Hello faithful readers. I wanted to take some time to brag on a local non-profit organization that I have the privilege of raising money for next weekend. Wheeler Mission has been a huge part of our (my and Eric's life) life, and an even bigger part before I met him. For those of you who don't know, Wheeler's flagship ministry is its homeless shelter, especially for men, but it also provides housing for women and children at a separate site. Providing clothes, a warm bed, and a hot meal is only a fraction of what they do. They also pour out their lives into others for the chance that even one person might choose to turn their life around by getting the help they need to change their circumstances. They offer numerous programs for men and women that work towards getting them out of homeless and back into stability, living a successful, and maybe even Christ-centered, life. Wheeler Mission is completely funded privately by donors, people like you and me. They choose not to accept any government money. They are working to provide our city, and even state, with an invaluable service without burdening the government for aid or help. I can tell you personally that their staff works around the clock. My husband is the director there for men's services and he makes himself constantly available for staff members and guests. He even went into work when the city was shut down this winter because winter is the busiest time of year for Wheeler. Eric is only one example of the type of dedicated and selfless employees that they have at Wheeler Mission. Everyone puts in 100% from the program managers, to the development and marketing team, to the President and CEO. They work tirelessly and sacrifice a lot so that lives around them can be changed. This is our chance to help them.
Next Saturday, along with 9 other team members, I will compete in a CrossFit competition to benefit Wheeler Mission and Outreach, Inc., which works to help homeless teens in Central Indiana. My husband has worked tirelessly, above and beyond his normal job, to organize this 10-member team CrossFit competition next Saturday, June 28th. The first "workout" if you will, is to raise money for the beneficiaries, Wheeler Mission and Outreach, Inc. I have decided to take part for multiple reasons. First, my husband works for Wheeler and has organized the event....I want to show my support for the amazing man that he is and what he has done. Secondly, I love CrossFit. I have been doing CrossFit for over 2 and a half years now and coaching for 1 and a half. It has made a healthy lifestyle important to me in ways I never knew before. It has revolutionized the way I think about food, my body and what it is capable of, as well as goal setting and the fitness community. Last, but certainly not least, I believe in the cause. Every year we, Eric and I, work to raise money for Wheeler Mission at Thanksgiving time for the Drumstick Dash, but it's not enough. They have done so much for people around me, as well as for us. Some of you may not know that Eric lived a very different life before I met him. He began smoking and drinking at a very young age. This led to a life of drinking and marijuana use in high school, which eventually found him addicted to pain medication and then heroine. Needless to say, his life was a wreck and he had nowhere to turn. His parents had made the difficult and loving decision to no longer allow him to live with them any more. This caused a desperation in his life that had not been there before. Through a family friend, he heard about the Hebron Addiction Recovery Program through Wheeler Mission. He had been through treatment facilities before, but nothing lasted. The program was affordable; his parents decided they would no longer pay for treatment and Wheeler wouldn't turn him away if he couldn't pay. Two days into the program, he met Jesus. He committed his life to Him, to sobriety, and eventually to helping other men who were just like him. That day was back in February 2006. If you know Eric today, you either already know this story or have a hard time believing it. He is a changed man, by God's grace. God used the teachers and staff at Wheeler Mission's Hebron Program to reach Eric in a way that he couldn't have been reached before.
This is but one story. We have numerous friends with similar stories all like this. God uses Wheeler Mission to save and change lives. I believe He also wants to use this opportunity to continue the amazing work that goes on there.
If you can give now financially, thank you so much. For me, it isn't about raising the most money to win a prize. I feel as if the prize has already been won for me in marrying such an amazing man. My heart is to use this opportunity to give others the same chance that Eric had at Wheeler Mission. If you can't give right now, please be praying and/or thinking of us next Saturday. It will be fun, but also hot. I just want all the athletes to be safe and have fun.
I am including a link below where you can give financially if you choose to do so. Maybe you can't give right now and that's okay. You can volunteer or volunteer to judge at the competition next Saturday. I am including a link from Eric's Facebook page for that; it is the volunteer registration form. Wheeler Mission also has countless volunteer opportunities for you to give of your time. Maybe you want to give financially at a later time, that's fine too. Feel free to contact me about either one of those opportunities at LeslieAnneGardner@gmail.com.
To give: https://www.crowdrise.com/lesliegardner-StrengthinOurStr/fundraiser/lesliegardner
To volunteer: https://www.volgistics.com/ex/portal.dll/ap?AP=1785020486
Many thanks & may God be lifted high!
-Leslie
Friday, June 20, 2014
Wednesday, June 18, 2014
What I Do Is Not Who I Am: A Lesson in slowing down & being (rather than doing)
I am learning a hard lesson right now. I think I've worked on it before: God has brought the truth to my attention, and I've acknowledged it, but kept on LIVING as if it didn't exist. I am not, we all are not, what we do. Someone once told me they were striving to be human being, not a human doing. That doesn't ring truer for me than right now. I left my job to intentionally take time to rest. Life is supposed to be slower, more relaxing, more enjoyable. I can honestly admit that I found myself immediately trying to fill my time. Why? I genuinely enjoy and am fulfilled by work at home. I love to cook, clean, read, and pick up little house projects. So, why did I feel the need to run out and spend all my time on something else? After marinating on this for a few days or more, I believe I have two reasons. Reason #1: I fear what society as a whole will "say" about me if don't "contribute" enough to it. That's pretty ludicrous, if you ask me. There are plenty of people who don't grind themselves 40 or more hours a week at a job (outside the home) who are living meaningful, purposeful, effective lives. A great example is a woman who used to mentor me weekly when we lived in Bloomington. She didn't "work," but she had her hands to the plow on so many things. I say that relationships are important, but it's easier to live for tasks. My soul longs for more relationships, deeper and better ones, but I constantly find myself being the Martha and not the Mary. Not familiar with the reference? Let me share it with you:
Now it happened as they went that He entered a certain village; and a certain woman named Martha welcomed Him into her house. And she had a sister called Mary, who also sat at Jesus' feet and heard His word. But Martha was distracted with much serving, and she approached Him and said "Lord, do You not care that my sister has left me to serve alone? Therefore, tell her to help me." And Jesus answered and said to her, "Martha, Martha, you are worried and troubled about many things. But one thing is needed, and Mary has chosen that good part, which will not be taken away from her."
-Luke 10: 38-42
This text, for me, has always meant more than just one thing. The obvious point is that Martha was putting serving, a seemingly good thing, above sitting at Jesus' feet, the one necessary thing. She wasn't resting at His feet. It is out of that rest, the time spent with Jesus, that her serving should have come. She was striving to fulfill tasks when we, as Jesus followers, are meant to have our lives, our serving, flow out of the time spent with Him. I recently started a Bible study that stated we should work out of our rest instead of resting from our work. I decided that should characterize my time right now. And....FAIL! But that's okay because God is a God of second, third, and seventeenth chances. It's as if someone, somewhere is going to press a button and sound the alarm if my life doesn't reach a certain level of productivity. Absurd, right?!? I know that intellectually, but I need to know it in my heart, feel it in my bones, live out of it daily. My life has meaning, and purpose, and is worth something because God said so. That's it, that's all I need. Whew, I'll get there:) Martha is also putting tasks before relationships. Sound familiar? Ding, ding, ding, we have a winner. I was great at that in college, but I'm still struggling to find what that looks like amidst married life and home ownership in the real world.
Reason #2 (in case you got lost in the ramblings): I have a sneaking suspicion that I'm afraid of the parts of my life that God will hit with a floodlight if I slow down and quiet myself long enough. Again, crazy talk because I already know those areas, & God has already been speaking to me about them. It's as if I can pretend it's a non-issue if I'm just busy enough or tired enough or whatever enough. It's a big ol' fat jar of excuses.
So, in light of this resolution to slow down and be, I'm going to share a few things with you.
If you live in Indy and are free on Wednesday mornings, make your way to City Market for the Farmer's Market that goes on. Of course everything inside is wonderful: I had cold-pressed juice and a delicious tamale, but the real treat is outside. Local farmers line street with their wares and smiles. If you're as food-obsessed as I am, you're welcome. I bought blueberries today that were a steal, and I got a head of cauliflower that was about 3x the size of any I see in the stores for....get this...$4. Ever since I made cauliflower rice last week (for the second time) and Eric actually tried it, he has been asking for it again. He said it tasted like stuffing. Winning:) So, we shall have cauliflower rice for days.
On a related note, I went to the market with a dear friend of mine and her two darling little girls. It forced me to slow down, literally. It was just what I needed. One of the girls is nearly 4 and in the "I want to do everything myself" phase. As we were talking about the patience needed for that "delightful" phase, I realized it (the phase) was necessary. We all have that phase and it's a wonderful milestone in growing up. We raise children to be independent, not lean on us for every little thing and whim. So, we should be happy when they want to do things themselves. In fact, if we aren't willing to SLOW DOWN and allow them to dress themselves or push the stroller holding their little sister, then we are depriving them of invaluable skills needed for life. I may be able to do it faster and better, but what good is that to them? So, if not for me, I have to slow down for my future children.
I think little by little, week by week I will begin to enjoy the slowness again. I used to long for it and now that I have it, I am not appreciating it. Such a human...
Here's to slowing down, not measuring life in productivity, and investing in relationships more than tasks.
Now it happened as they went that He entered a certain village; and a certain woman named Martha welcomed Him into her house. And she had a sister called Mary, who also sat at Jesus' feet and heard His word. But Martha was distracted with much serving, and she approached Him and said "Lord, do You not care that my sister has left me to serve alone? Therefore, tell her to help me." And Jesus answered and said to her, "Martha, Martha, you are worried and troubled about many things. But one thing is needed, and Mary has chosen that good part, which will not be taken away from her."
-Luke 10: 38-42
This text, for me, has always meant more than just one thing. The obvious point is that Martha was putting serving, a seemingly good thing, above sitting at Jesus' feet, the one necessary thing. She wasn't resting at His feet. It is out of that rest, the time spent with Jesus, that her serving should have come. She was striving to fulfill tasks when we, as Jesus followers, are meant to have our lives, our serving, flow out of the time spent with Him. I recently started a Bible study that stated we should work out of our rest instead of resting from our work. I decided that should characterize my time right now. And....FAIL! But that's okay because God is a God of second, third, and seventeenth chances. It's as if someone, somewhere is going to press a button and sound the alarm if my life doesn't reach a certain level of productivity. Absurd, right?!? I know that intellectually, but I need to know it in my heart, feel it in my bones, live out of it daily. My life has meaning, and purpose, and is worth something because God said so. That's it, that's all I need. Whew, I'll get there:) Martha is also putting tasks before relationships. Sound familiar? Ding, ding, ding, we have a winner. I was great at that in college, but I'm still struggling to find what that looks like amidst married life and home ownership in the real world.
Reason #2 (in case you got lost in the ramblings): I have a sneaking suspicion that I'm afraid of the parts of my life that God will hit with a floodlight if I slow down and quiet myself long enough. Again, crazy talk because I already know those areas, & God has already been speaking to me about them. It's as if I can pretend it's a non-issue if I'm just busy enough or tired enough or whatever enough. It's a big ol' fat jar of excuses.
So, in light of this resolution to slow down and be, I'm going to share a few things with you.
If you live in Indy and are free on Wednesday mornings, make your way to City Market for the Farmer's Market that goes on. Of course everything inside is wonderful: I had cold-pressed juice and a delicious tamale, but the real treat is outside. Local farmers line street with their wares and smiles. If you're as food-obsessed as I am, you're welcome. I bought blueberries today that were a steal, and I got a head of cauliflower that was about 3x the size of any I see in the stores for....get this...$4. Ever since I made cauliflower rice last week (for the second time) and Eric actually tried it, he has been asking for it again. He said it tasted like stuffing. Winning:) So, we shall have cauliflower rice for days.
On a related note, I went to the market with a dear friend of mine and her two darling little girls. It forced me to slow down, literally. It was just what I needed. One of the girls is nearly 4 and in the "I want to do everything myself" phase. As we were talking about the patience needed for that "delightful" phase, I realized it (the phase) was necessary. We all have that phase and it's a wonderful milestone in growing up. We raise children to be independent, not lean on us for every little thing and whim. So, we should be happy when they want to do things themselves. In fact, if we aren't willing to SLOW DOWN and allow them to dress themselves or push the stroller holding their little sister, then we are depriving them of invaluable skills needed for life. I may be able to do it faster and better, but what good is that to them? So, if not for me, I have to slow down for my future children.
I think little by little, week by week I will begin to enjoy the slowness again. I used to long for it and now that I have it, I am not appreciating it. Such a human...
Here's to slowing down, not measuring life in productivity, and investing in relationships more than tasks.
Sunday, June 1, 2014
Our Next Journey: Unemployment
So, here I am, writing on a blog that I've thought about for months. The idea for this blog came to me many months ago. However, I knew it would be some time before the idea could come to any sort of fruition. Now I am newly unemployed by choice. Many sad and real stories tell the current heartache of unemployment. I by no means wish to minimize that. My husband Eric and I have come to a point in our lives where we had to make a decision. To make a very long story short, we have decided that in order to refocus on what's important, simplify, and allow me a time of rest and renewal, I needed to quit my job. It was a difficult decision for me. I am a staunchly responsible person...to a fault. You may wonder how responsibility could be negative....well, I can tell you. I feel a psychological and "real" responsibility for things others don't necessarily have. It was tough to admit that I needed to leave my job because I HAD to be responsible for our clients. They needed me. Well, at least I thought so. I could intellectually understand that I wasn't responsible for their situations, but emotionally I was quite tied to the situation. I know that may seem vague, but it made putting our family and my health first quite difficult.
Now, we've reached a point where that decision has been made and we are moving forward into a new frontier. My current focus is one that my loving husband gave me: rest, relax, and do more of the things I love. He's more amazing than I ever give him credit for. He is giving me time and space to be myself, enjoy life, and dream big. I'm ever grateful for him.
I love to write. Am I good at it? Well, does it matter? It's healing and thought-provoking for me to express myself through written word. I have decided to regularly share my life, thoughts, and goings-on through this blog. My hope is that others can relate, find it encouraging, and above all, that God is pleased. The idea behind the mustard seed comes from Matthew 13:31-32. "Another parable He put forth to them, saying: 'The kingdom of heaven is like a mustard seed, which a man took and sowed in his field, which indeed is the least of all the seeds; but when it is grown it is greater than the herbs and becomes a tree, so that the birds of the air come and nest in its branches.'" Jesus also says in Matthew 17:20 that "...if you have faith as a mustard seed, you will say to this mountain, 'Move from here to there,' and it will move; and nothing will be impossible for you." God has constantly been revealing to me that I am a doubter. However, the faith of a mustard seed, tiny when sown, can become a great tree or can move mountains. I want that to characterize my life, and this measly blog is a tangible way to hold myself accountable to what God does in my life and in the lives of those around me.
Now, we've reached a point where that decision has been made and we are moving forward into a new frontier. My current focus is one that my loving husband gave me: rest, relax, and do more of the things I love. He's more amazing than I ever give him credit for. He is giving me time and space to be myself, enjoy life, and dream big. I'm ever grateful for him.
I love to write. Am I good at it? Well, does it matter? It's healing and thought-provoking for me to express myself through written word. I have decided to regularly share my life, thoughts, and goings-on through this blog. My hope is that others can relate, find it encouraging, and above all, that God is pleased. The idea behind the mustard seed comes from Matthew 13:31-32. "Another parable He put forth to them, saying: 'The kingdom of heaven is like a mustard seed, which a man took and sowed in his field, which indeed is the least of all the seeds; but when it is grown it is greater than the herbs and becomes a tree, so that the birds of the air come and nest in its branches.'" Jesus also says in Matthew 17:20 that "...if you have faith as a mustard seed, you will say to this mountain, 'Move from here to there,' and it will move; and nothing will be impossible for you." God has constantly been revealing to me that I am a doubter. However, the faith of a mustard seed, tiny when sown, can become a great tree or can move mountains. I want that to characterize my life, and this measly blog is a tangible way to hold myself accountable to what God does in my life and in the lives of those around me.
a mustard seed
Eric, my awesome husband, got me this card on Friday when I officially became unemployed. I thoroughly enjoyed his humor and wanted to share it with you. Enjoy:)
Also, I should mention that I coach CrossFit part-time and plan to continue to do that. It is something I love and am passionate about. It is definitely not a stressor, but a joy!
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