Economics
Generosity and Our Tribal Hearts
We often think of generosity as being willing to give our money to others. But this is a narrow definition. A wider definition of generous is, “having a kindly spirit.” Through the years, I’ve discovered many ways in which my spirit has not been so “kindly” toward others. But here I want to share three things that have made me a more generous person. And I think that’s a good thing. CONNECTION has...
Sufficient, But Not Saving
I often notice that a lot of commercials and ads have one big message in common: if you’re not buying or doing or subscribing to or wearing such and such, your life is not as good as it could be. There seems to be almost a moral pressure to consume the advertised thing. It’s easy to wonder if I’m good enough, doing the right thing, living life the right way, or consuming the “right” things. These ...
Getting Real About Money and Limits
I’ll be honest, I’m not writing about my financial health because I’m financially healthy. I’m writing about it because I’m not great about my money… and it bothers me. A lot of people in my life would say that I’m a pretty good adult—perhaps that I have been since I was about four. It’s a hazard of being an only child. And in a lot of ways it’s true. When I’m presented with a task or an area of m...
Marshmallows and Delusions of Grandeur
As a kid, I loved marshmallows. The way they turn golden brown over an open flame. Their powdery mouthfeel and sugary taste. And not to mention their effortless ability to perfectly smoosh together on top of a melted peanut butter cup (that’s right—even as a kid, my s’mores game was strong). Unfortunately, these puffy treats were ruined for me thanks to the marshmallow experiment. If you aren’t fa...
Call Me Old-Fashioned
Call me old-fashioned, but I think technology is a little overrated. Yes, we can have pretty much anything we want delivered to us without even putting on pants. Yes, we don’t have to go through the hassle of making real friends when we can easily connect with people online. Yes, we don’t even need to know where we’re going before we get in the car. But just because we have unlimited power at our ...
When “Work” and “Life” Merge Into “Living”
I have very full days. I work full time, I’m a mom to a kindergartner, I’m a wife, I try to be active in my community—in other words, I’m not unlike lots of folks who juggle a lot on any given day. Take my to-do list from last Thursday, for example. Some of my tasks between 7:30 a.m. and 7:30 p.m. included the following: dropping my son off at school, writing a client’s strategic plan, a walk arou...
“Go get a real job.”
“Stop wasting time and go work for an insurance company or some other desk job. Everyone in your generation is so goddamn lazy and entitled!” I will never forget these words, mainly because my stepmom yelled them through a door I’d slammed shut moments before. This was during a pivotal time in my life: I had just graduated and was forced to move back in with my parents — sound familiar? After mont...
What Can the Bible Tell Us About Work?
What do Christians believe about work? And how does that impact your work, whatever that may be? Work has meaning Christians believe that work isn’t just something you do because you have to eat, and you need money. Work is one of the things God designed people for, and so it has meaning for us. In the very beginning, “The Lord God took the man and put him in the Garden of Eden to work it and take...
Nobody “just likes stuff.”
Consumerism: I’m the problem. When I told my wife that I was working on a piece about consumerism, I was met with laughter. Not a chuckle. Not a giggle. But the full-on rumbling roar that accompanies a genuine belly laugh. I wanted to feign pearl-clutching shock, but the only thing I could do is laugh right alongside her. See, I’ve known my wife since we were both barely teenagers and my unquencha...
Finding Gratitude Between Privilege and Poverty
A few months ago I took a weekend trip to Mexico, on the Yucatan peninsula. As I drove down the highway from the airport to my hotel, I listened closely to the radio and translated as much in my head as I could. Something about “Saturday at 7,” and “huge sale on cars, call this number!” I did my best. At some point on my drive I realized that the hotel was a straight shot from where I was, so all ...
Wealth
When it comes to money and wealth, we always look at those who have more than us: Bill Gates, Warren Buffet, and other members of the ‘1%.’ Those people are wealthy, no doubt. But what if we flipped our perspective? What if we look at who is behind us on a global scale? There is a website that does this—you can put in your yearly income and see where you land compared to the world’s population. Th...
Fair trade is a critical first step.
Looking out at seemingly endless miles of coffee trees near Taratung, Indonesia, baking in the sun, I was transfixed by the workers slaving away, drenched in sweat, and only paid a pittance for their work. I thought back to the cooperative I visited earlier that morning. There in the shade, a family had been processing cherries and drying the beans. They laughed. They shared stories. They had me t...
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