We started our morning tucked in the back office of a school in a community in Dhaka to spend some time together in devotions. We read 1 Corinthians 13, the ”love chapter.” A passage that is read so often it is tempting to tune it out.

“If I speak in the tongues of men and of angels but have not love, I am a noisy gong or clanging symbol. And if I have prophetic powers, and understand all mysteries and all knowledge, and if I have all faith, so as to remove mountains, but have not love, then I am nothing. If I give away all that I have, and deliver my body to be burned but have not love, I gain nothing. Love is patient. Love is kind. Love does not envy or boast. It does not insist on its own way; it is not irritable or resentful; it does not rejoice at wrongdoing, but rejoices with the truth. Love bears all things, believes all things, hopes all things, endures all things. Love never ends. As for prophecies, they will pass away; as for tongues, they will cease; as for knowledge, it will pass away. For we know in part and we prophesy in part, but when the perfect comes, the partial will pass away. When I was a child, I spoke like a child, I thought like a child, I reasoned like a child. When I became a man, I gave up the childish ways. For now we see in a mirror dimly, but then face to face. Now I know in part; then I shall now fully, even as I have been fully known. And now these three remain: faith, hope, and love. But the greatest of these is love.”

But reading it here, in Bangladesh, the words I know so well sounded different. Different because the scriptures were read in Bangla. And different because those words are what this trip is about. This trip is an expedition in 1 Corinthians 13. This trip is an expedition in faith, in hope, and in love.

Faith. FH has been in Bangladesh since 1972.  What started as a relief effort to get rice to starving Bangladeshis amid a revolution, has evolved over the last 40 years. A vision of FH’s faithful founder Larry Ward who wouldn’t let the overwhelming need deter him, “they die one at a time, so we help them one at a time,” has grown. Mountains have been moved. Lifes have been changed. In Bangladesh alone, the organization provides agricultural training; health, hygiene, and clean water programs; pastoral training; income generating groups; and education initiatives. All funded through child sponsorship. 

Photo by Esther Havens.

Hope. FH has been in the community we visited today since 1981. What was once a slum perched on a garbage dump has evolved into a beacon of hope. Its cornerstone, a self-sufficient school operated by former-FH-sponsor-kids like Sirajul, Menohad, Josef, and Esa. Their former teacher, Rony, now works on the FH Bangladesh executive team. And he beams as he shares how the young men he taught inspire him. They inspire me too. They glisten with hope.

Photo by Esther Havens.

The kids they instruct shimmer with it too. {I suspect if I found my way back here in 10 years I would meet a new generation of former-FH-sponsor-kids continuing the tradition of teaching the kids in their community.}

Photo by Esther Havens.

Love. As Logan pointed so eloquently shared this morning during our dive into 1 Corinthians 13, “while faith and hope are something that we have, love is something we can give.”

And gave it we did.

Today love broke down common barriers…citizenship, religion, language.

Today love was dolled out in heaps.

And today love left us all full. 

Photo by Esther Havens.

Photo by Esther Havens.

Photo by Esther Havens.

Photo by Esther Havens.

Photo by Esther Havens.

Photo by Esther Havens.

Photo by Esther Havens.

If you want to love on these kids, these communities, you can. It only costs $32 a month to sponsor a child. Through your sponsorship, you will help Food for the Hungry assist your child’s entire community to provide food, a better education, clean water and medical treatment to its children. Go here to sponsor a child in Bangladesh.

Go here to read the posts from the bloggers on this trip with me.

Thursday morning we {my buddy Daniel C White and I} got on my first plane in Nashville.

After not so quick stops in Los Angeles and Istanbul, and not so short flights over North America {twice}, the Atlantic Ocean, Europe, and the Middle East, on Saturday morning the FH Bloggers got off our last plane in Dhaka.

Whew! {That’s a lot of travel.}

We picked up some friends {Logan Wolfram, Max and Lauren Dubinsky, Joy Eggerichs} along the way, ate some In-N-Out {thank you Jacky and Clay}, tried Turkish coffee {bleh}, shared stories, laughs and of course a ridiculous amount of personal space.

Alas…We made it!

We dashed through customs in what might have been a national record, found the rest of our group {Esther Havens and Heidi Hatch}, checked into our hotel, washed off our travel funk, got outfitted in traditional Bangladeshi apparel, ate some food that wasn’t wrapped in tin foil, learned some Bangla, ventured around Dhaka, and did our best to embrace Bangladesh Standard Time.

But now it’s time to sleep.

In a bed. {Yay! Oh how I love beds! And not economy airline seats.}

<< That’s “Good Night” folks! Til tomorrow…

A couple of months ago, I blogged about Lysa TerKeurst’s book Unglued.

Oh, I’ve been unglued.

I am not proud to admit it, but it’s true.

I’ve been unglued. I’ve been unhinged. And I’ve been unable to keep my crazy under wraps.

There was the time in middle school when two teenage boys were bullying a friend and me, that I slammed my fist down on a glass tabletop to get my point across {we will not be messed with} but all they heard was the sound of table shattering. Click here to read the rest of the post. 

I shared about how important of a resource this is for women, like me, who lose it every now and again. That’s why I am so excited that this book now has a new companion piece, the Unglued Devotional: 60 Days of Imperfect Progress (Can we talk about how wonderful that subtitle is? Sign me up for that!). The devotional includes a daily opening scripture, thought for the day, devotion, and closing prayer. It’s an accessible way to start positively processing your emotions (Sign me up for that!).

I’m starting it now.  I can’t wait to see what all I learn. Holler if you want to join me on this journey of “imperfect progress.”

Tell me your favorite devotional of all-time below and you will be entered to win the following from Lysa and the Proverbs 31 team: 

Unglued, Unglued Devotional, Set of 4 Unglued key tags, Highlighter, Journal, $5 Starbucks gift card

I will select winner on Sunday, February 3, when I get back from Bangladesh. 

In 8 short days, the #fhbloggers will meet in Los Angeles to begin our LONG trip across the world to Bangladesh where we will spend a handful of days visiting Food for the Hungry’s staff and work there.

{We had a Skype call with the team yesterday and covered all the details. You know…to dos and not to dos, packing essentials, travel tips, making fun of Daniel C. White, etc.}

I am excited. I am nervous. And I am a little overwhelmed.

Before I pulled together this trip, I didn’t know much about Bangladesh. I knew I had seen “Made in Bangladesh” on some of my clothing labels, but truth be known I wasn’t even really sure where Bangladesh was. {For those of you like me, who aren’t quite sure  where Bangladesh is, Google Maps is here to help. See there it is..tucked in between India and Burma!}

Here is what else I’ve learned.

Bangladesh is a tough place to live. Climate change has made the country a flood zone. But it has also made the Bangladeshi people quite resilient.

Bangladesh is c-rowded. Imagine a country about the size of the state of Wisconsin that houses a population about half the size of the entire United States. C-rowded.

And Bangladesh is going to be quite a culture shock for all of us comfortable Americans.

In Bangladesh, people eat differently. With their hand, their right hand. {I guess your left hand is reserved for something else entirely?}

In Bangladesh, people dress differently. I can’t wait to sport my very own Salwar Kameezes.

In Bangladesh, people express themselves differently. Supposedly they take “personal space” to a whole new level.

And In Bangladesh, people do religion differently. Can you imagine living someplace where only .3% of the population were Christians? Yeah, me neither.

So all this to say, I’m pretty sure we are all about to have our world views rocked.

Would you please pray for me and the other #fhbloggers traveling to this whole new world?

Would you consider following our trip? We’ll be aggregating all the posts at http://www.fhbloggers.org or you can follow along on twitter by keeping up with the #fhbloggers hashtag.

And pretty please, would you consider sponsoring a child in Bangladesh? 

I just got back from Passion 2013. It was my first time. {I know. I know. I was way too self-consumed in college to ever commit to a trip like this.} And although I was a guest and have outgrown their target audience, I had a blast! It was an incredible way to kick off the year.

If you aren’t familiar with Passion, from January 1 – 4, 60,000+ college kids gathered in The Georgia Dome to worship, to connect, to hear from some the leading voices in Christianity today, and to stand for the oppressed. Over 3 million dollars was raised to combat modern forms of human slavery. Pretty cool, huh?

And what do you know? God taught me. 36 year old me, some stuff. Here are 5 things I learned from my time at Passion.

1. God isn’t subtle about delivering messages He wants us to hear. Nope. You NEVER KNOW who God is going to use to speak to you. Open your heart and your ears.

2. There is NOTHING BETTER than gathering around a table with a few like-minded women and swapping stories. Forget the small talk, let’s talk about our fears, our hopes, and how we have seen God at work.

3. David Crowder’s new stuff is brilliant. BRILLIANT. Bluegrass done beautifully. I can’t wait to hit up another one of his “Hoedowns” soon.

4. Judah Smith can PREACH. He might be my new favorite teacher {except Pete Wilson, of course, he’s always tops} but Judah, well, he is funny, relevant, passionate, and drives a message home like few others.

5. We are nipping at the heels of a REVIVAL. Click here to read my Deeper Church post on the subject.

What has God been teaching you? 

Last week I had the pleasure of sitting down with two of my favorite people, Trisha and Justin Davis, to talk about their new book, Beyond Ordinary: When a Good Marriage Isn’t Good Enough. The Davises have taught me so much through their friendship, their ministry and their book about living a life that is beyond ordinary. A life full of forgiveness, grace, truth, and healthy boundaries. I am so excited that their book will magnify their message, their influence. We all have a lot to learn from them!

In the video below, I ask them to give a brief synopsis of the beginning of their ministry, to tell us how their book actually applies to a broader audience than one might think, and to share how those in a ‘happy’ marriage might take some proactive steps to strengthen their relationship. Please watch and share.

Oh, and don’t forget to…

Buy their book.

Read their blog.

Join their community on Facebook.

Follow Justin and Trish on Twitter.

In the spirit of improving your marriage, what is your favorite piece of marriage advice? 

This year has been a little crazy. So crazy that I haven’t written much. But not so crazy that I can’t recap the highlights. In pictures. I have this crazy tendency to think nothing everything changes, that it all stays the same. So this recap is more for me to see that I have, in fact, done some stuff. But I hope you enjoy it too.

I rang in 2012 in Nashville. (I know. It’s weird. I was just visiting back then.)

Here’s a picture from the evening. Me and one of my favorite pastors and his stunning wife. Love them. So thankful for the message of grace that they continually shout into my life.

My sister came to California for a long weekend. We had a blast exploring. Restaurants. Museums. Beaches. Friends. They are all better with sister.

Made it back to Nashville for Blissdom. Loved reconnecting with old people. It was on this trip when I knew I had to move back.

A trip to Tahoe. Good friends. Good snow. The perfect weekend retreat.

Me and a small team from Project 7 ventured down to Haiti to see the incredible work of Plant with Purpose. Came home with a renewed passion to bring hope to the hopeless and a parasite that took me down for weeks. Bleh.

A year in California gave me an opportunity to enjoy a lifetime of epic sunsets.

If I had a bucket list beach bonfire would have been on it. Along with running into the ocean in the freezing cold with all of my clothes on. Check. Check.

Closing the California chapter meant leaving some extraordinary people. Oh, how I hate the goodbyes.

 Closing the California chapter meant packing up. Oh, how I hate the packing up.

Closing the California chapter meant a cross country road trip with a brave friend. Oh, how I love a good road trip. We made a quick pit stop in the Grand Canyon. I was only a little scared that my-klutzy-self was going to trip and fall in.

Meeting the new team. I LOVE working with the FH Artists Program team. They make my life better, they make me better.

A quick trip to the Alabama Gulf Coast with the family.

Lots of family.

My first trip to Africa. Loved seeing the work of Food for the Hungry and traveling with such a fun and talented crew.

My grandmother, Honey, turned 90 this year. We celebrated in style.

Back in the Nashville mix. And love introducing my California friends to all the wonderful things and people Tennessee has to offer.

Cross Point celebrated 10 years. Thankful for a church, for a community, where Everyone’s Welcome, Nobody’s Perfect and Anything’s Possible.

Back to Orange County for Resurgence. A great excuse to spend some time with this guy, and his wife, and our crazy lot of friends.

Thanksgiving in Highlands. This is the fabulous moment where the whole family appeared to be sporty. Don’t be deceived folks. It was just a couple of hikes to waterfalls. The impromptu game of post-Thanksgiving lunch football is never going to happen.

My last trip of the year was to the Dominican Republic. Jeffrey was La Cola’s Kite Runner. His kite was carefully crafted out of plastic bags and piece-mealed string. And the way he had that thing proudly sailing reminded me how God makes incredible things happen with scraps. With broken people just like me.

How was your 2012? What’s are a few highlights?

I’m posting over at A Deeper Church today. Hope you’ll go check it out.

I have had a long year. The last 12 months might have been some of the best, and the worst, I can remember.  Back-to-back-to-back transitions, a crazy travel schedule, and reacclimating to life in Nashville has worn me out. And then yesterday, I learned of the passing of a dear friend’s mother. Friday, I hit the road again, four days in the Dominican Republic to see the work of Food for the Hungry first hand.

Needless to say, my typical Christmas-Countdown-December-Frenzy has been interrupted by pain, poverty and large dose of perspective. Read the rest of the post here. 

My friend Kristi Griem introduced me to an incredible organization that she works with, Freeset, and asked me to be a part of their 12 Days of Freedom.

Freeset is in business for freedom. Freedom from human trafficking. Freeset is a fair trade business that sells bags and t-shirts, made by women freed from human trafficking in Calcutta, India. The women are able to have a job with dignity, making products, instead of being the product. Every woman receives three times the wage they would receive in line (the prostitution line), learn to read and write, daycare for their children, have medical insurance and retirement benefits.

But don’t take my word for it. Meet Dali.

“I like to spend time here,” Dali says of working at Freeset. Her start with the business was a little unconventional. Initially, Freeset had been unable to employ any more women when she approached them for a job. But, undeterred Dali and a friend continued to turn up for work, “For the first five months I worked without salary. The other women collected some money from their salaries and gave it to me. I thought, ‘These women work so hard by themselves and still they are paying us with their own money!’” That was nearly 10 years ago.

These days Dali can be found quietly clipping the excess thread off bags before they are packed. However, her most important responsibility is the twice-a-day routine of making sweet, milky tea for everyone in the factory.

She is thankful for the many ways her job at Freeset has improved her ability to deal with life’s ups and downs, “I endured many hardships, but working here has helped me to forget the pains of my life.” she says. “Working at Freeset has helped me a lot with running my family. My younger son has been through school. When my older son was in a serious car accident, the medical insurance provided through working at Freeset paid the expensive hospital bills. If I hadn’t had a job here I would have never been able to provide treatment to my son and my husband who has a heart condition.”

Buy one of their hope bags and help Dali.  Watch their video, shop their bags, change lives.

Christmas isn’t about stuff. And Christmas isn’t about busyness. Christmas is about the generosity of God. And Christmas is about the incredible gift He shared with us. For us!

For a child has been born—for us!
the gift of a son—for us!
He’ll take over
the running of the world.
His names will be: Amazing Counselor,
Strong God,
Eternal Father,
Prince of Wholeness.
His ruling authority will grow,
and there’ll be no limits to the wholeness he brings. Isaiah 9:6, The Message

There will be no limits to the wholeness he brings. Now that is a reason to celebrate! 

Presents. Lights. Trees. Cards. Parties. Elves on shelves. Santa Claus. Reindeer. Blow-Up Snow Globes. Stockings. Hallmark Christmas Movies. They are all have their place. But that place isn’t shouldn’t be at the center of this special holiday. Yet sometimes, in all the stuff, and in all the busyness, we get lost in the festivity and forget the true meaning of the season.

This year, let’s not forget.

Let’s take back Christmas.

Food for the Hungry is launching a campaign this Christmas, “The 8 Days of Giving” Challenge. Our Director of Digital Media, Jeremy Reis, is leading the charge and will be blogging from December 9 to December 16, on the FH Blog. Our goal is to give 800 gifts, 100 gifts per day, from the FH Christmas Catalog.

The FH Christmas Catalog is designed to deliver gifts that impact the lives on the most vulnerable globally. Through the gift catalog, families in need receive items like small farm animals, school supplies and uniforms and bed nets.

We’d love it if you would join us in taking back Christmas. Here are three simple ways you can help:

1. Read and share about “The 8 Days of Giving” campaign.

2. Choose some items from the FH gift catalog to give to your loved ones this year.

3. Find other creative gifts for good. A few of my favorites are Project 7 Gum & Mints, Krochet Kids hats, 31 Bits Jewelry, Warby Parker glasses, and C & C Coffee Company’s Christmas Coffee.

How are you taking back Christmas this year?