal last night.It's so great because once again it isn't about us and our agenda- it's about being facilitators of a need that already exists. We've lived here for over a year now and have had some solid time to engage with our neighbors- and it's so much fun to start going deep.
I love potlucks. I love food. And l love people. So this is good, it fits... and God is working in the VDP hippie commune. :)
So I turned 28 on Monday. Crazy! I had a great birthday! We do birthday dinners at our house- no need to go out when I live with amazing cooks! So Chris made my requested steak soup- it's amazing! David picked up bread from Avalon- which is a delicious bakery in Detroit, Leigh made a salad, Kristen and Davida decorated the table with beautiful flowers, and Micah and Scott did the dishes. We had a lot of fun! Also our friend Deborah-Naomi joined us for dinner and then watched the boys so we could bowling. We went to the Majestic in Midtown- it was great!
I felt very loved by my friends and it was a great celebration! I will have to get some pics on here soon!
I felt very loved by my friends and it was a great celebration! I will have to get some pics on here soon!
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