13 Thirteens in '13

Have you ever thought, WHY ME?  I know I have... about my marriage, my children, my house, my job, my childhood.  

How did I end up in this marriage?  Why me?

I could have married some loser but I didn't.  My husband loves me and our children.  

What did I do to deserve these children?  Why me?

They are sweet, beautiful, forgiving, smart, fun, just completely amazing.  My children are safe and healthy, while so many parents have lost their children in horrible circumstances.  

Why do I live in this kind of house?  Why me?

Our house is average by American standards, but lots of people in other parts of the world probably wish they could live in our garage.  

Why do I work so hard for so little pay?  Why me?

There is no income generated, no vacation, no sick days, and never, ever a break from the weight of the responsibility.  But my job pays SO MUCH more than I ever thought possible.  

Why was I born into the situation I was?  Why me?

I went to school, slept in a real bed, and went to the dentist.  I had every single thing I ever needed and plenty that I wanted.  I didn't have to quit school at age 7 to work or be sold to pay my family's debt.   

So, I've been wondering, WHY ME, GOD?  It's not just fair.  

All of this has prompted some soul searching and a conversation with our pastor in NC. Today, the message in church directly addressed giving and could not have been more timely.  The reality is that it doesn't matter why I'm living this life, all that matters is what I do with what I have.  Will I (and my family) turn inward and keep our blessings for ourselves, or will we decide to share them?

So, on to the topic of this post: 13 Thirteens in '13.
{Updates as of 1-13-14 are listed below each item}

One note before I launch into this.  I'm not posting this to show everyone what we've done.  I'm posting this for accountability; if I put this on the blog, I feel like we're more likely to really do it.

We're starting a family project this year.  We're going to try to give 13 times to thirteen different organizations or situations in 2013.  Some of these things we have been doing for a while, but the goal is to increase our giving.  Here's what we have so far:  

#1 - Samaritan's Purse.  We give $60 a month for 10 months, then $50 twice in December (letting the girls pick items from their gift catalog).  That brings us to 12 times.  Inevitably there will be some natural disaster resulting in a plea for financial help, and that will be our 13th opportunity to give.
{Update: We did our usual, but didn't give for the "13th" opportunity.}

#2 - Compassion International.  We currently support a child named Adjoa in Ghana.  12 months of support plus birthday money = 13 times.

{Update: We did continue with our support for Adjoa.}

#3 - Compassion International, again.  We also support a child named Camia from Colombia.  Again, 12 months plus birthday money = 13 times.

{Update: We did continue our support for Camia.}

#4 - Operation Christmas Child.  13 gift boxes this year (we've done 2 each year for the past several years).

{Update: We prepared 13 boxes this year!}

#5 - Church Nursery - serve at least 13 times so parents of little ones can be in the service. For those of you who want to know, yes, we tithe to the church, but we don't consider that really giving because it's already expected.

{Update: We served in the nursery 11 times this year, and we served during Bible Camp week so that will have to count for our 13 times!}

#6 - Church Sound Team.  Steve will likely serve on the sound team at least 13 times this year.  True, he really does enjoy doing this so it's not exactly a sacrifice, but we do have to give up some of our family time in order for him to serve.  So... let's include it in the list.

{Update: Steve ran sound 16 times this year.}

Okay, #1-6 we are already doing.  Time to gather ideas for #7-13.  I don't know if we will really end up doing these specific examples, but a list is a place to start.

#7 - East Side Soup Kitchen.  Volunteer 13 times this year?

{Update: Instead of East Side, the girls and I served at Old Town Soup Kitchen 4 times this year.  It wasn't 13, but it was more than nothing...}

#8 - Underground Railroad (battered women's shelter).  Using the list on their website, deliver 13 bags of needed items this year?

{Update: We delivered 13 bags of shampoo, conditioner, soap, and baby wash to the URR this year!}

#9 - Pay it Forward.  Give $13 Target gift cards to 13 unsuspecting strangers?

{Update: We didn't do this... could be that we needed all the sets of $13 we had, or could be that we just procrastinated...}

#10 - Layaway.  Visit Walmart and see if there is something on layaway we can put money toward for someone?

{Update: We didn't do this... see #9}

#11 - Water for Life.  Donating $13, 13 times this year?  This would provide water for 2 families.

{Update: We didn't do this... see #9}

#12 - Support special needs adoption through Reece's Rainbow.

{Update: We gave $13, but only one time.}

#13 - Love your neighbor.

{Update: A family we know needed help this year and we were able to help them at least 13 times!}

Update summary: 

While we didn't accomplish our lofty goal of 13 Thirteens in '13, we did give more this year than in previous years.  The girls were a little disappointed that we didn't do all of the things on our list, but we had some conversations about the Pharisees and how they were so intent on following the letter of the law that they forgot about the important things.  The bottom line is that we did do better this year than we have in the past, but there is still room for improvement.  I suppose if we had accomplished everything we had put on the above list, we wouldn't feel as humbled as we do, and feeling humbled is good.