behind the scenes: seven

7 is the true story of how Jen (along with her husband and her children to varying degrees) took seven months, identified seven areas of excess, and made seven simple choices to fight back against the modern-day diseases of greed, materialism, and overindulgence.

Food. Clothes. Spending. Media. Possessions. Waste. Stress.

They would spend thirty days on each topic, boiling it down to the number seven. Only eat seven foods, wear seven articles of clothing, and spend money in seven places. Eliminate use of seven media types, give away seven things each day for one month, adopt seven green habits, and observe “seven sacred pauses.” So, what’s the payoff from living a deeply reduced life? It’s the discovery of a greatly increased God—a call toward Christ-like simplicity and generosity that transcends social experiment to become a radically better existence.

that's it in a nutshell. but where my journey will take me will far exceed trying to fit in a nutshell. i'm certain of it.

i'm sure some who read this will think i'm crazy for taking this step. questions will be asked such as, "why would you want to do that?'

read what jen wrote in the book....

...i've developed something of an immunity to sermons. typing that is embarrassing: it makes me sound so unteachable. teaching by example, radical obedience, justice, mercy, activism, and sacrifice wholly inspire me. i'm at that place where "well done" trumps "well said."

i want to live my life how jesus taught us through his word.

i want to sing a worship song on sunday or any given day in my car or in my home and actually mean the words i'm singing.

i want to hear a sermon or do a bible study where my knowledge is put into motion.

i want the excess of my life to become much smaller so jesus can become much bigger.

i live in a place where i have been blessed with so much. but some of these blessings ahem, a lot of these blessings have become distractions and are being abused, by me!!

my pantry is full but i can't decide what we're gonna eat.

my clothes addiction is insane but i never have anything to wear.

i know the latest happenings on facebook but we haven't talked about how our day was as a family.

if i want an item, within reason, i buy it. period.

if there are leftovers from dinner, 9 times out of 10 they will end up in the trash. i don't like leftovers.

at any given time, 4 televisions can be running simultaneously in our home.

excess.

i've asked kevin to join me in this. but i don't want to dictate to him how he needs to go about it. my journey is my journey and his journey is his journey. the end. i will have my boys going through it as well. and yes some months will be harder than others, but i think we're all ready.

i've also joined a group on facebook of fifty or so committed people. we'll all share in our experiences together. it will be good to know there are other families and individuals struggling and persevering through this at the same time as me.

so on august 1st food month will begin.

7 foods for 31 days. that's it. no more. no less.

i'm still narrowing down my foods.

first it was salmon, greek yogurt, strawberries, blueberries, and quinoa for sure. with spinach, broccoli and tomatoes up in the air. but now, i'm rethinking salmon just because it's not as accessible as say chicken would be. but i still have 5 days to make this decision and you can bet it won't be final till that 5th day is here!

so i hope you'll follow along as i journal my way through the next 7 months. or maybe even better, you'll start a journey of your own!