Openhanded

We send snail-mail newsletters every couple months. If you would like to receive those let me know. Here is a portion of our November letter.

China has changed our perspective on “stuff”. As you might guess, Chinese people have considerably less junk than Americans. We have learned to live with less as well. We don’t own a home, any appliances, furniture, or a vehicle. (Chinese apartments include basic furnishings in the rent.) My clothes fit into a two-foot-wide wardrobe. Our apartment doesn’t have any closets…can you imagine? No junk storage! Everything that we possess could be laid in a pile on the living room floor. It’s not much.

Am I bragging about our lifestyle? Not at all. I’m just saying that we like this way of living; it feels free. If I ever start accumulating stuff, please remind me that I don’t need it.

Part of the reason that we feel compelled to live with less is because we have seen more poverty. How can I buy my kids more toys when our little buddies at the orphanage have no toys at all? How can I buy expensive beef and cheese when on the streets of Changsha sit hungry beggars? Drew reminds me, “Rach, the more money we spend on ourselves, the less we can spend on others.”

Have you heard this story? I’ll paraphrase from Luke 18. A rich guy asks, “Good Teacher, what should I do to inherit eternal life?” Teacher says, “Have you kept the commandments?” Rich guy says yep. Teacher says, “Great. You’re still lacking. Sell everything you have and give the money to the poor. Then come follow me.” Rich guy is depressed. Teacher says, “How difficult it is for the rich to follow me! It’s easier for a camel to pass through the eye of a needle.”

This passage really clicks with me. Think about it – in India, Africa, SE Asia, North America...what groups of people are moved to follow the Good Teacher? The poor and oppressed. Why? They know their physical and spiritual poverty. They are dependent and ready to accept a gracious offer for life. Have you ever heard of a people movement among the rich? The rich foolishly mistake their possessions for security, and perceive no need for the Good Teacher.

Another example, from Luke 8: “The seeds that fell among the thorns represent those who hear the message, but all too quickly the message is crowded out by the cares, riches and pleasures of this life. And so they never grow into maturity.”

My point: Wealth is a hindrance. We haven’t arrived yet, but China is teaching us to throw that hindrance off, live with less, and be more openhanded.