Jesus said, Give it all away.

Matthew 19:21 Jesus said, "If you wish to be complete, go and sell your possessions and give to the poor, and you will have treasure in heaven; and come, follow Me." 

Personally, I'm really not worried so much about treasure in heaven, but I am concerned about having true treasure while here on earth, which I believe has nothing much to do with tangible items.  I joked with friends not long ago that we could likely live without 90% of our possessions, that I actually thought that most of us could manage with much less than what we claim we need to survive in this world. 


Shortly after speaking these words, I found myself selling and/or giving away most of our possessions. I realized that we really couldn't afford a moving van and gas to get the bulk of our things to the next destination. And so I decided that rather than spend money we didn't have, that maybe we could make a little money to help us get to the next point, and help others at the same time. And that we did. Between a book store, an antique dealer and a consignment shop, we were able to make a little. That which was not worth much, we gave away to Salvation Army. And we moved, with one car load of possessions, plus some boxes that my mother and sister were able to store for us.


It turned out that all that was really important in the end were a few items of clothing, books, photos, toys, electronics, our bikes, toiletries, linens and kitchen items. We saved some artwork, heirloom china, and some holiday decorations. But the bulk of what we'd hung onto for so long was really, in the end, not worth hanging onto. Rather it was weighing us down. It was keeping us from being free to do what Jesus really intends for us to do, which is to follow Him.


So it is with a much lighter load that we transition into the next chapter of life, having given almost all of it away. I do wish to be complete, to be whole, to follow Jesus. I'll let you know how it goes. And we'd love to hear how it goes for you too! Please stay in touch.

The Adventure Begins

I'm a firm believer in the first half of the saying attributed to Alexander Graham Bell: “When one door closes, another opens; but we often look so long and so regretfully upon the closed door that we do not see the one which has opened for us.” In my experience, when one chapter has finished, the next is right there ready to jump into, full of new and different adventures. In looking back on past chapters, I attempt to remember the positive experiences, the good life lessons learned, and carry those into the next chapter, no regrets. 


Izabelle and I are beginning a new chapter this summer, spending two months on the island of Kiskeya, which is the Haitian Creole spelling of the native Taino peoples' word for their homeland. Dominicans spell it Quisqueya in Spanish. More commonly this island, which contains Haiti and the Dominican Republic, is called Hispaniola, named such by Christopher Columbus when he mistakenly landed there in 1492, thinking he had arrived in India.


Well, enough for the history lesson. Izabelle and I have some grand adventures planned by reconnecting with long time friends in the Dominican Republic, helping with their family restaurant, and for Izabelle, learning more about their culture and to speak Spanish! In Haiti, I'll have a work project or two and hope to visit with friends there, as well.


We hope you'll subscribe to our blog so that you'll get an email notice each time we post an update. Please post comments for us here or send us an email at kiskeya2011@gmail.com. We'd love to hear about your upcoming adventures, too! By the end of the summer we'll be settled into our new home, which we'll write more about later in the summer.