Yes, you can! Strength for the Heavy Burdened

Faith, inspiration, ,

Just a reminder, if you’re looking for the perfect Mothers Day, graduation, birthday, or “just because” gift, check out the Nourish Hope necklaces at www.hannahkallio.org/nourish. Each necklace provides 150 meals starving people through Venture. They’re beautifully hand-crafted from sterling silver and other quality materials, and available in four color choices.

 

Yes You Can

I know you. I know that you’re tired, and over-scheduled, and that you have a lot of things pulling for your attention. I know that your family requires a lot of you, that your employers/teachers think they should be the most important thing in your world. I know you get sick, that you have seasons of tight finances, and that sometimes you just feel powerless. I know you have unlimited heart – but limited resources.

I know you because I am the same. I have a family, job, grad school, bills, car trouble, cold and flu season, church obligations – all of it. I get it, I really do. I know you’re not lazy or uncaring, you’re just stretched too thin. So today I just want to encourage you. I want to remind you of your value and your power. So take a deep breath, grab a cup of coffee, and let this truth sink into your weary soul.

 

God is WITH you and He is FOR you:
– Deuteronomy 31:6 “Be strong and courageous. Do not be afraid or terrified because of them, for the LORD your God goes with you; he will never leave you nor forsake you.”

– Isaiah 41:10 “So do not fear, for I am with you; do not be dismayed, for I am your God. I will strengthen you and help you; I will uphold you with my righteous right hand.”

– Romans 8:31 “What, then, shall we say in response to these things? If God is for us, who can be against us?”

I remember as a small child not being able to see in a crowd, and my six-foot-four-inch dad picked me up and set me on his shoulders. I couldn’t make myself tall enough to see, but he offered me his height. All I had to do was accept his help. God offers you His strength, His comfort, His peace, His hope. You don’t have to do life on your own. He is more powerful than anything you face, and he is on your side.

You need others, and that’s a good thing:
– Psalm 68:5-6 “A father to the fatherless, a defender of widows, is God in his holy dwelling. God sets the lonely in families, He leads out the prisoners with singing;”

– Genesis 2:8 “The Lord God said, ‘It is not good for the man to be alone. I will make a helper suitable for him.’”

– Exodus 17:10-13 “So Joshua fought the Amalekites as Moses had ordered, and Moses, Aaron and Hur went to the top of the hill. As long as Moses held up his hands, the Israelites were winning, but whenever he lowered his hands, the Amalekites were winning. When Moses’ hands grew tired, they took a stone and put it under him and he sat on it. Aaron and Hur held his hands up—one on one side, one on the other—so that his hands remained steady till sunset. So Joshua overcame the Amalekite army with the sword.”

God knows we need other people. We need them to share life, and to help each other. Don’t fall for the lie that you can do life on your own and handle everything by yourself. You need people like Aaron and Hur who held up Moses’ arms when he grew too tired to do it himself. Needing others isn’t weakness, it’s humanity. We were designed this way. Even in the perfect Garden of Eden Adam needed the companionship of Eve, and God knew that. He didn’t scoff at Adam for not doing it all on his own, He understood, and He made a companion for Adam. Recognizing that you need the community and support of other people isn’t weakness or failure, it’s honesty and self-awareness. We were created for community.

You are not too old:
The popular verse Jeremiah 29:11, “I know the plans I have for you, declares the Lord, plans to prosper you and not harm you, plans to give you hope and a future,” was written to the elders living in exile. God wanted to remind them that He had not abandoned them. They were not too old or too far away. God still had plans for them, good plans for their future.

You are not too young:
1 Timothy 4:12 “Don’t let anyone look down on you because you are young, but set an example for the believers in speech, in conduct, in love, in faith and in purity.”

In the Bible, we see story after story of God using men AND women, teenagers like Daniel, David, and Mary, older people like Moses, and Abraham and Sarah. There is no peak point where you are useful to God. If you’re breathing, you can play a part. “Let EVERYTHING that has breath praise the Lord!” (Psalm 150:6, emphasis mine)

You have the power you need:
2 Corinthians 12:9 “My grace is sufficient for you, for my power is made perfect in weakness.”

2 Timothy 1:7 “For the Spirit God gave us does not make us timid, but gives us power, love and self-discipline.”

Acts 1:8 “But you will receive power when the Holy Spirit comes on you; and you will be my witnesses in Jerusalem, and in all Judea and Samaria, and to the ends of the earth.”

Matthew 16:19 “I will give you the keys of the kingdom of heaven; whatever you bind on earth will be bound in heaven, and whatever you loose on earth will be loosed in heaven.”

You have the power and the authority you need in this life. Not because you’re super special, but because God lets you use His name and His authority to do His work.
I hope you can hear my heart today. I want so badly for you to get this. You are enough because God is more than enough. He offers you His strength, and His power. He puts you in relationships with people who can support you and whom you can support. He has plans for you no matter your age, gender, or financial status. All you need to do is let go and let God – John 16:33 “I have told you these things, so that in me you may have peace. In this world you will have trouble. But take heart! I have overcome the world.”

How I Became an Advocate for the Hungry

Faith, Karah, personal growth

how I became an advocate

For about eighteen months I have been coming here every week to talk with you about hunger and poverty, and to provide knowledge and hope so we can make a difference. As time has passed, more and more of you have joined me on this journey. Thank you so much for that. Bringing hope to the hungry is going to take more than pastors and government programs; bringing hope and lasting change is going to take all of us working together. It is my promise that I will never use guilt and sad pictures on you, but will simply make you aware of hope and solutions. I have said this before and will say it over and over for the rest of my life: your guilt does not help anyone, nor does it trick God into thinking you’re humble. Guilt is a waste of time. If you recognize that you are not doing what you should, that’s conviction. If you act on that conviction to do better next time, it did it’s job. If that conviction just makes you feel bad, that’s shame, and shame helps no one, including you. If something I say hits a nerve with you, ask yourself if you need to do better next time.

So as we have been on this journey together, I have told you very little about myself and how I ended up creating Food Shelf Friday. So today, a little “get to know Karah” and “how did we get here?”

One Sunday morning in the spring of 1983, when I was 4, I asked Jesus to come into my heart and be my best friend. I vividly remember looking to my left, out a second story window, and seeing the sun shining on a budding tree (this is how I know it was spring), then looking down to my feet, which were dressed Sunday-style in ruffly socks and dress shoes, and which did not reach the floor. I raised my hand with the other kids and prayed along with the children’s church teacher.

That’s the heart of my testimony as a Christian. It seems boring compared to the dramatic stories of healing and deliverance that you hear from public speakers, but I like to think  it saved me from a lot of trouble over the years. And as a parent, I know that is the testimony we all want our kids to have!

When I was 9, my dad became a pastor, so obviously my world was the church world growing up. I took part in lots of outreaches, and did lots of work for the church. I’m not saying this to talk about how great I am, quite honestly most of my childhood volunteering was less than voluntary (#pklife). My point is that I tried lots of stuff. I gained experiences even if I didn’t really appreciate it at the time.

Skip ahead a few years and I found myself somewhere very new and unfamiliar. I was married (met my husband at church), and we were attending a really big church. It was a good church, but for a small town pastor’s kid, it was a whole new world. I found it really easy to come and go without digging in. When someone would make an announcement that they really needed help in this ministry or that, I would look around at the auditorium of people and think, “someone else will do it.” I became lazy hiding in the anonymity of a crowd.

Outside of church I dabbled in a few service projects with the MOMS Club chapter, but I was really wandering aimlessly. I was restless. I wanted a mission.

One Sunday we were sitting in the balcony, and a pastor spoke on finding your place in kingdom work. I was in a blah place, wandering the proverbial wilderness. The pastor said, “Your role in the kingdom will not surprise you. The gifts, talents, and interests you have are clues to what you are supposed to be doing. God gave you those gifts, they’re part of your calling.” I was grumpy and cynical at that point, and I dropped my head and prayed bitterly, “God, I make good cookies; what are you going to do with that?”

Every time I tell this story, I laugh at myself, and I imagine God chuckled too, because that day marked a new path for me, one I didn’t even realize I was on. I started to notice the hungry. Food drives at church or in the schools caught my eye. People begging on the side of the road tugged at my heart. Funeral lunches and meals for friends with new babies took on deeper significance. I don’t remember exactly when I realized it, but hunger became my heartbeat.

I didn’t jump right in and start doing something about it. I was busy caring for my family and finishing school (insert laugh here – I’m STILL trying to finish school…). I did just enough to appease my guilt. I didn’t get it. I needed a lifestyle makeover, not a one-and-done service project.

In the fall of 2014, our church (a smaller church we fell in love with a few years ago) participated in Hope for Dinner for Venture Expeditions. That practice, giving up regular meals for rice and beans, inspired me. I decided to get serious about a life dedicated to hunger relief. I started this blog, and I began to read and study hunger and solutions instead of hiding my head in the sand.

So that’s how we got on this journey together. I’m a long way from perfect: I still waste resources and step on toes now and then, but I’m learning and growing. And as Maya Angelou said, “Do the best you can until you know better. And when you know better, do better.” We don’t have to have it all figured out today. We just have to keep learning and keep responding to what we learn. Thank you for joining me on this journey!

Organization Profile: Venture Expeditions

Charity Review, Fundraiser, Ministry

venture

If you have been reading Food Shelf Friday very long, you’ve heard me talk about the Hope for Dinner initiative. If you missed that, Hope for Dinner is a fundraiser for Venture Expeditions. Every year during the week before Thanksgiving and/or the week before Easter, families give up their normal evening meal and instead spend 5 nights eating rice and beans. The family gains awareness of life on a limited diet, and they save quite a bit of money on their groceries. That money is given to Venture Expeditions. That’s how my family became familiar with Venture, and I know some of you have participated in or read about that fundraiser. But what about the organization itself? What does Venture do?

Venture Expeditions started in 2002 when a group of guys from Northcentral University here in Minneapolis decided to bike across the country to raise money for a church in Argentina. They made it safely across the country and raised over $17,000 along the way. The second year, the group grew and the trip did to. In 2003 they biked across Europe and raised $23,000 for HIV/AIDS patients in Africa. It was clear that this program had legs. Or, um, wheels.

In 2006 Venture became a 501(c)3 non-profit organization. They have continued to raise funds and awareness through physically demanding expeditions: biking, running, hiking, etc. They also hold an annual gala fundraiser and get support from individuals and churches through donations and fundraisers like Hope For Dinner. The money they raise provides for physical needs, fights for justice, and spreads the message of Jesus Christ. Today most of their work takes place on the Burma/Thailand border, one of the hardest to reach places in the world. They provide Feed My Starving Children’s Mana Pack meals to the hungry, education to children, and discipleship to anyone willing to learn about Jesus.

Venture has not yet been rated by Charity Navigator, but they will be soon because they just hit Charity Navigator’s threshold of raising at least $1 million/year. GuideStar gave Venture a silver award, which means that they feel Venture is committed to transparency in its operations. Venture uses less than 10% of the money they raise for operations, so over 90% of your gift goes right to work. They claim that a donation of $10 is enough for them to provide 100 meals, and $300 can educate a child for a year, or provide food, clothing and shelter for one child for a whole year. That’s a really good return on investment!

As you can see, Venture can do a lot with even a small gift. If you want to help, go to their website and click the “donate now” button. Or, if you’re an Amazon user, start signing in to Amazon through smile.amazon.com, and set Venture as the charity partner that will receive a portion of your Amazon spending. All the prices, selection, and Prime membership benefits are the same, and most Amazon products do generate a donation.

The timing of this post is no random chance. I have been working on an amazing, unique piece of jewelry – a joint effort between Food Shelf Friday and Voice Jewelry by Hannah Kallio. We can’t wait to unveil it (soon!). I know you are going to love it, and it will make a perfect Mother’s Day gift. The project will benefit Venture Expeditions, so I wanted you to have a good understanding of who they are and why I chose them for this project. Keep your eyes peeled (that’s such a gross metaphor…), I’ll probably be spilling the beans via Periscope this week and then on social media by next weekend. To find Food Shelf Friday on Periscope search @foodshelffriday (it’s an app, so I can’t just give you a link 😦 ). I’m absolutely giddy about this project and we have been working really hard on design, ordering materials, and preparing the marketing. It’s going to be great. Keep an eye on the FSF social media outlets (Links: Facebook, Twitter, Pinterest) for the announcement!

 

Have you participated in Hope for Dinner or one of Venture’s expeditions? Tell us about your experience!

Good Friday – It Is Finished

Faith, inspiration, ,

good friday

Today is Good Friday, and I would be remiss if I didn’t remark on the incredible weight of this day. On Good Friday we remember the sacrifice that Jesus made when he died by crucifixion to pay the required blood sacrifice for the sins of the world. We’ve heard that message so many times that maybe we forget to appreciate the enormity. Here are some of the key elements of Easter weekend to ponder and appreciate.

 

1.Jesus was fully God, and he gave up the majesty of heaven to lead a normal human life: Jesus Christ, the son of God, firstborn of heaven, willingly left his throne on the right hand of his father, put on human form, and left heaven. Heaven! I don’t know about you, but when I get there I’m sure not leaving to come back here if I can help it! He came in the form of a baby, the weakest state of human existence, at a time when the infant mortality rate made adulthood anything but certain. Jesus had physical illnesses in his life, we can safely assume. He went through growth spurts and puberty. He worked with his hands beside his carpenter-step father, Joseph. He loved his friends and endured losses.

Hebrews 2:14-18
Since the children have flesh and blood, he too shared in their humanity so that by his death he might break the power of him who holds the power of death—that is, the devil— and free those who all their lives were held in slavery by their fear of death. For surely it is not angels he helps, but Abraham’s descendants. For this reason he had to be made like them, fully human in every way, in order that he might become a merciful and faithful high priest in service to God, and that he might make atonement for the sins of the people. Because he himself suffered when he was tempted, he is able to help those who are being tempted.

 

2. Jesus’s perfect sinless life is an example for us of how to live: From his birth in the stable of Bethlehem until his crucifixion some thirty years later, Jesus never sinned. As a parent and former childcare worker, this is stunning to me. Jesus made it through the terrible twos without lying? Went through his teenage years without stealing or lusting? It’s too late for me and you to achieve perfection, but we can rest easy knowing our high priest, Jesus, knows the temptations of human life and resisted them. He can empathize with us – not mere sympathy but full-on, me too empathy, and he knows how to fight temptation.

Hebrews 4:15-16
For we do not have a high priest who is unable to empathize with our weaknesses, but we have one who has been tempted in every way, just as we are—yet he did not sin. Let us then approach God’s throne of grace with confidence, so that we may receive mercy and find grace to help us in our time of need.

 

3.Jesus’s undeserved death was a sacrifice he was willing to make for us: As he spent his earthly life in occupied Israel, Jesus was certainly familiar with the slow, torturous death of crucifixion. They didn’t make up this punishment just for him; he and his followers knew Rome’s power and brutality all their lives. By accepting God’s will and his fate, Jesus allowed himself to go through agony because he knew that a blood sacrifice was the only way to pay the penalty for sin and create a bridge between God and mankind.

Matthew 27, Luke 23, and John 19 all tell the story of Jesus’s crucifixion

Isaiah 53:5 (a prophetic statement of who Jesus would be):
But he was pierced for our transgressions, he was crushed for our iniquities; the punishment that brought us peace was on him, and by his wounds we are healed.

 

4.When Jesus’s earthly body died, death did not bring relief from his suffering: Jesus bore the weight of the sins of the world when he died. The deepest pain that Jesus felt during his crucifixion was the separation between himself and God. “Father, why have you forsaken me?” he cried out (Matthew 27:46). Our sins separated Father and son.

The Bible doesn’t say a lot about what happened to Jesus during the three days he was dead, but considering that he was carrying the weight of our sins, and looking at hints left throughout the New Testament, it is generally believed that he went to hell, the logical penalty for sin. So, torture brought death, but death brought no peace. Jesus battled three days and defeated the power of death and hell.

(No single verse really explains this specifically, so I’ll refer you to an article from Christianity Today that sorts through it.)

 

5.Jesus understood our weak faith and lovingly helps us understand: Jesus defeated death and came back to earth before ascending to heaven so he could tell mankind about his victory. The job was done: sin was paid off, and death was defeated. Jesus could have risen right up to heaven and gone back to his throne, but in his great wisdom, he knew that the disciples and his other followers needed to see with their own eyes. Their faith was shaken by the crucifixion – they had just watched their friend and leader die. It seemed like the dream was over, and they were foundering. Jesus knew that humans are weak like that. When he rose he went to his followers, showed them his scars, hugged their necks, and shared a meal. Then he stuck around for forty days (remember the Lent post? 40 days is significant – he was preparing them for the next part of their journey). He taught and he encouraged, and he prepared the disciples to lead without him before he ascended to heaven.

John 20:19-20:
On the evening of that first day of the week, when the disciples were together, with the doors locked for fear of the Jewish leaders, Jesus came and stood among them and said, “Peace be with you!” After he said this, he showed them his hands and side. The disciples were overjoyed when they saw the Lord.

 

As we end the Lenten season and the festivities of Holy Week, meditate on these truths:

  1. Jesus was born for the human experience.
  2. Jesus lived without sin to be our example.
  3. Jesus was willing to suffer for us.
  4. Jesus defeated sin, hell, and death.
  5. Jesus rose and appeared so that we could be part of his victory.

 

What parts of Jesus’s life, death, and resurrection speak to you today? What truths of Holy Week leave you in awe? Share your thoughts in the comments. Happy Easter!