A day in the Mountains

Last night I spent a little time on Google Maps and found a road leading into the heart of the mountains. It is a seven mile drive from the gym, but I enjoyed the solitude. By the time I stopped, I was several thousand feet above L.A. It was a beautiful scene, and since I was above the smog I got to see stars for the first time in a long time. There was a sweet mountain breeze blowing into the car all night. The next morning I woke up to an amazing sunrise dancing over a sea of fog covering L.A. Although I will not be able to drive that far on a regular basis, going into the mountains was a good break.

I continue to look for creative ways to cut costs, but I am still humbled to think how rich I am. According to the World Bank (the go to for this sort of information) 80% of the world's population lives on less than $10 per day. So far, my total average per day spending (not including car insurance, maintenance or school) is $12. This means that while living out of my car, and minimizing my food costs I am still one of the riches people on the plant. I don't think America fully understands what poverty is.

For the last few weeks I have been reflecting on James 1:23-24:
"Anyone who listens to the word but does not do what it says is like a man who looks at his face in a mirror and, after looking at himself, goes away and immediately forgets what he looks like." (NIV). - The problem with America is that we encounter the great pain of other people, but forget about it as fast as possible. Either through a sermon, a video, or an experience we are reminded of how much we have. We then say, "wow I feel really convicted, I need to change the way I live" - and then five minuets later casually ask our friend if they want to go eat a $15 dinner at a restaurant. In five minutes we forget that 50% of the world lives on less than $2.50 per day, and go spend more on one meal, than they spend in six days.

Don't forget as soon as you turn away from the mirror, that you are not on earth to have a picnic, but to run a race. While we are not responsible for winning the race (victory is God's responsibility, because the burden is too heavy for us), we are responsible for running.