MOPS International sponsors chat about Breathe

Some 110,000 moms around the country received a free copy of my book Breathe: Creating Space for God in a Hectic Life last month, courtesy of my co-publisher, MOPS (Mothers of PreSchoolers). MOPS sent it, along with MomSense magazine, to all of their members. Since that mailing went out, I've been getting e-mails almost daily from women who tell me how much they enjoy the book. Like this one from Tonya in Byron, IL:

"I just started reading Breathe for a book study with my MOPS group. So far, I LOVE IT!!!!! I think it is just what most of the women in my group need right now. I can't tell you how many times I talk to my fellow mothers and the whole time we just compain about how busy we all are. Most of our children are still young enough that we can set our boundaries now and try to hold onto them. My husband and I have just started attending church after a LONG absense. Strangely, we didn't think we had time to commit to joining a church... however, that should have been one of our top priorities. I have felt God's work in my life a lot lately and bringing this book into my life is just another blessing. Just wanted to share with you that your book has reached out and touched my life. Thank you. Sincerely, Tonya"

Now that people have had a chance to start reading the book, MOPS is sponsoring an on-line discussion group at their website this week.

If you have a question or comment about the book, or you're just thinking about picking up a copy and want to see what the book is about and listen in on a discussion of it, just go to www.mops.org/breathe and you'll see the instructions for how to participate.

If you're a MOPS member and going to the annual convention this September, I hope you'll sign up for the workshop I'm leading there. It's based on my book Oxygen.

Burger King and fair wages

"Listen! The wages of the laborers who mowed your fields, which you kept back by fraud, cry out, and the cries of the harvesters have reached the ears of the Lord of hosts." (James 5:4)

Our fast-moving society allows us to be blind to the injustices all around us. We don't realize that the workers who pick the coffee beans for our morning brew, or a the tomatoes for our fast-food burgers, are toiling in near slavery. Who knew that pulling through the drive-through to grab a burger could be such a significant decision?

I received an e-mail from Sojourners today, about Burger King and the wages paid to workers who pick tomatoes for this company. Here are some of the highlights of what they said:

Farm workers who pick tomatoes for Burger King's sandwiches earn 40 to 50 cents for every 32-pound bucket of tomatoes they pick, a rate that has not risen significantly in nearly 30 years. Workers who toil from dawn to dusk must pick two tons of tomatoes to earn $50 in one day.

Worse yet, modern-day slavery has reemerged in Florida's fields; since 1997, the U.S. Department of Justice has prosecuted five slavery rings, freeing more than 1,000 workers. As a major buyer of Florida tomatoes, Burger King's purchasing practices place downward pressure on farm worker wages and put corporate profits before human dignity.

Read more at http://go.sojo.net/campaign/burgerking/iu373ibrodnd6i8?

I hope you'll forward the info to others. Ignorance of how our buying habits affect others is no excuse. We have an obligation to be intelligent. And to not eat at Burger King.

Helicopter Parenting

I'm blogging today at www.boomerbabesrock.com/blog, so click on over and check out my post on parents who hover over their children's lives, not just when they're young but even as those children enter the workforce!
Wanting the best for your child doesn't mean we ought to be accompanying them to job fairs, or worse, calling to follow up on their job interviews. But it's happening and causing headaches for human resource professionals everywhere. Read more here.

World Vision made me cry

I sat at in my kitchen this morning, crying in my coffee. And for once, it wasn’t about me. Well, not directly about me.

As Frederick Buechner wrote, "When you find yourself with tears in your eyes, especially unexpected tears, it is well to pay the closest attention."

Before me I spread out a handful of pictures of little girls from Third World countries: Loveness in Zambia, Kidest in Ethiopia, Machilu in Malawi.
The photos of their sweet faces were included in a request from World Vision to sponsor girls. Because in many cultures, especially people living in poverty, girls get a lot less medicine, food and education than boys.
We’ve sponsored children through World Vision for several years now. For a while, we sponsored Edna Blanc in Haiti. Then, as often happens, her family moved away from the area where World Vision provides services. When I got the letter saying she’d no longer be my sponsored child, I cried. We’d only exchanged a few letters and birthday cards but I had her photo on my fridge and I prayed for her all the time.
The same thing has happened with a boy that I’ve sponsored this year. Yothin Sarinon and his family are moving away from the area in Thailand where they could receive sponsorship.
I read the appeal letter to my thirteen year old daughter. And we had a great talk about how women and girls are often mistreated. “Compared to boys, they’re less likely to receive adequate medical care or food,” the letter said. That means if there is a brother and a sister who are sick, the family will give medicine to the boy but not the girl, I explained. I looked at the precious children’s faces on my table, and I longed to gather them all into my arms and bring them home.
Sponorship is costs about $30 per month—about one dollar per day. I spend that on coffee, easily. You could even downsize your coffee from a Venti to a Grande or Tall, and use the difference to change a child’s life. I decided to sponsor two girls. But there are still more girls—on my kitchen table and around the world. Won’t you join me in sponsoring a little girl? Go to www.worldvision.org/sponsorGirls In changing a life, you just might change your own.

Sabbath column

Correction: the following more clearly states the nature of my column, which I write for www.Todayschildrensministry.com . It's a part of www.christianitytoday.com, but I am not a columnist for the magazine of the same name. Just to clarify.

My monthly web column for kids ministry leaders, For Your Soul, was featured front and center on the ChristianityToday.com website today. Usually it's tucked away on the Today's Children's Ministry page. That's the good news.

The bad news is that said column contained an error--a glaring one. I wrote about Sabbath, and said it was the sixth commandment. Nope. It's the fourth. And I knew that. I really did. But I was hurrying to write my column (which was about slowing down and taking a day of rest, ironically) and somehow that got in there. Ugg.

As my kids would say, "my bad!"

Since it was featured so prominently, I've been getting e-mails today (mostly from pastors) helpfully pointing out my error.

Not to put to fine a point on it, these readers have not been kind.

Here's one comment that someone left anonymously on my website:


"I am astounded that you would write an article about Sabbath keeping, have it published online in Christianity Today, and not bother to get the number of the commandment right. Remember the Sabbath is the fourth commandment.


The sixth commandment is Do not Kill."


Ouch. I feel like such a fool.


Ok, Mr. Anonymous Bible Expert, speaking of the SIXTH commandment, here's a verse for you: Matthew 5:21-22. Where Jesus says that anyone who says "You fool!" will be in danger of the fire of hell. In other words, that unkind words can wound like a knife.


Now, I admit, I got the number wrong. And I hate any kind of inaccuracy in my writing. And again, to clarify, it wasn't in Christianity Today (the magazine) but on a website run by the same company. But the number of the commandment wasn't the point of the article--it was about how to practice Sabbath, to take a rest, and how we often don't do that. Still, the majority of the e-mails have been about my mistake, and only a few have asked for help with actually practicing Sabbath, or offered insights about it. And if we know the number, or the letter of the law, but don't live by the Spirit of the law, what good is that?


I wrote about Sabbath in my book Breathe. And I'm currently working on another book on this topic. Because Sabbath is more than commandment number, and even more than just a day. And I do know it is the fourth commandment. but, as the response to my article shows, we tend to focus on the wrong things when it comes to Sabbath.

The Sabbath and Jubilee commandments of the Bible reflect God's heart for justice, generosity. they are commands to trust, to rest, to share. You can learn more about this side of the Sabbath from my friends at Bartimaeus Cooperative Ministries.

I'll post more later about some more thoughtful responses to my column. A few people asked me about further details on how to actually practice Sabbath, and I'd love to hear from some of you about that!

Presidential candidates to discuss faith, poverty

I'm on the e-mail list for Sojourners Magazine, so I received this notice from Jim Wallis today--he's going to be on CNN tonight with the Democratic presidential candidates talking about faith and politics.
No matter where you stand politically, I think people of faith need to be concerned about poverty--and for too long, many Christians have done too little (myself included). The problems of poverty seem so overwhelming--but I for one am wanting to learn how I can make a difference. Poverty is not a private, individual problem--it hurts us corporately.

Here's the info from Sojourners:

"Hillary Clinton, John Edwards, and Barack Obama join us for a conversation about faith, values, and poverty broadcast live on CNN (7 p.m. Eastern / 4 p.m. Pacific).
And in hundreds of churches and homes across the country, people of faith like you will be gathering to watch the candidates and help us issue a prophetic challenge to put poverty at the top of the political agenda.
It's not too late to join them -- click here to find a watch party in your area.
We're calling the event "Faith Guiding Our Votes," because it will be a unique forum to ask questions not just about issues, but about values. Not just what policies the candidates propose, but why. Not just whether they believe privately, but about how they live out their faith in public life.
Be sure to stay tuned immediately after the forum (8 p.m. Eastern / 5 p.m. Pacific), as I'll be interviewed live on CNN by Paula Zahn to offer my own reaction to the evening's events.
Tonight also marks the launch of our efforts leading up to the 2008 election -- including a similar forum with the Republican candidates we're planning for the fall -- and the launch of our campaign to Vote Out Poverty, challenging candidates from both political parties to go on the record with specific plans for overcoming poverty at home and abroad.
I'm looking forward to it, and I hope you'll tune in."

So, I'd be interested in hearing from those of you who watch. Or those of you who decide not to--tell me why.