Well I have just dropped off the face of the blogging earth here lately huh?!

I kept thinking I hadn’t blogged in like 3 weeks, but when my friend Sarah Mae  teased me about it on the phone last night, I realized that it has been nearly 6 weeks since I last posted!

Oh Mylanta!

And the funny thing is that I’m running this little (actually really big) blogging conference called Allume.  I know, ironic right?!  Running a blogging conference and not even blogging myself pretty much the majority of the summer. Ahem…amazing….or not!

But see, here’s the thing, I haven’t had time!  I don’t think I have EVER worked so hard on something.  And at the end of the day when I have answered calls, and made calls, and tried to wade through the ridiculous piles of emails, I have these wonderful posts in my head, but I have yet to figure out how to type when I’m fast asleep because I’m so exhausted.

Sarah Mae is my hero. She ran the blogging conference last year and still managed to blog.  I’m gonna ask her if I can borrow her super powered cape.  Mine is apparently low on fuel.

But I did go to our favorite local peach stand and make peach jam with my kids this week to give to our Allume speakers and sponsors come October . The recipe I used is HERE on the Sure-Jell website.  What can I say, I’m just a fan of the homemade gift.  Plus, if it’s the first time that some of our people have ever come to South Carolina, then have mercy, they MUST try a bit of the peachy goodness that defines so much of South Carolina in the summer!

Our summer has been just the most fun.  I’ve worked hard this whole summer, but we have traveled more than ever as well.  I guess since my kids are finally to an age where road trips don’t make me want to cry, we’ve gone on several of them.  Really, so you know I haven’t truly disappeared, pop over to follow me on Instagram and at least visually keep up with our shenanigans.

Here are a few favorites from our summer.

Virginia, Georgia, Florida, and fun even right here in Greenville.  I tossed in a random trip to Nashville to visit some old friends and new ones, and we are heading to the mountains for a little old-fashioned unplugging still this summer too.

It’s been a good one, and I can’t believe it’s coming to an end!

Next Tuesday, Sarah Mae and I are hosting an Allume Twitter party at 9pm EST, so pop on in under the hashtag #Allume to win awesome prizes from some of our Allume sponsors, hear more about Allume, and even have the chance to win a ticket to Allume!  It’s going to be incredible.  And you know what, even if you don’t blog…that’s ok too!

Restless.

I’ve felt it.  Maybe you’ve felt it too.  Restless that there MUST be more that I can do, be, gather, and join for the sake of the Kingdom of Heaven.

And tired…tired of the minutiae that divides followers of Christ instead of the magnitude of a cross that joins us.

Excited too…because I feel a stirring within my spirit.  A movement that is on the horizon.  And revival brewing.  THE Kingdom…full in power…rich in love…and overflowing with grace and mercy.  A Kingdom that calls us heirs, and sons and daughters when we put our faith and trust in the One who sacrificed it all so that I might live.  A Kingdom who’s greatest asset is the love that defines it, and allows us to join hands together.

A couple of months ago I was asked to join a group of women to gather and dream together and flesh out what it looks like to create and be a part of a raw and authentic movement of the body of Christ.  Led by a vision given to Jennie Allen, and a team spearheaded by Lindsey Nobles, Jessica Taylor,  Jen Hatmaker, Lauren Chandler, Melissa Greene, Esther Havens, Tara Jenkins, Rebekah Lyons, Bianca Olthoff, Angie Smith, and Ann Voskamp, the IF Gathering team has rounded up another 50 thinkers and leaders in our generation, buying in, ready to invest, ready to launch.  Christine Caine, Debbie Eaton, and Shelley Giglio mentor and encourage this incredible team, and I am blessed to be a part of that group of 50.  Pinching myself to be a part of a group that desires to gather, equip, and UNLEASH this generation of women for Christ.

So this fall when I meet with this group of phenomenal women who have been dreaming and praying and pushing rib issues aside to join hands for the sake of a strong spine named Jesus, we will pray and wrestle and unite to see the body of Christ move as it should…as one body.

And we invite you to join us all in February 7-8, 2014 in Austin, TX for the IF Gathering.

We exist to gather, equip
and unleash the next generation
of women to live out their purpose.

Here’s the vision:

if:lead

We are gathering and uniting a team of women, who already lead our generation, and unleashing them to lead in their spheres of influence. Together we will create a community and foster an ethos – connecting, encouraging and collaborating together.

if:grow

We are creating a blueprint for intentional equipping – reaching women with tools that are holistic, strategic and deep. By providing easy online access to a like-minded community and relevant resources, we will release women around the world to live out their purposes. // Online · 2014

if:gathering

A fresh, deep, honest space for a new generation of women to wrestle with the essential question: IF God is real… THEN what? This 2-day conference brings women together and wrestles out how to live out the calling God has placed on our lives. // Austin, TX Feb. 7–8 2014

if:global

By partnering with organizations like Food for the Hungry, coming alongside women around the world, fostering relationships and utilizing our God-given gifts, our hope is that this movement will not only transforms hearts but leave a tangible impact on the world.

I had a moment today that was just too funny not to share.

A couple of weeks ago, I used some spray suntan lotion on my eldest son and it gave him a nasty rash.  Said rash has continued to bother him and he has scratched it into an infected mess.  So off we headed today to the pediatrician’s office to get it taken care of amidst another day of torrential downpours here.

We were in the waiting area when one of the doctors meandered into the waiting room and casually mentioned that there was a tornado warning and that all of us might be best served if we moved to the interior conference room away from the windows.

We don’t have that many tornadoes around here.  And for sure, the hills in these parts stop anything from growing into the monstrosities they have seen in recent days in Oklahoma.  Nonetheless, they happen occasionally.

In the moment that we started to walk back to our patient room to be seen, my phone siren started going off along with everyone elses in the entire office.  It advised to take cover “immediately.”

Everyone came out of the exam rooms into the hall wondering what to do and wanting to move away from windows.  One doctor, a dear friend suggested that we gather in the middle until I said “You mean where you keep all of the syringes?!”  On second thought he suggested that we divide off into the interior bathrooms.

I ushered my boys into the single stall bathroom along with another gal and her 15 month old daughter.  Immediately both of our phones start ringing with our husbands calling to advise us to take shelter wherever we are.  No sooner than we’d turned on the lights and gotten into the bathroom, my 3-year-old decided to drop trow and hop onto the potty.  Um….

He tinkles quickly, and while it’s a little awkward, we kinda laugh it off.  She has kids too.

But then, when I offer to help him off, he emphatically says “No Mommy…I have to poop!”

Hold the phone!  Shut up!  I am literally in the bathroom… with a total stranger… during a tornado warning… and my 3-year-old decides that now is the time to drop a deuce!?!?!

Oh Mylanta!  This is not happening!

What else then can you do, but laugh, pray that the tornado passes by, and introduce yourself to your new Bathroom BFF… Lauren.

*Image Source: Amazon.com

So, I’m at the lake in VA with my dear friend Sarah Mae and our families, and we thought it would be a great opportunity since we’re together, to share with you a few reasons that we think you should join us at Allume this October.

Here are our Top 5 Reasons you should join us October 24-26th in Greenville, SC for Allume…with a little personality tossed in for good measure.  (Really, that’s just a way of saying that we didn’t rehearse this at all.)

I’ve often found myself wondering how I, just one gal from South Carolina, can make a difference in the globe.  I’d be willing to guess that you’ve asked yourself the same question too.  And sadly, I think somewhere along the way, I resolved that I wasn’t entirely sure that I could do anything myself, but I could at least support missionaries who were…or who seemed to be.  So for a long time, I think I just became part of the status quo…and therefore, probably part of a problem as well.  Do-gooder somewhere buried amidst feelings of some sort of hopelessness.

About 6 years ago, something began to really stir within both my husband and my heart.  We began to realize that somehow we were missing out on who God must really be.  We’d both grown up in typical Southern churches and had spent lives of mediocre christianity that floundered around through high school and college.  I guess for both of us, our individual faiths began to take more shape one we had each entered the world as young adults.  But still…by all intents and purposes, from the outside looking in, there didn’t appear to be anything special about any callings we had or lives we were living.  I was steeped somehow in mediocrity that for the most part beyond trying to invest in a few individuals around me, was pretty much not changing anyone’s life…least of all my own.

Then something happened.  We were in a group of people who all pretty much felt the same.  And we began to ask questions, and search the scriptures, and really figure out about the person of Jesus.  Suddenly, something snapped in us.  A light came on.  Walls began to blow off of the tidy box that I’d wrapped God in somewhere in my younger years, my life began to get pretty messy, but somehow even amidst the mess, I began to feel more alive….more interested in God, energized by time spent with him, and completely shocked and in awe of this person of God I’d somehow missed my entire life.  Suddenly, the Living God became just that…Living.

And as I’ve begun to get to know God in this fresh and intimate way over the past few years, he’s done something in my heart.  He’s set it ablaze to make a difference.  As I recognize who God says that I am, I suddenly realize the intense love and compassion that he has for others.  As I’ve begun to walk with the Living God, I find myself wanting to be a breather of life into others.

There are chances to do that EVERYWHERE.

And by all intents and purposes, I wouldn’t say that there has been any completely radical thing that I’ve begun to do just yet.  Just like everyone else, I’m trying to figure it out.  Trying to understand who God has made me to be, to walk boldly in that calling, and to love and serve others along the way.  To use any influence that I have to that degree as well, both online and in my actual life.

A couple of years ago I led a group study that dove headfirst into some ideas of hospitality.  I searched the Scriptures to learn more about it, and about the people who were characterized by it.  While every spiritual gifts test I’ve ever taken tells me that I’ve got it, the scriptures taught me something different about it…sometime real.  I realized that hospitality isn’t a gift given just to some, but it’s a requirement of all believers in Christ.  That it’s not just an outward expression of service, but rather an inward posture of the heart.  Hospitality is learning to open our hearts to others, to love others well, and to serve from that place of love.  Hospitality isn’t a thing to do, it’s a way to live.

When I was in Bangladesh with Food for the Hungry back in January, the Lord reminded me that serving isn’t a matter of doing, but of loving.  I guess some part of me went with the idea to serve people…to do things for them…to make their life better somehow.  But somewhere in there, the Lord told me to “just love.”  To be who He created me to be, and to love.  To meet people in their need and to fill it with love.  That serving people is loving them in their space of need.  And sometimes serving people is just loving them plain and simple.  There are no untouchables in the Kingdom of Heaven.

So I’ve been learning that if I want to matter in the world…I have to love people first.  I won’t ever make a hill of beans true difference if I just do without being rooted in loving others.  But there are things we can do too.  I can invest in my neighbors.  I can take a meal when my friend across the street has heart surgery.  I can love on my friend Melissa’s kids and remind them how much their mommy, who is in heaven now, loves them.  I can sponsor a child with Food for the Hungry and invest into her community, and ask others to do the same.  I can meet people in their need and stoop to pray for them in the middle of a grocery store parking lot.  I can invest into young marrieds to train them how to prepare a meal for their families. And I can spend my dollars in ways that give life to others.  I may not be radical yet, but I can tell you that I’m sure wanting to get there more.

I think that “the church” as a whole is failing our culture.  And growing up conservative in the South certainly didn’t condition me to be open-minded by some standards, but I think what I’m learning is that open-mindedness isn’t necessarily what I want to be…but open hearted is.  I want the love I’ve been shown by a good heavenly Father to spill out of me and soak others…not matter how similar or different our lives may be.  We have to love well…love ourselves and love those around us.

My heart is learning to love without boundaries.  My life is bending towards helping others learn to do the same.  And my travel plans for this year include a meeting of like-minded, and like-hearted people in September in Austin, TX for the Idea Camp.

“We will facilitate fresh, honest and transformative conversations with leading thinkers and practitioners on topics including how the church cares for the vulnerable, the other and self while unpacking how differences of gender, race, mental health, and age influence our approach.  Our desire is to live life as God’s loving expressions of grace and hope to our world through tangible acts of care for all of humanity.”

Yes…that.  And I can’t help but wonder, and be excited by how much we can begin to change the world by each being the one that we are called to be, and banding with others who are walking in their callings as well.  Strength in numbers, power in connecting, and a group moving together to bring change.  A sandstorm doesn’t make a difference if it’s only composed of 1 grain….but hundreds of grains, thousands of grains in motion together can change a landscape entirely.

Join us un September at The Idea Camp as we gather to encourage, inspire, and have conversations to put into motion more effective, and practical ways to not just live differently, but to love differently.

The following excerpt is from a post I wrote back in January when I was in Bangladesh.  And though I live in the US, and these women in Bangladesh…at the end of the day, our mother’s hearts are the same whether we’re American or Bangladeshi….British or Japanese…Canadian or Russian…Brazilian or African…French or Iraqi.  The thread of motherhood may not look the same, but in the end we all love and sacrifice and give more than we ever thought we could give for our kids.  So to Mother’s everywhere…this is for you.

*          *          *

I’ve been away from my family now for almost 6 days.  I miss them.  Not in a falling apart, totally pitiful sort of way so much as a my-son-got-sick-and-I-wanted-to-help-cuddle-him-myself sort of way.  That’s just how moms are you know.  I want the best for my kids, and I want to be there to see it myself.

Just like these Bangladeshi women we’ve met, I understand what it is to make sacrifices for my children.  We want what’s best for them…we want even better for them that what even we’ve had.  We often put aside our own dreams to help our children achieve theirs.  Heaven knows that I understand how it’s easy to lose yourself amidst raising a family.  When days go by doing washing…

and you get buried under what seem like endless loads of laundry…

but you still try to keep a smile on your face, even though you know there will be more of the same the next day.

I know what it’s like when you’re doing your best to train your children to be helpful and responsible and well-behaved…

 but the baby still pitches a fit and might even pee all over your out-of-town guest no matter how hard you tried to get the sleep schedule right the night before.

I know what it is to remind your children to feed and take care of your pets. And sometimes that doesn’t quite look like it should.

 We all have dinners to prep for and start…

and bath times to muster through.

 We want our homes to be places of joy and welcome.

A place where our doors are open for friends to come and stop by for tea.

And then there’s the back-breaking work of carrying jugs on our heads…

Oh wait!  I got carried away. I’m not much of a head jug carrying gal.

But the truth is that just like us, these women love their children and cuddle them when they need it.

We all want to see our children succeed, but still have dreams of maybe starting our own small business?

Or after raising them all and then paying for weddings and dowrys of 4 daughters, once in a while we just wish we could save enough to buy that ring we’ve been wanting for years.

And it’s the times we gather with friends, and learn how to challenge one another, to educate ourselves, to work towards a common goal and grow together…

We remember what it is to dream again, and suddenly we can see ways to turn a life of street sweeping into a life with glimmers of hope.

And there’s something very satisfying about knowing that you’ve accomplished something that without this group would have never been possible.

That joining together as women, you can build each other up and make an even greater difference in the lives of your children.

And then together, they can make a difference.

Together…WE can make a difference.

It’s then that we find joy and are better mothers for it.

Because we know the old saying is true…

“If mama ain’t happy, ain’t nobody happy!”

Sponsoring a child isn’t just helping that one child.  It’s an investment into families.  And a beautiful thing we’ve found in Bangladesh is that families stay together.  Despite the extreme poverty, they aren’t selling their children into sex trafficking or slavery.  There aren’t even orphanages spilling over here or international adoptions available for young kids.  These people value family, and as a mother who feels the same way, I understand that by empowering mothers and training them, they raise kids who with the opportunities provided through FH, will grow up to change the next generation.

I only wish I’d realized this all long before now.  But it’s never too late.  Join me and make a difference? Sponsor a child with Food for the Hungry.  

If you were that mother, wouldn’t you hope that if someone could, they’d do the same for your family too?

And then one day when someone does, when we’re old and gray and see our children grown and know that we did all that we could to see them live well, think how happy we will be!

**This story would not have been possible without the phenomenal photography of my talented friend Esther Havens.

“Everybody has a plan until they get punched in the face.” – Mike Tyson

Some days feel like a punch in the face…or that everyone seems to be trying to punch you in the face.

Let’s just be honest about that.

And a lot of the time, it’s not that they are even necessarily intentionally dealing out a jab or a left hook to your jaw…it just feels that way.  Because people disappoint.

People will always disappoint.

Even if you’re an optimist and the kind of person that gives a million chances and truly in the depth of your soul believe that this will be the time that things are different, you’ll probably just end up disappointed more.

That’s me….

But it’s not an excuse to become cynical…or to start thinking the worst of people.  It’s just calling up another chance to think the best of others, even if they’re going to disappoint you again.

And maybe there’s somewhere in there that we can give the benefit of the doubt and have high hopes, but not rest our hopes on the shoulders of others so much as on the shoulders of Jesus.

His yoke is light…and his shoulders are strong enough for all our hopes and disappointments to be piled there.  And just as he died on the cross for our sins, he came to bear our hurts and disappointments too.

And while some days I just feel like punching back…probably I just need to get low, on my knees, and hold the frustrations high above me to be lifted off.  My soul will find rest when I lay down my frustration and learn from his gentleness.  And, I’m pretty sure that while Jesus felt righteous anger (and we can too) that he never punched anyone in the face.

“Come to me, all who labor and are heavy laden, and I will give you rest. Take my yoke upon you, and learn from me, for I am gentle and lowly in heart, and you will find rest for your souls. ³⁰ For my yoke is easy, and my burden is light.” – Matthew 11:28-30

Image: Mike Tyson knock out via Tumblr

You must know that the news of the Bangladeshi factory collapse has broken my heart.  I’ve been thinking on it for the past couple of days and wondering how a people group has ever become so dispensable for the sake of cheap clothes.

As most of you know I spent a week in Bangladesh in January with Food for the Hungry.  I logged my journey for you to follow along.  Here are all of the posts in case you missed them.

The Adventure

Adventure is an Uncomfortable Thing

Just Love

Meeting Ritu

A Mother’s Heart

The Eyes of Our Hearts

Readjusting to Small

Bangladesh…A Beautiful Video

Almost 400 people died in a horriffic factory collapse four days ago.  It’s thought that while about 2500 people got out, there could be nearly 1000 still trapped inside.  I’ll let you google it all to get more news.  Sufficed to say…it’s heartbreaking.

And having seen Bangladesh, I can say…the conditions for working are horrendous.  People work for pennies.  I rode in rickshaws for like 15 cents, bought fancy shoes for just $7, and gorgeous fabrics for just like $3/yd.  And here…check the tags of your clothes…if they’re not made in China, chances are high that what’s on your back, came from the breaking of backs in Bangladesh.

People matter.  Bangladeshi people matter.  And while we all want to save a dollar on what we buy here in the States, I have to say, that I for one can’t not care what’s happening on the other end of the threads that I’m wearing anymore or the goods that I’m consuming.  If we don’t care…and if we demand cheap goods, then at some point we Americans must be willing to recognize that our desire for more …for cheap…is coming at the expense of human lives elsewhere.

And I’m just not ok with that.

Maybe you think you can’t make a difference…and I’m not sure how I’m going to either….but I will.  And I will do it because people matter to Jesus…and people matter to me.  It has to start at least with awareness and consciousness when I make purchases.  For one…maybe start with sponsoring a child in Bangladesh.  Give someone a chance to live better than slaving for next to nothing in a factory that will collapse on them.

I don’t know what else to tell you to do…but please, don’t just do nothing.