Our church participates in something called "The Advent Conspiracy." If you've never heard of it, check out this short promo video: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=9IN0W3gjnNE&feature=share&mid=533.
So, what is the conspiracy? The Body of Christ will refuse to binge on buying and consuming at the expense of sharing and giving. It goes much further than simply adding charity to a long list of gifts for kids, parents, cousins, and friends. It means scaling back the gift-giving to one another and using the money to meet critical needs around the world and at home. This is at the heart of the Advent Conspiracy.
So this is how my family plans to participate this year:
-We are going to scale down the gift-giving in our immediate family by making gifts for each other. Not only will we save money, but we will also be giving more meaningful gifts. It's a win-win! I can't wait to share with you our hand-made gifts! Look for that post after Christmas.
-We will compare the cost of supplies for the hand-made gifts to the amount we spent on gifts for each other last year, and we will give the difference to Living Water International, a ministry that drills wells in third world countries to provide clean drinking water for the local villages. This is the ministry that took Drummer Boy on a well-drilling mission trip to Honduras last spring.
-We will organize a neighborhood effort to adopt a family through KSBJ's Giving Tree ministry. I like this ministry because it is personal. We get to meet and visit with the family that we adopt, and our children get to participate in that as well. We did this last year and the neighbors really enjoyed participating in this ministry, so I think it will be well-received again.
-We will organize a neighborhood service project at Kids' Meals. Princess and I spent a day there last December and it was a great experience. I am hoping to recruit several other families to participate with us this year and I am planning on including Pumpkin this year as well.
-Each family member will receive an allotment of money to give to an organization of their choice. Some of the organizations we are considering are Young Life, Compassion International, Whole Heart Ministries, The Houston Food Bank, and KSBJ (our local Christian radio station). I am hoping that this will inspire the girls to take interest in organizations that reach out to people in need, and will let them experience the joy that comes from helping others and making a difference.
-I purchased a daily Advent family devotional from Doorposts that I am very excited about. Each day's devotion consists of two or three passages of scripture to look up and read, a short paragraph commentary, and a suggested hymn. It is short and sweet. We plan to do it after dinner beginning Sunday, November 27th, the first Sunday of Advent.
-I plan to read Preparing for Jesus, a book of daily devotionals for the Advent season, each morning to get my mind focused on Jesus each day. I love this book. I have read it for the past four years and it keeps me focused and joyful when I might otherwise be overwhelmed and stressed!
-Lastly, we are planning to make a real effort to give more of our time and presence to our family and friends instead of spending more money.
Will you join with me in this conspiracy? If you like these ideas, adopt them for your family. I think it is so important that we get away from the consumerism that this season has become, and get back to the roots of the season: preparing for the coming of Jesus. Are you ready for Him? Is your heart ready? I hope this year that all our hearts will be a little more focused on giving and less focused on getting. A little more about Jesus and less about ME ME ME.
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