Put Your Money Where Your Mouth Is

Put your money where your mouth is.

I like this phrase. It's bold. It has attitude. Sure, it's a little cliched, but that's because this statement is so true. Back up your words. Don't just say something and do something else. Invest in what you believe in.

So in 2010, we're gonna do it.

My friend Keri Wyatt Kent wrote a book last year titled Simple Compassion. (to read my review, click here.)

Simple Compassion is packed with 52 weeks of ways to make your belief in God's mercy real. In Isaiah, God commands us to "share our food with the hungry." Hungry for my kids usually means, "it's been 30 minutes since I had a snack." For me, it means that my breakfast was delayed an hour, or I missed lunch, or I didn't get enough protein in the afternoon.

So when I read Kent's chapter entitled "Challenged," about the five days her family spent eating like most of the world, I was intrigued. So often, the age of our kids (7, 5, 2) makes mercy projects daunting. Between church ministry, jobs, school and friends, we just never seemed to be able to get our hands into something around Richmond. We tithe, support ministries and missionaries, and adopt Compassion International kids. But...I still didn't feel like we were putting our money where our mouth is, so to speak.

This morning Desmond and I ran down to the lake near our house and fed the ducks. As I scattered crumbs from an old hot dog bun into the water, I ran the numbers. In my hand, I had about $3 worth of leftover food. According to Feed My Starving Children, that's enough to feed a hungry child more than nine meals. Astounding.

We have no idea what hunger really is, yet that's how so much of the world lives. According to Bread.Org, 1.02 billion people in the world are hungry. A child dies every 5 seconds from starvation. I ran the numbers. At that rate, my child's entire elementary school would be dead in fifteen days.

Abundance from corner to corner in the U.S. Poverty, starvation, dirty water just a few clicks south on the compass.

We didn't choose the place or time that we should live. God did. So how can I not desire to respond to the plight of the poor, who also didn't choose where they were to live? I can't understand the mystery and providence of God. But I can obey.

Feb. 1st-5th, my family will be taking the Five Day Food and Water Challenge. I've found the best guidelines for the here. This is what we will be following in our house, amended for the children.

The average American household spends $150-200 per week on groceries. The average Haitian lives on $1-2 per day. So next week, our average meal will be plain oatmeal for breakfast, beans and rice for lunch, and beans, rice and a tortilla for dinner. We won't do Whole Foods or Starbucks. We'll skip lunches out after preschool. And we'll take that money we save and donate it to Feed My Starving Children, a Christian non-profit organization that uses 94% of its funding for food programs--a great testament to the health and stewardship of the organization.

We want to challenge you to join us in putting your money where your mouth is. I love that you are giving away money you already spend. I ran the numbers. Just a dozen of us, cutting back for 5 days, could feed a starving child for an entire year. So if you are up for it, if you are sick of giving lip service to what you know God is calling us to do, then join us next week.

Here's what to do:

1. Read the guidelines provided above.

2. Decide you are in: email me at nicoleunice@gmail.com, leave a comment here, or post it on Facebook.

3. Use the "share this" button below and post this article to your FB page, or email it to some friends and ask them to join. The more people you tell, the more likely you are to follow through!

4. I'll post encouragement and support all next week! Plan to break the fast on Friday night with a simple meal with friends.

5. On Friday, Feb. 5th, take the difference you saved in groceries and donate it to Feed My Starving Children or a similar organization. I'm estimating the Food Challenge will cost less than $20 in groceries. We usually spend about $150/week. If you'd like, post how much you saved.

6. I'll post the results on Saturday and we'll all do a happy dance.

7. If you are a nursing or pregnant momma but want to participate, consider giving up something you love--like your decaf Starbucks--and contributing those funds.




As we study Ephesians at Thrive, we've been talking about being sent to do God's work. From our neighbors close and our neighbors far away, we can represent God's good mercy to the world. Consider this challenge--or another--as a way that God is "sending" you to do his work in the world.