Two months ago I blogged about our car being stolen. It was the craziest thing. The range of emotions we experienced while processing the loss was wide. Thinking about how we might recover was overwhelming. Trying to trust in spite of circumstances was challenging, to say the least.
And then I got a text from our close friends who were finishing up their extended trip to Nicaragua. The text essentially said, "We're not asking for permission, we're simply giving you a heads up. We're setting up a Go Fund Me account for you guys in order to raise money to replace your car and other belongings."
What?!?!?! First, I didn't even know what a Go Fund Me account was. Second, how did I feel about this? What might people think? As church planters, we had already spent three years of our lives living on raised support. Surely people are tired of giving...of supporting us.
Surely I am tired of being dependent on others to make ends meet (pride is an ugly thing!).
But then I read what the Cartwrights wrote about our situation, and my heart was humbled. Again, we were overwhelmed. The gesture in and of itself ministered to our family in ways words cannot even express. But it didn't stop there...
By the end of the first day I had family and friends calling and texting, asking me if I was watching how much was being donated. By the end of the second day, our family sat around the dinner table as Vaughn read the comments being left by various donors. We both cried.
How does one even begin to say "Thank You!" in a situation like this? For a third time, we found ourselves utterly overwhelmed. We felt loved and supported to the point of it almost being uncomfortable. Uncomfortable because there was no expectation of anything in return. There was no way to "pay back" all those that had blessed us. There was nothing we could do to balance the scales. The only thing we could do was humbly receive the blessing that was given us, and in doing so experience the immense beauty of generosity.
With the finances raised, we were able to replace "Carl" (our Saturn). Vaughn found an older used Toyota that was in good shape...we named it "Yoda". Vaughn was also able to replace his laptop and most of his belongings. Throughout this entire ordeal, we continued to pray that Carl would be found. However, as time passed we began to wonder.
A few weeks ago, though, we got the call! Our car had been recovered (minus our belongings). We were free to go and pay to pick it up from where it had been impounded. Awesome...you gotta love how that works. Yes, I'd love to pay for my stolen car! Really!?!?
Anyhow! We were nonetheless thrilled because we had plans for that car. We wanted nothing more than to find Carl a new home, with a family in need. We had prayed for the opportunity to thank all of you for not only providing for our family, but for an additional family as well!
Carl will soon be relocating to an organization called Joshua Station. For the last 3 years we have been in relationship with this ministry that provides temporary housing for families getting back on their feet. We have shared numerous meals with many of these families and love the idea of being able to bless one of them by donating our car. Your generosity has allowed us to do that.
So thank you...
Thank you to those close friends and family who jumped in immediately with their love, prayers and giving.
Thank you to those friends from high school who gave, despite the fact that we haven't seen many of you in years! Your thoughtfulness blew us away.
Thank you to the various families from Trailhead. Your community will always hold a special place in our hearts as we took many of our first steps with you guys!
Thank you to the anonymous givers. We may never know who you are, but our prayer is that you will know how blessed we were by you. And to the family with children that keeps their eyes open for missionaries to bless...you are an inspiration to us!
And thank you to our parents. Your support, your words of encouragement, your prayers, your generosity and your love have carried us through so many seasons, and this one was no different. We love you so very much!
My prayer for this post is that others will be reminded of the power of giving. My hope is that those who gave might celebrate with us, as you not only provided a car for our family but for an additional family as well! My heart longs for more stories like this. Stories of others surrounding those in need. Stories of communities of people supporting and loving on those in hard places. Stories of random acts of giving, inspiring those who are receiving.
We are humbled, we are grateful, we are inspired!
Thank you!
To My Girls -- Give. Give freely. Give generously. Give with a joyful heart. It's beautiful in writing, but sometimes much more difficult in action. My prayer is that each of you will continue to develop generous hearts, hearts that long to bless, to serve, to live openhandedly. May we continue to learn to hold loosely to our own possessions, and always be on the lookout for ways to help provide for others. And those times when it's hard, those are often the most important times to give. For as we grow in our ability to be generous, our hearts are being transformed to look more and more like the perfect Giver.
