Guatemala Stories: How I Became “Team Photographer”

February 12, 2014February 12, 2014 · Leave a comment ·

I found out that I was pregnant on December 6th, 2013. This was welcomed news, but in the back of my mind I was wondering how this was going to impact my ability to serve in Guatemala just two months later. I knew that I would be in the beginning of the second trimester when we left, so in theory I would be feeling well enough and would have the energy to serve; but, I also knew that pregnancy places restrictions on a woman and makes her more “high maintenance” than a non-pregnant woman, so I wasn’t sure what I’d be able to do.

I spoke with one of our team leaders about it and she assured me that there would be plenty for me to do that would still allow me to take care of my baby. What I didn’t realize at the time was that God was planning to use me in a way I never would have expected.

I discovered last summer that my dream job was to do photography for missions organizations…to tell the stories that need to be told and to inspire people to act.

I have had the privilege of doing missions photography in Tunisia, Brazil, Haiti and New Orleans in the past…

…but I didn’t go to Guatemala thinking I would be able to do much with it. We had a full and exciting schedule of service and I was ready to jump right in alongside the team. I hoped that I would be able to take pictures along the way, but it was in no way something I expected to be able to do.

When we got to Guatemala and were talking through the projects for the first few days, our leaders mentioned that they (and many of the team members) wanted shots of several of the group activities that would be going on simultaneously and asked if I would focus on capturing everything for the team during this trip.

I was amazed, humbled, excited, and ready to dive in. I couldn’t believe that I was being asked to use my passion, my gift, my dream to bless the team in such a unique way.

Because I was taking pictures for everyone, they were able to focus solely on ministering to the beautiful children in our care. They were able to set their cameras aside when necessary in order to just be in the moment, while I did something that I love to do and could do even while pregnant.

I may have been unable to help paint the bedroom or the hallway at Mi Pequeno Refugio.
I may have been unable to lift things and carry boxes of food.
I may have been unable to be outside at The Ravine due to the burning trash and smoke.
But, I was able to use my gift to capture the team doing all of these things while still serving the Lord in Guatemala, just not in the way I had planned.

Thank you, Ronne and Courtney, for seeing this gift in me and allowing me to use it.
Thank you, team, for being so supportive and excited about what I was capturing.

I came home with over 5,800 images of our week. I’m currently down to 3,800 images with the promise of a snow day tomorrow during which I can edit. This experience gave me a glimpse of what it really would be like to do photography for missions organizations, and it confirmed in my heart that this is what I was made to do. I can’t wait for what God has in store for me next!

Guatemala Stories: The Ravine

February 12, 2014February 12, 2014 · Leave a comment ·

“All this pain
I wonder if I’ll ever find my way
I wonder if my life could really change at all”

We had been told about The Ravine. We had been briefed on what we should expect and the few things we should/shouldn’t do while there.

But, words can only go so far; some things have to be seen, touched, smelled, experienced for full impact to occur. The Ravine is one of those things.

The Ravine is a garbage dump in Chimaltenango. There are over 50 families there who live and work among the heaps of garbage, hoping to scrape a living out of the waste of others.

Our team traveled there on Friday morning to bring small bags of staple food items and soap to 50 of these families and to pray with them.

Their situation seems hopeless. They have been stuck in the cycle of poverty for generations, with seemingly no way out. Each day is the same: work until dark, hoping to find treasures that can be reused/cleaned/recycled and sold to buy food for their families.

“All this earth
Could all that is lost ever be found
Could a garden come up from this ground at all”

Hope doesn’t seem to exist here at first glance. However, we have seen first-hand that God is indeed redeeming and restoring these people, starting with their precious children. We saw hope in the eyes of each person with whom we prayed and spoke that day. We saw hope in the eyes of their children when we visited them later that day. He is literally taking them from the ashes and making them new, opening doors to a life they never dreamed would be possible. And this is all because of the love of two precious people: Cesar and Carol.

Cesar and Carol decided that they needed to open a school for the children of The Ravine – a school where they could break free from the cycle of poverty and literally change their community forever. That’s how The Ravine School was born only a little more than a year ago – completely out of faith in God. Carol and Cesar did not have a “nest egg” or any riches to speak of, but they believed in a God who redeems, and had faith that He would rescue these children.

There are now 114 children in The Ravine School who are learning to read, write, use computers, and grasp their full potential instead of carrying on the work of their parents and grandparents in the dump with no hope of escape. From a one room building to a beautiful space with classrooms and plenty of light in only a year, God’s redeeming love and faithfulness is abundant in this place.

You make beautiful things
You make beautiful things out of the dust
You make beautiful things
You make beautiful things out of us

All around
Hope is springing up from this old ground
Out of chaos life is being found in You

You make me new, You are making me new
You make me new, You are making me new

– Gungor’s “Beautiful Things” (lyrics throughout post) is the perfect song for what God is doing at The Ravine…Hear the song here.

The color and lighting are imperfect due to shooting from inside a vehicle (in order to avoid making the families feel uncomfortable), but these images still show how God is continuing to make beautiful things out of bad situations.

Stay tuned for more about The Ravine School and the beautiful things happening there.

Guatemala Stories: The Avocado Lady

February 11, 2014February 11, 2014 · Leave a comment ·

I first saw her after our first day of ministry at The Ravine School in Chimaltenango.

She was sitting on a stool with her produce to the left of the school’s entrance. She was beautiful, and she was selling my favorite thing: avocados. With my photographer’s eye, I noted the perfect contrast of her green sweater, the green-blue building, her colorful dress, and the gorgeous avocados in the orange basket. I had to take her picture.

I took a few stealthy shots but they weren’t at an ideal angle. Unfortunately, that’s what happens sometimes when trying to be sneaky.

I worked up the courage to ask her if I could take her photo, only to be told “no” by this beautiful lady. I respected her wishes and retreated to the van.

I couldn’t get her out of my mind, and as I talked with the other ladies in the van about her, we came up with a plan for the next day to try to win her over – not solely for the purpose of taking her picture, though. We had something bigger in mind.

I mentioned that I would love to buy some of her avocados, and one of my teammates said, “Why don’t we buy ALL of them?” And the plan was set.

As we prepared to leave the school that day, “Avocado Lady” laughed at us silly Americans because we were so excited about a man with two cows walking down the street. That broke the ice a little. I waved to her as we drove away and she was still smiling at us.

When we returned to the school the next day, we were so excited about our plan. Sure enough, as soon as school was finished, she was there with her goods, hoping to sell enough to provide for her family.

We approached her and I asked her, in Spanish, how much each avocado cost. She replied that they were 1 Quetzal each (about $0.13). The three of us had decided to give her $20 for all of them, so I held up the money and told her that we wanted to buy them ALL. Her eyes widened and she smiled as she gladly accepted the money. She put the avocados into my teammate’s backpack with a smile on her face the entire time.

To give perspective, had she sold all of her avocados at the normal price, she would have made $4. Most of the time, these ladies who sell produce don’t sell everything that they prepare (fruit in bags, etc.), and it goes to waste. We paid her $0.75 an avocado (a great price here in Pennsylvania!) in an effort to bless her and provide some extra money for her and her family because we could.

Because $20 isn’t a whole lot of money to most Americans, but to a Guatemalan woman who is working hard for pennies a day, it’s an abundant gift (about 150 Q). It was worth every penny to see the gratitude in her eyes. We didn’t just make an impression on her – there were quite a few children around who kept saying (in Spanish) “$20!” and smiling in wonder at the $20 from the strange American women.

After we bought all of her produce, she agreed to let us take a picture with her.

She may not be smiling in this picture, but she was definitely smiling inside.

Hopefully she decided that these crazy Americans weren’t so bad after all.

Hopefully she’ll wonder what we were doing in the school next door. And if her children aren’t already in school, hopefully that will change.

We decided to give some of the avocados to our team’s drivers, and we gave the rest to the orphanage at which we served that afternoon and the next day so that Papa Cesar could make some more of his famous guacamole for the girls, which made this mutual blessing stretch even further.

I can’t think of a better way to spend $20.

Guatemala-Bound…

February 1, 2014February 1, 2014 · Leave a comment ·

Tomorrow’s the day! I can’t believe it’s already been six months since I began preparing for this journey. I cannot thank all of you enough for your support, prayers, and encouragement! Between your financial generosity and all the supplies you so generously provided, I’m fully-funded and taking FIFTY POUNDS of supplies with me!

For updates on our trip, you can check out this blog and I will also try to post updates on Facebook when possible.

Here’s our general itinerary:

Sunday, February 2nd – Team arrives in Guatemala City and prepare for ministry (shopping, orientation, supply sorting, etc).

Monday, February 3rd – Team travels to Xela and meets children at Little House of Refuge. There will be cooking classes for the older girls, a cardboard boat regatta for the boys, and playtime for the younger girls.

Tuesday, February 4th – Team serves at Little House of Refuge (project work and teaching in the morning and time with the kids in the afternoon).

Wednesday, February 5th – Team travels to Antigua (a 3-5 hour journey), and has an afternoon of respite before preparing for ministry on Thursday.

Thursday, February 6th – Team distributes food and shares the Gospel at a local garbage dump called “The Ravine” in the morning in Chimatenango (a 45-minute journey), and spends time with the girls at Mi Especial Tesoro in the afternoon.

Friday, February 7th – Team serves at the Ravine School in Chimaltenango in the morning, and spends the afternoon with the girls at Mi Especial Tesoro.

Saturday, February 8th – Team serves alongside girls of Mi Especial Tesoro, ministering to the elderly at Cabacitas de Algodon in the morning, followed by a special farewell lunch. Team returns to Guatemala City in the afternoon.

Saturday, February 9th – Team returns to the United States.

Here is some information about the ministries with which we will be serving, as provided by our team leaders:

Casa Hogar: Mi Pequeño Refugio (Little House of Refuge or Little House) – Xela, Guatemala
(on a map, look for the city of Quetzaltenango)
Pequeño Refugio is a private orphanage run by sisters Lourdes and Teresa. This Christian children’s home houses up to 70 kids at a time ages 4 – 18. All of the children that reside at “Little House” have been removed from their families due to abuse of some kind. In addition to the home, there is a school on the property. In addition to education, each child receives psychological counseling and Bible teaching. These children are amazing when it comes to Biblical knowledge – chances are, they’ll be able to recite all the scriptures we’ll use in our time with them! Courtney and Ronne (the team leaders) have considered Little House our “home away from home” since 2009, when we were privileged to be a part of the first team of missionaries to visit the orphanage. Orphan Outreach “adopted” Little House that same year, and now church teams from all over the US have answered prayer after prayer. These teams have done construction & painting, helped provide livestock and clean drinking water, taught job skills, established a sponsorship program, and most importantly, just spent time loving on kids.

Mi Especial Tesoro – Chimaltenango, Guatemala
Houseparents Cesar and Carol provide a loving home for 13 teenage girls as well as an 18-year old daughter and 9-year old son of their own. Tesoro is a private Christian girl’s home where the girls receive biblical guidance, emotional support, and stability to aid in their healing. The girls in this home have been removed from their families by the court system due to abuse or neglect. Orphan Outreach just celebrated their first anniversary ministering to Mi Especial Tesoro, and we have been blessed to be there every step of the way so far. In just a year, tremendous work has been done to provide improvements to living facilities, give the girls much-needed personal items, build a sponsorship program for ongoing care and support of each girl, and establish a loving, nurturing relationship with everyone there.

The Ravine and The Ravine School – Chimaltenango, Guatemala

The Ravine School serves the children of the families that work in the city of Chimaltenango’s garbage dump, which is located in a ravine outside the city. The school was created in the minds and souls of the Mi Especial Tesoro caregivers, Carol and Cesar. The school started from an effort to teach the girls of My Special Treasure about serving others. In 2012, Carol and Cesar starting bringing the MST girls to the ravine dump to assist the children and families each Saturday. Around 100 people work at the ravine dump everyday, searching and sorting for things they can re-sell at the market on the weekends. These families work from 12 to 14 hours a day of work making roughly between 3 to 4 US dollars a day. Their job is difficult, but it is worthy of admiration and respect because these parents work hard to be able to provide for their children in an honest and worthy way.

Cabecitas de Algodon

Just a short walk from the center of Antigua, this nursing home provides a place for elderly residents that would otherwise be homeless. Many of the residents either have no family to care for them or have been dropped off because their families don’t have the resources to provide basic necessities. Though our visit will be brief, it will bring joy to the residents who are happy to see friendly faces.

Please pray for our team as we serve the beautiful people of Guatemala. We are all excited and can’t wait to see what God does in and around us this week.
Pray that we will be flexible and open to whatever God has in store!
For me specifically, please pray for the continued safety of our little baby (14 weeks tomorrow) as I travel. We’re starting him/her as a traveler from the beginning! 🙂
Please also pray that God will work in my heart this week in mighty ways.

There will be plenty of pictures and stories when I return! 🙂

United’s Response to the Letter…

January 30, 2014 · Leave a comment ·

It took United TWENTY business days to respond to my original letter. TWENTY. Okay, nineteen if they were off on MLK Day.

Given the amount of time it took to receive a response, I expected more than what I got:

Dear Mrs. Brackbill:

I apologize for our delay in responding. We’re experiencing a higher
volume of e-mail than normal and we’re working on responding as quickly
as possible. Your correspondence just now came across my desk.

I very much regret learning of your disappointment and discomfort on
Flight 1502 and welcome the opportunity to address your concerns.

We believe all customers and co-workers are to be treated with dignity
and respect and we weave this philosophy into everything we do. There is
never an excuse for unprofessional behavior, and I am very sorry this
was your experience of the services received from our flight attendant.

Mrs. Brackbill, I realize my apology cannot erase what happened. I
hope it helps to know we take your concerns very seriously. It was
especially helpful that you were able to capture the flight attendant’s
name. Please be assured your comments will be forwarded to appropriate
senior management within Inflight Crew Services for internal review and
necessary corrective action.

We understand the value of your decision to fly with us and assure you
we will make every effort to leave you with a better impression when we
again have the privilege of serving you. I ask that you accept my
apology and allow us that opportunity.

We appreciate your business and look forward to welcoming you on board a
future United Airlines flight.

Regards,

Lynn
Customer Care

By no means did I write this expecting anything in return. I wrote it because we were treated wrongly and the flight attendant needed to be corrected. However, in the past, people have complained about much more trivial things and were offered vouchers, miles, etc., so I am very surprised that an apology (read: form letter with my name inserted) is the best that United could do.

Also, given that this was so clearly a form letter, I cannot believe it took them twenty business days to respond to it. Their customer care team is likely sizeable; and it takes ten minutes or less to write an email/fill in the blanks in a form letter. If my assumptions are correct, that means that they have THOUSANDS of unhappy customers who are all writing in their complaints.

Needless to say, I will think twice before flying with United in the future.

An Open Letter to United Airlines…

January 3, 2014 · 7 Comments ·

Dear United:

On our flight from San Jose, CA to Houston, TX (#1502) yesterday, my husband and I had a terrible experience with one of your flight attendants (Wanda). I have flown extensively throughout my entire life and I have never been treated like this before.

Here is what happened:

We were in the last boarding group and there were less than 20 people behind us as we boarded. When we entered the plane and were waiting in the aisle, I scanned the open overhead compartments to assess availability for our bags. As I looked, most of the bins were closed, indicating that they were full. There were a few with the doors still open, but most were at least mostly full from what I could see.

Given this situation, I did what I have always been instructed by flight attendants to do: I found the first available bin and placed my bag inside to prevent needing to go backwards in the cabin (thus delaying boarding of other passengers) to find space later. This happened to be in row 8 – the first row after the First Class Cabin. My husband and I proceeded to walk down the aisle toward our seats in row 22.

At this point, our first interaction with Wanda began. She asked us where we were sitting; when we responded, she said that we MUST put our bags above our seats and that we were not allowed to put them in row 8’s compartment. I calmly asked her why and explained to her why I had placed my bag there. She told me that it was a “rule” that bags have to be above your own seats. I told her that I have never heard that rule (and the woman behind me agreed) and that on EVERY OTHER FLIGHT I have ever had, the instructions were that if you were among the last on the plane, you should put your bags wherever there was room.

She immediately became belligerent (she raised her voice, was frowning, and was speaking in an angry tone) and said that “this is what the rule has always been” and informed me that she has been doing this for over twenty years, while placing her hand on her hip. My husband and I were bewildered by her reaction, but we took the bag down and walked down to our seats as she had instructed.

If that were the end of the incident, we wouldn’t be writing this complaint. Everyone has bad days.

About five minutes later, she approached us in our seats and began to address the issue again. We had complied with her instructions, we moved our bag, and were sitting quietly. Yet, she felt it necessary to bring the subject up again in an angry tone of voice. I asked her why she was bringing it up and gently asked if we could be done talking about it. She then threatened to throw me off the plane by saying: “If you don’t stop talking about it, you won’t be going to Houston on this plane.” She was the instigator, not me or my husband.

Again, we were bewildered and very uncomfortable.

About five minutes after that incident, she then came back again with a man (I think he worked at the airport, as he was in a polo shirt and not the typical flight attendant attire). I was admittedly annoyed at this point and asked why this was still an issue. She proceeded to tell him the following: we had tried to put our bags in first class (untrue) because someone had told us to do so (also untrue).

He asked who told us to do this, and I once again told him what I know from every other flight I have ever taken. I told him that since we were among the last people on the plane (which she “corrected” and said that there were 20 people behind us, which still puts us among the last on the plane!). I reinforced that no one told me to do this, and that we had immediately complied with her instruction. He didn’t seem to think this was an issue and he walked away.

The remainder of the flight was extremely uncomfortable whenever she was around because we had no idea what she was going to do or say to us.

I am an extremely experienced traveler. I know the rules, and I know what appropriate behavior from the flight staff is expected to be. This was incredibly unprofessional, irrational, and unnecessary.

It should also be noted that on our last flight of the day, Houston to Philadelphia, the flight attendant made an announcement as the last group was boarding that they should put their bags in the first available bins, thereby proving my point.

We write this to make you aware of the inconsistency among your flight attendants in regards to the “rules” of bag placement and efficiency. We also write because Wanda’s treatment of us was unacceptable and may indeed keep us from flying United in the future.

Thank you for your attention to this matter.

Brennan and Lesa Brackbill

Day Twenty-Seven: I’m Thankful For…God’s Creativity.

November 27, 2013November 27, 2013 · 1 Comment ·

Preface: Last year I decided to express my thanks during the month of November for something new each day, as so many others have done before me. I never finished this series, so that’s my goal this year. I am re-posting the ones I wrote last year and adding new ones. This one is new

I have had the immense privilege of being able to travel extensively around the U.S. (38 states),
and to five countries (#6 in February!) outside the U.S. on
three continents (and counting) thus far in my life.
And everywhere I go, God’s creativity is displayed so abundantly!

God could have made the world black and white.
He could have made everything flat and boring and we all could look the same.
And we would have never known the difference.

Instead, He CHOSE to use vibrant colors, thousands of plant and flower species,
mountain ranges, deserts, valleys, islands, trees, lakes, oceans, and so much more.

We have drastically different seasons, providing new landscape every few months.

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He created sunrise and sunset to delight and inspire us.

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He created so many variations of hair, skin, and eye colors – all beautiful.

He created the zebra, the giraffe, the squirrel, the platypus, and thousands of other animals
– all so unique in appearance and purpose.

God is the ultimate creative.
I’m so thankful that He created all of this for us to enjoy, and even more thankful that He instills some of His creativity in each of us.

Day Twenty-Six: We’re Thankful For…Our Home.

November 26, 2013November 26, 2013 · Leave a comment ·

In September 2012, we were very content to continue renting and not be “tied down” anywhere. Our rent was cheap, our apartment was in an amazing location, and we were happy. But that all changed the following month…

Our landlord had recently placed a brand new manufactured home on our property and told us that he would be renting it for close to $1,000 per month. I was really surprised that anyone would pay that much to rent a 3 bedroom, 1 bathroom home (our rent was $550 for a 2 bedroom, 1 bathroom top floor of a house)…so I started looking at property around our area to see if that was comparable or high. Turns out it was high. 🙂

During my search, an ad appeared on one of the websites that said something like this: “If this were your home, your mortgage would be ____.” Whatever that number was, it was low, and it made me consider the possibility of buying a house so that we could actually SAVE money.

Brennan and I started talking seriously about buying a house in October 2012. We had very few “requirements” – natural gas heat, central air, and lots of space. We saw six houses, and the last one that we toured became our first home together.

On November 1st, with my parents and his mom and step-dad, we toured a bank-owned, not pretty house. It had plenty of space (1,800 sq. ft, 4 bedrooms, 2.5 bathrooms on a 1/2 acre), it was in a good neighborhood, and it was incredibly inexpensive. It needed a lot of cosmetic work, but nothing major. So, on November 1st, 2012, we made an offer.

We closed on December 21, 2012 and immediately got to work by tearing up all the carpet in the basement. We moved in on January 20, 2013 and that’s when the work really began.

We are so thankful for the opportunity that we had to buy this house – especially because it is worth approximately $55K more than we paid for it. Selling this house will allow us to be debt-free as we could pay off our student loans with the profit.

We are also thankful for the amount of space that we now have for housing/hosting people! It was difficult to have many people over in our little 600 sq. foot apartment; now we can comfortably sleep TEN PEOPLE on couches and beds (and even more if we had more air mattresses!). We recently had a church event at our house and had over 30 people there, comfortably. This house has created such an opportunity for ministry (RYFO, church, etc.) and we LOVE it.

We are even more thankful for all of the people who selflessly donated their skills and time to help us do the work that was needed (my parents, Dan, Kim, Dean, Jason, Courtney, Tim, Stacey, Shannon, Jana, Billy, and so many more!) – we couldn’t have made as much progress without help! There is still quite a bit of work to be done (and yes, we still need a lot of help!), but as you can see in the pictures below, we’ve already accomplished so much.

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Thank you, Lord, for our beautiful home…

The Results of Being Thankful…

November 25, 2013November 25, 2013 · 1 Comment ·

Yesterday, our pastor was discussing prayer and worship (1 Timothy 2: 1-8), and he said something that I had never thought about. Since I’ve been in church my entire life, it’s always great when God uses familiar Scripture to teach me something new!

Ephesians 5: 1- 4:

Imitate God, therefore, in everything you do, because you are his dear children. Live a life filled with love, following the example of Christ. He loved us and offered himself as a sacrifice for us, a pleasing aroma to God. Let there be no sexual immorality, impurity, or greed among you. Such sins have no place among God’s people. Obscene stories, foolish talk, and coarse jokes—these are not for you. Instead, let there be thankfulness to God.

Instead. This is how you could live, but instead, “let there be thankfulness…”

Paul is saying something so simple, yet so profound:
If we are thankful, it will be much harder to sin.

Think about it:

If we are thankful for all that God has done, we will love Him and no other false gods.
If we are thankful for our spouse, we won’t cheat.
If we are thankful for our job, we won’t be lazy.
If we are thankful for our “neighbors” and family, we will love selflessly and won’t harm them.
If we are thankful for what God has provided, we won’t covet/steal what others have.
If we are thankful for the mercy that God has shown us, we will show mercy to those around us more freely.
If we are thankful, we won’t be selfish.

I did a quick word study to see where the word “thankful” or “thanks” appears in the Bible, and this is what I found:

Make thankfulness your sacrifice to God, and keep the vows you made to the Most High…giving thanks is a sacrifice that truly honors me. (Psalm 50:14, 23a)

Be thankful in all circumstances, for this is God’s will for you who belong to Christ Jesus. (1 Thessalonians 5:18)

Devote yourselves to prayer with an alert mind and a thankful heart. (Colossians 4:2)

And let the peace that comes from Christ rule in your hearts. For as members of one body you are called to live in peace. And always be thankful. (Colossians 3:15)

Let your roots grow down into him, and let your lives be built on him. Then your faith will grow strong in the truth you were taught, and you will overflow with thankfulness. (Colossians 2:7)

When we are thankful, we recognize that God is the provider of everything we have, which also humbles us.
When we are thankful for what we have, we are less likely to sin.
When we are thankful, we recognize that apart from God, we can do nothing…that He alone is God and we are merely human.

Sometimes being thankful is a natural response, and sometimes it is a sacrifice (as we see throughout Psalms) because it goes against our human nature and how we feel at the moment. Nevertheless, God is pretty clear about this concept: Be thankful ALWAYS, even when you don’t feel like it.

Day Twenty-Five: I’m Thankful For…Dave Ramsey.

November 25, 2013 · 1 Comment ·

In January 2009, my church offered a class called “Financial Peace University” by Dave Ramsey. I had never heard of Dave, but I was in desperate need of financial peace. I had a lot of debt (both credit cards and student loans), I didn’t budget, and I was always uneasy when it came to money matters.

I can truly say that this class changed my life.

Throughout the thirteen weeks of this class, we learned about the importance of having an emergency fund of at least $1,000, how to budget, how to prioritize our debts to pay them off in what Dave calls a “Debt Snowball” (smallest to largest debts), what types of insurance we should have, how to save for retirement wisely, and many other practical tips.

We learned that it’s important to “Live like no one else (meaning to make sacrifices now) so that later you can live like no one else (debt free and able to do whatever you want!).” This simple phrase makes it easier to sacrifice things that we may want right now for the long-term goal of being debt-free.

My favorite lesson was the last one, the one that focused on giving. Dave emphasized that the greatest thing about being debt-free is the ability to “give like no one else” because you don’t owe anyone anything.

Since going through FPU, our financial outlook has changed completely:

We LOVE budgeting and the peace that it brings. Seriously. We tell our money where to go – we don’t wonder where it went.
We have NO credit card debt (paid off our last one in August 2012) AND no credit cards!
We were able to buy a house last year.
We are hoping to be completely debt-free in a couple of years (if we sell our house, we can pay off our student loans with the profit).
We give so much more than we did before, and it is such a blessing to be able to do so.

If you haven’t taken the opportunity to take one of Dave’s classes or read his books, please do so TODAY. He’s having a huge sale from now until Christmas (I believe) and most of his books are drastically discounted. It will be the best investment in your financial future that you have ever made!

Even So, Joy

Weaving a Brighter Blueprint for Advocacy, Legacy, and Life.