Car(e)-Free

Unrest in Libya, Tunisia, Bahrain, Algeria, Egypt.... the list goes on and on. Every day when I listen to the news, I also pray. This is huge and crazy stuff, and I have no idea (nor does anyone else, if they're honest with themselves) where this is headed.

One immediate result I see already is a rise in gas prices. As I zipped home from Providence Hall on my scooter last week, I saw that Arco listed $3.79 for unleaded, and $3.89 for premium. Yikes. And the predictions are that prices will only go higher, quickly.

I just looked at my credit card statement... since January 29, I have spent $12.64 on gas. I will add that I also used the bus three different times because of rain. I buy 10-ride passes for the bus, which discounts the price from $1.75 to $1.10 per ride. So I have spent $15.94 on transportation in the last month.

Forgive me if it sounds like I'm bragging. That is not my goal. It's to make the point that we have to work hard on finding and using alternative means of transportation. Yes, it can be inconvenient when it's pouring rain, and yes, it's chilly on that scooter in the morning (so I bundle up in layers and look like the Michelin Man) and yes, I have to skip some things because I need more time to get from place to place. I got caught in a downpour while running errands on my bike last week -- and while I got muddy and sopping wet, I also felt like I was 10 years old and it was a hoot.

I googled GasBuddy.com. It's goal is to help consumers find the lowest prices for gas. But I was stopped by its first sentence: "The USA consumes 400 million gallons of gasoline every day." This is crazy-making! It cannot be just about finding deals. We need to look long and hard at our habits and make some changes.

Matthew Sleeth makes some great suggestions in his book Serve God, Save the Planet:

• Use your bike for short trips.
• Combine trips. Think you’re not driving a gas guzzler? The average U.S. family car travels about 15,000 miles each year. This adds up to 5.8 tons of greenhouse gas pollution and $2,222 in gasoline. If you have two family cars, that’s $4,444 in gasoline alone.
• Visit the grocery store only once a week.
• Use public transportation instead of your car once a week. Just start there.
• Have someone over for dinner instead of going out.

More suggestions can be found here.

Lest I sound like I am nagging, I will stop there. I quoted Mr. Sleeth on Oct 10 of last year, and I will quote him again:

If you appear smug or holier than thou, you will be a positive witness to a party of none.

'Nuff said.

Hop on the Bus, Gus -- Part One

(I first submitted this little ditty to my church's monthly journal a couple of years ago. My newest bus musings will come sometime soon in Part Two, but I wanted to set the stage with my original thoughts. Read on...)

My life changed dramatically in May 2003. What happened, you ask? That year our church pursued a study on stewardship titled Keeping the House in Order: Studies in Biblical Stewardship. We looked at the implications of our faith in terms of caring for the earth, disciplining our bodies, using our minds and spending our money and time in a godly fashion.

Out of that study, I decided that I could grow in my discipleship in all of those arenas by driving my car less and riding my bike more. Some reasons are obvious. Clearly, I saved money on gas by riding my bike. I greatly improved my fitness as well, which obviously helped in the stewardship of my body. And since I rode my bike, I wasn’t contributing nearly as much to my carbon footprint, better caring for God’s creation.

But as I rode nearly every day of the week (my goal was to drive my car no more than once a day), I also realized this affected the use of my time and my mind as well. I was not able to do as much each day because I could not book appointments and errands as closely together. This in turn forced me to look at my nearly obsessive need to be efficient and effective, and to lay my approach to work at God’s feet. I also saw how much more I thought and prayed about the various things I was talking about in those appointments as I rode to and from them on my bike. If I got into my car, it was far easier to tune out and listen to the radio, or make phone calls. Riding my bike as an alternative form of transportation caused me to learn far more than I expected.

As a result, I became a devoted bicycle commuter. My old friend Matt Steele fondly called me The Sweaty Pastor. I will admit to a few drawbacks… a flat tire or two at an inopportune time, a collision on the bike path that nearly broke my nose and probably broke a rib (it was not my fault -- a nine-year old took me out with his new mountain bike!), and of course, a bad case of helmet hair a good part of the time. But overall, it was definitely worth it.

What surprised me though was that this lifestyle shift did not stop there. I discovered that a commitment to green living is never exhausted, because one’s awareness enlarges daily. Progressively my housemate and I started composting, recycling much more, conserving water, shopping organically, and only using reusable grocery bags. In 2007, I joined a CSA (community-supported agriculture) farm and now only buy and eat locally-grown produce and eat it seasonally.

Some time after May 2003 however, it became cool to be green. I suppose this came about for a variety of reasons – the popularity of the documentary An Inconvenient Truth, the improved availability of hybrid vehicles, ever-increasing gas prices, and various celebrities pumping up the issue. I was sad to see a spiritual discipline become a pop culture trend! But I pressed on, helmet hair intact. I thought to myself rather smugly, At least I started doing all of this before it became so ‘popular’!

But then green living was everywhere. Hipsters were riding fixed gear bicycles, but still looking like they had just stepped out of an Urban Outfitters catalog. Starbucks started a World Water Day. Rock stars were buying carbon offsets to make up for the conspicuous consumption of energy used during their concert tours. And pretty soon, there seemed to be no sacrifice whatsoever in going green. It became less a decision of conviction and more of an issue of style! As I read on the blog Stuff White People Like,

Recycling is a part of a larger theme of stuff white people like: saving the earth without having to do that much…

Rats! A quick scan through the various topics highlighted in this hilarious blog confirmed my worst fears – I had become a cliché!

I pondered how I could reconnect my stewardship decisions to their roots. Thankfully, it did not take long for me to do so. One Saturday I needed to take my bike to the shop for a big overhaul – a complete replacement of my drive train, which is an all-day job. I wanted to ride my bike to the shop, but could not find a friend to pick me up from there. Slowly, it dawned on me that I could just take the bus home.

I shuddered. I had not taken a bus since I graduated from college in 1983! What is my hang up with taking the bus, I thought to myself. A recent Q&A in the local newspaper on public transportation summed up my subconscious reservations:

What would it take for you to use mass transit?

• If the time between two different buses was shorter, that would encourage me to take it more.
• If it was more convenient. . . If it (went) through specific areas instead of just going up and down one street.
• It would be nice if it was nicer. It's kind of gross.
• If they came and picked me up at my house.

I was embarrassed by these answers when I saw them in print. They were utterly ridiculous and shallow. Of course we would like the world to revolve around us… but that is not reality! I was humbled when I realized that I took the bus every time I traveled – whether it was New York City, St. Louis, Rome, Antigua (Guatemala), or all over Turkey and Greece – but I was somehow too proud to take it in my own town?! Then I became determined to take the bus.

To be honest, it took me awhile to figure out the right schedule, but soon I came up with the routes I needed. I ended up taking the bus four times that week. There were a wide variety of people on my bus rides: mentally disabled adults, college students who did not speak English to each other, elderly people, people in wheelchairs, people with tattoos and body piercings, several folks who appeared to be mentally ill, and a few who looked to be homeless. Sometimes I was the only white person on the bus. I have lived in Santa Barbara since 1979, and cannot recall the last time I went out and about and did not run into an old friend or someone from church. However, on these bus trips, I did not see one person I knew. And that made me sad.

I still want to limit my impact on the environment. I still want to spend less money on material consumption. I still want to exercise more and use my car less. I still yearn to be less consumed with myself and my own need to feel efficient. I still want to make time to listen and to think and to pray. And I have learned that all of those things happen not just as I ride my bike, but when I take the bus. And the bus has one distinct advantage over riding my bike: it is definitely NOT cool.

On the bus something else happens – I enter a world I am less familiar with, a world where people do not expect the bus to come to their front door, and where they are not taking the bus out of environmental concerns. Rather, the bus is the only means of transportation available to them. Just as Jesus left the comfort of heaven to bring the gospel to our world, I want to leave the comfort of my world and enter the world of those folks right here in town.

He went to Nazareth, where he had been brought up, and on the Sabbath day he went into the synagogue, as was his custom. And he stood up to read. The scroll of the prophet Isaiah was handed to him. Unrolling it, he found the place where it is written:

"The Spirit of the Lord is on me,

because he has anointed me

to preach good news to the poor.

He has sent me to proclaim freedom for the prisoners

and recovery of sight for the blind,

to release the oppressed,

to proclaim the year of the Lord's favor." (Luke 4:16-19)

Idle Musings

Like you perhaps, I had a really full week. These are some of the thoughts that flew by my radar as the week went by...

• I flew to Seattle this week for a youth ministry consulting project, Monday through Wednesday. After each one of these projects, I walk away grateful. There are so many lovely, faithful, hardworking people laboring long and hard in relative obscurity, serving God without much thanks or notoriety. What a blessing.
• Flying is no longer any fun. As I told a friend, why am I so impressed when a flight actually comes off the way it is supposed to?! I'm not asking for perfection. But I fly enough (about 6-8 times a year) to be able to compare experiences somewhat close together. I know that the airlines cannot control weather, so I don't get mad when there are weather-related delays. In these last 5 months, I have flown 3 times. Two out of three of those experiences were maddening: luggage lost for 2 1/2 days, flight canceled with no explanation given (it was sunny and clear at both departure and arrival airports), a TSA agent on a power trip who refused to let me through because my name on my ticket and ID didn't completely align (though I had flown into that airport just fine two days before)... Not to mention that it is insanely complicated to get through security even when the agents are kind. Between taking off my shoes, pulling out my toiletries in my quart ziploc, retrieving my laptop, emptying my water bottle beforehand, placing my cell phone and change and jacket in a tub, hoisting my rolling carry-on and my backpack onto the conveyor belt, at the same time making sure I don't lose my boarding pass in the midst of all that... phew! Then you squeeze onto a plane seat with 5 jillion other folks (all bringing rolly bags), rustling through little baggies of snacks because you're so hungry and there is nothing to eat. Oh well. At least I arrive safely. That is some consolation.
• I still really love and enjoy high school students. In the mail this week I received several graduation announcements from beloved students in my old youth group. As I opened each one, a big smile broke out across my face. They look so handsome (or beautiful), so adult and confident and ready. A flood of memories from their childhoods welled up too, having known each of them nearly since they were born. Yesterday, as I walked up to Providence Hall, I cherished the guy who ran up to talk Lakers basketball with me, the other one who jumped over the fence to show me his newest Ninja move, the hugs and hello's and "I missed you so much!" This June will mark the end of my 28th year in youth ministry. What a ride! I love it more than ever. Thank you Lord for being willing to use me.
• Memorial Day is my "green anniversary." This weekend marks seven years as a bicycle commuter and three years since I bought my scooter. In 2003 I decided to walk or ride my bike as my first transportation option -- for several years I was able to ride my bike to the majority of my appointments. (Current dress requirements for Providence prevents me from doing that, unfortunately...) I once read that bicycle commuting is the "gateway drug" to sustainable living, and oh my, would I agree. After that first commuter summer in 2003, I discovered the list is endless as to ways to simplify -- from there I slowly started the shift: to garden a bit at home, compost, line dry my laundry when possible, cook more at home (as opposed to eating out), switching out all my light bulbs, recycle everything I can, use the library rather than buy everything I read, join a CSA, avoid processed food, eat seasonally... I reflect this weekend on slowing down and trying to consume less, and feel like I've been changed as well. Today, as I dropped off my car to get the tires rotated (yes, I still have my '97 Subaru wagon), I decided to walk to some errands. But I stopped and chatted with a man who was asking for change, saw a friend in Peets and visited for awhile, and prayed for those I saw. I want to keep being more present and aware of the world around me. As I told my Mayterm class at Westmont this week, I am asking Christ to allow me see more of the world the way He does. Slowing down and living more sustainably has helped me to do that.
• Have I mentioned I love my new kitten? Oliver is a hoot and a half. The Alpha Cat, Eli, has learned to accept his new lot in life, and occasionally they can co-exist (when Oliver isn't relentlessly harassing him, attempting to coax him to play). Here is nap time in the sun recently. I love it.

All in all, a very blessed life as I see God's love, care and provision in so many ways... these verses rang true for me earlier in the week:

Restore us, O God;
make your face shine upon us,
that we may be saved. (Psalm 80:3)

United Nations

I went on a tour of the United Nations today. And honestly, it was pretty darn spectacular. Their were no amazing displays, and the main room, the General Assembly, was closed for roof repairs. (I guess the big January snows did a number on the roof). But I saw two things there that reminded me of Right Things in the World.

Check out The Universal Declaration of Human Rights. Thirty profoundly stirring statements.

I also was moved by the Millenium Goals, 8 tremendously important things they are working to have accomplished by 2015. Eeesh -- only five years to go, and when you read the list, you'll see we have a L-O-N-G way to go.

Both of these documents fall under the title of "social justice," which has gotten a bad rap of late, thanks to dear old Glenn Beck. He seems to have a rather convoluted notion that to be for social justice as a Christian means that you think the government needs to giving everyone a handout. I think something much different; I think that the government is surprisingly inefficient and wasteful machine, though I will say in the same breath that I am very thankful to live in the US with the governmental systems that we have.

I just don't put much hope in the government accomplishing societal change on a grand scale. I want the government to support those changes, but I also know that governmental bodies of all stripes get stymied by dissent and political shenanigans and boondoggles and pork and all that yada yada. I believe in something far more constant than government -- the church.

I only wish the church would take our job seriously. We are called to give water to the thirsty, food to the poor, to speak up for those who cannot speak up for themselves, to bind up the wounds of the broken-hearted, to set the prisoner free. Look it up -- all those things are in the Bible. So when I saw these great documents at the UN today, I rejoiced in the truth they contained. And I was reminded that none of them will be remotely possible without the aid and power of the God of Justice. How I pray that God's people will get serious about being God's hand and feet in the world, and live out our calling. I see it happening in fits and starts -- church groups pouring into Haiti, Christians leading the way in fighting HIV/AIDS in Africa, Christian aid groups maintaining presence in the extremely poor regions of the world. We must sustain such life-giving service around the world, leading the way in justice and compassion.

In other words, may they know we are Christians by our love.

Sustainable Stocking Stuffers from Eden Reforestation Projects!

I bet you're just starting to think about what to get everyone for Christmas. I won't go on a rant about how much money is spent on mindless gifts. You know all that rot already. Instead, I'll just share a sustainable, tax-deductible, life-giving gift option for you.

For each $5 you give to Eden Reforestation Projects, you can then take the graphics on this post, right click or save 'em or whatever and print them up on cardstock in your printer and hand them out to friends, family, co-workers, your paper boy, your mailman, whoever!

This is so easy, but so life-changing. Five dollars plants fifty trees in Haiti, Ethiopia or Madagascar. These trees provide jobs, shelter, renewed soil and groundwater and most importantly, HOPE.

If you would like to personalize your cards, or increase the amounts listed on your cards, just contact me by email at kelly.soifer@gmail.com, and I can send you the MS Word doc for you to make an insertions or adjustments.

Instructions:

1. Go to Eden Reforestation Project's donation page.
2. If you want to just send in a check for your stocking stuffers donation, send it to the address listed in Azusa. Please write "stocking stuffers" on the envelope in the left corner.
   
3. If you would rather pay by credit card or PayPal, scroll down and select the gold "Donate" button. Fill in the TOTAL amount you want to donate based on how many stocking stuffers you want to send. For example, if you want to give 12 stocking stuffers for $5/each, that will total a gift to Eden Projects of $60. (Which plants 600 trees!!)
4. Please add the note "stocking stuffers" in the "Add special instructions for Merchant" box.

Thank you so much. We planted over 4.6 million trees this year, and our plans are to plant at least 8 million in 2010. Your gifts will give us a great jumpstart as we try to keep up with the many opportunities coming to us on the ground in Africa and Haiti.

Two more sustainable gift options through Eden Reforestation:

• Match the amount you spent on your Christmas tree with a gift to Eden. Just think -- if you spent $50 on a tree, a matching gift would plant 500 trees. (When you send your gift to us, put "matching Christmas tree" in the instructions box.)
  
• Donate $1 to Eden for every Christmas card or photo you send out. Along the bottom include in tiny print, "I donated $1 to www.edenprojects.org for every card I sent this season as a way of offsetting all the trees I killed in sending these cards :) " If you send out 100 cards, you would plant 1000 trees. That would put you well on your way to giving an entire forest to a village. (When you send your gift to us, put "holiday card offset" in the instructions box.)

P.S. Duplicate the impact of your gift by SPREADING THE WORD about this to your friends and social networks. Just send an email with a link to this post, or load up the info on your status updates on Facebook, Twitter, etc.

Deforestation in Haiti

Just heard an amazing story on NPR about Haiti & their deforestation crisis. This is all the more cool because this past Monday (a whole two days ago) I met with a man who has gone to Haiti six times in the last 4 years on medical missions. When he heard about the work of Eden Projects, he wanted to meet and talk through the possibilities of us going to Haiti next.

Best of all, Eden has already been asked by another group to come down, and plans are tentatively set for this October to scout out the potential for Eden to get started. This story on NPR motivates me even more to be involved with reforestation. The more I learn, the more evident it appears that something needs to be done. Now.

Eden Projects is on track to plant 3.5 million trees this year in Ethiopia and Madagascar. The plan is to double our planting rate each year for the next five years, getting to the point of planting 100 million trees. This is crazy and lofty - but necessary. As Steve Fitch, the founder of Eden Projects says, if we can't plant 100 million trees a year, we shouldn't even bother. Anything less would be like going to Skid Row and feeding one person a single meal.

Please be praying for me as I try to recruit churches and businesses to join Eden Reforestation Projects in this work. I will also be inviting former students of mine to get involved by starting chapters on their campuses that will support Eden by seeking ways big and small to raise funds and awareness. Thanks. Go to www.edenprojects.org and scroll down to the videos at the bottom to learn more.

Job Update #1

Things are starting to settle in terms of what I will be working on, so I wanted to make a post or two to give a more thorough explanation of each piece of the puzzle -- I am SO excited about each part!

First of all though I want to say thank you. So many of you have been wonderful and generous in your calls, texts, FB messages, notes and meals to encourage me as I stepped into this period of change. In this blog I have tried to communicate the many things I have been thinking about and learning. Simply put, I am profoundly grateful. God is faithful, patient and relentless.

I will pursue these work projects with diligence and as much creativity as I can muster. I am delighted at what has come my way.

Today, I want to share about Eden Reforestation Projects (ERP). I have posted snippets here and there, but I want to explain a bit more about what it is and what I excited about. I first heard about Eden at Christmastime in church, when Free Methodist challenged its members to donate to Eden, giving the money we would normally spend on a Christmas tree. If we did so, we were to take an olive tree seedling as a reminder of God's love for his creation and his vision for us as his stewards of that creation. (The olive tree is a profound symbol of the depth, spread and beauty of God's kingdom in scripture -- plug it into BibleGateway.com, and you'll see references throughout the Old and New Testaments.)

My seedling is nearly ready to be planted in the bed of soil next to my bedroom window. It has grown at least 4 times in size -- which is a great analogy for how my heart has also grown for the work of Eden Projects. I met with Steve Fitch, the superintendent for the Free Methodist churches for So Cal, in early May, to talk over some other projects within the So Cal conference. But during our conversation we ended up talking about the many things going on with Eden, and where he needed some assistance. When I heard what Eden needed, I thought to myself, "What a perfect fit for some of the things I love to do!"

Steve is currently in Ethiopia with a team of folks to see what is going on with Eden's projects there. He sent me a long text last night, and this is what it said:

All Having the best Eden trip ever. Everyone is healthy. The highlands nurseries and plantation sites are fabulous. Taught the people at Teshome how to catch, clean, cook, and eat Tilapia fish. They dug the pond but had no idea what to do next since fishing has never been part of their culture. We hiked eight miles (at 8700') to one reforestry site. The survival rate for our trees is in excess of 90%! in three years there willl be four new forest in the highlands. Much more to share later but battery running low and no electricity and British Air lost my luggage at Heathrow again.
Blessings
Steve

To understand Eden's mission, it is best to go to the website and scroll to the videos at the bottom. They are brief, but packed with compelling information. The global church has spent valuable effort in the last few years to move beyond financial aid to more comprehensive care for the continent of Africa, providing clean water and better health care... what I am realizing, as I learn more each day about Eden and about the needs around the world, is that it is even MORE powerful to reforest. So much of the continent is absolutely devastated and DEforested -- yet as trees are planted, the forests then generate clean drinking water, photosynthesis is re-established, animals return, jobs are created, shelter and safety are renewed, and the soil is stabilized. Incredible! As it says on the logo of ERP, "Plant Trees, Save Lives." Eden's work emerged out of insights from missionaries who were on the ground in Ethiopia and Madagascar, who told Steve what was truly needed to provide sustainable support.

So what will I be doing? I've been brought on part-time for the next six months to assist ERP in three areas:

1. Steve has written a dissertation -- many who have read it have told him it should be turned into a book. I will work on that with him. Our working title is Convenient Answers to Inconvenient Truths. Dig it!
   
2. Churches around the country have expressed a desire to support Eden and become "champions" of the individual projects in Ethiopia and Madagascar. I will work to streamline a structure for that to happen more easily.
3. I have a vision to see student chapters of ERP established in youth groups, in classes and at schools. Eden was established as a non-religious non-profit and is thus able to work in a wide variety of contexts.

At the end of December we will re-evaluate as to where things are, and decide what is needed next...

PLEASE feel free to:

• DONATE - 10 cents plants a tree. It's incredible how efficient ERP is. $10 plants 100 trees!
• ASK me questions about how you can get involved.
• PRAY for my future with Eden. I want to be used by the Lord here.
• CONSIDER what you could be doing to increase your stewardship. I'm calling this work in Eden "Green 2.0" - it's moving beyond recycling and organic eating. Not that those are bad, but SO MUCH MORE is needed. I'm moved most by Eden's "subtitle" - "Poverty Reduction through Environmental Stewardship." It's social justice on a large scale. Please join us, and regardless, get involved in something like it.
  

In May 2003 I committed to riding my bike once a day in place of driving my car, as a way to be a better steward of my body, my money and the environment. Out of that simple decision I have grown exponentially in my understanding of what is needed in God's creation. NEVER in my wildest dreams did I imagine that God might have been laying the foundation for me to step into a ministry like this. He is so darn smart.

NEXT: Updates on my new position with Providence Hall. Stay tuned!