About 1 year into our relationship, Brent had a divine revelation when it comes to arguing: most people are either a Truth person or a Peace person. Brent is peace. I am truth. Basically when we have a disagreement about something, my purpose is for the truth to be revealed while he is more concerned about getting it settled (peace) and moving on.
I've had several posts on here in which I started with full disclosure that the topic came as a result of someone's post on facebook. Well, today is no different. I actually read a comment yesterday and for the first time on this person's wall almost commented. why? Because she blatantly did not tell the truth about this topic. It involves two things I'm pretty passionate about: Dave Ramsey and Christians and our finances.
Because I wouldn't want this person to be offended at anything I say, I won't post verbatum what she posted as her comment, but she basically said that Dave Ramsey would tell you not to adopt if you can't afford it.
This really got me alllll riled up for several reasons:
1. This person - we'll call her Hollie - emailed me last year and specifically asked what Financial Peace University would teach, how it would help and what was the end goal. I explained to her the basic principles and that ultimately it is to be debt free so that we as Christians can do more for the Kingdom of God.
2. FPU's final lesson is ALL about what can be done when we are debt free. The lesson BEGINS with a couple sharing their story that they wanted to adopt, but felt lead to be debt free prior to their adoption. They shared that story with a couple in their church who proceeded to pay off this couple's debt AND also pay for a part of their adoption!!! incredible story. I even googled Dave Ramsey, adoption to see if I could find something specifically where he would even suggest not to adopt. The first result popped up where he had a guest on his show who had adopted children and then wrote a book on how to do it without going into debt. (getting grants, fundraising, etc.). As a man who proclaims Jesus Christ as the only true way to Heaven EVERY single DAY on his Nationally Syndicated talk show, I can't imagine him EVER saying not to adopt (we're commanded to take care of the orphans and widows in the Bible in case you weren't aware)
So why is Hollie slandering this man? I can't figure it out and I think what fires me up more than anything is that in the 143 subsequent comments made on this status update, she continues to out and out lie about DR. I've decided so much of it has to do with her own personal beliefs and feelings towards DR's public stance in politics (she doesn't agree that someone in his position should ever endorse a presidential candidate) and his political beliefs are way more right than hers.
I am saddened by Hollie because she has such a great testimony. Her and her husband have adopted a LOT of children. They've shown these children God's ultimate story of grace and redemption and for that, I know they are truly blessed.
She is constantly criticizing Christians for slandering other Christians, yet she does it consistently on her own platform.
She stated multiple times complete falsehoods and even when commentors would state the truth, Hollie would proceed to attack them and gang up against these people.
Hollie continues to say that Dave teaches to live on your own provisions, not God's, but that is not accurate at all. The Bible clearly commands us as Christians to not be servant to the lender (ie: stay out of debt) Prov 22:7. In fact, visit DaveRamsey.com where he has over 800 scriptures listed in regards to money.
Romans 13:8 - "Owe no one anything except to love one another, for he who loves another has fulfilled the law."
Proverbs 28:20 "A faithful man will abound with blessings, but he who hastens to be rich will not go unpunished."
I could on and on, but seriously, visit his site if you want to read more. Or better yet, look it up in your own Bible.
Hollie continues on to bash Dave stating she doesn't believe we should store up so much treasure here on Earth. Well duh, Hollie, Dave will tell you the same. He will tell you though to be prepared. Be smart and that even God commands us to be good stewards with our money. 1 Tim 5:8: "But if anyone does not provide for his own, and especially for those of his household, he has denied the faith and is worse than an unbeliever."
Dave teaches that we should prepare for the future. Do the best with what He blesses us with and the ultimate goal of Financial Peace is to get to Baby step 7: (straight from his website)
Baby Step 7 Build wealth and give!
It’s time to build wealth and give like never before. Leave an inheritance for future generations, and bless others now with your excess. It's really the only way to live!
Golda Meir says, “You can’t shake hands with a clenched fist.” Vow to never hold your money so tightly that you never give any away. Hoarding money is not the way to wealth. Save for yourself, save for your family’s future, and be gracious enough to bless others. You can do all three at the same time.
To say things like this man is out to build wealth and man-made riches is completely false. Is Dave Ramsey a wealthy man? Yes. He has a multi-million dollar home that he PAID for IN CASH because he WORKED for it. Will Dave tell you to get out of debt before you make ANY decision? Yes. You can even hear a live phone call in which a woman asks specifically if she and her husband should adopt with XX amount of debt. He advises her to pay it off first, then proceed. If you listen to Dave, you know he does not believe in debt. He will 99% of the time tell you to avoid debt at all costs. He will tell you to pay it off before moving on.
And Hollie, if you really cared what Dave Ramsey thought and you really knew what he said on adoption, you would know this is the premise to him ever telling someone to wait to adopt. It's not because he thinks you should build up your wealth. It's not because he wants you to gain all you can in the American dream. In fact, if you listen to his show for 1 week, you'll likely hear one of his many rants to a wife whose husband has toys - boats, atvs, etc - while their family is in debt up to their eyeballs or to the wife who keeps running up the credit card bill because she keeps shopping. Just listen and you'll realize you are WAY off when it comes to DR's teachings, his motives and how he wants us as Christians to live. Dave is a Christian. One that loves God. One that is a successful business owner that has somehow figured out how to mesh being a Christian business owner and success into the mainstream world. Don't start picking on someone and stating false statements if you've never taken their classes, read their material or consistently learned about what they truly teach. It's one of my biggest pet peeves. Don't talk about people being unintelligent on certain topics, when you yourself will attack someone's teachings before even knowing truth.
I'm done ranting about Hollie. We clearly do not see eye to eye and I will likely never post my opinion directly on her FB wall because while I enjoy a good debate, I won't partake with someone who cannot respect an opinion if it doesn't line up with her own. That's all...I'm done for now :)
I really love this video if you have a few minutes if you have never heard of Dave Ramsey other than my blog.
Yep, I'm 30. I'm ok with it. I feel as though I need to share my 30 Years of Wisdom. Ready? Here it is...it's pretty life changing (I have a friend who was speechless after I told him...)
30 years: Life is a book. God writes every chapter very carefully for us. Don't rush through each chapter, skimming over each line. Instead, cherish every chapter because you're going to want to go back and take your time.
So soak that in....see how it affects your life and how you live it. Then stop and realize to cherish every minute of your life NOW. Don't worry about what is to come or where you're supposed to be in the future. Be where you are now.
I did it! I completed the St. Jude Memphis half marathon AND I could still walk the next day- woo hoo. My mom, and nephews, Tre and Bronson, all ran the 5K that was occurring on the same morning of the marathon/half marathon, so we all packed up and got them started on their race. Then, Brent walked with me to the start for my half marathon - it was there that it started to sink in what I was about to do. I've decided that's just emotionally how I operate: I am ok with everything emotionally leading up to an event, then right before I usually get bombarded with emotions (ie: wedding day - fine until the doors opened and I cried the entire time down the aisle; moving to Nashville - fine until the day I left TVFCU and cried when I said goodbye to everyone; race day - fine until I was waiting around for the start (i didn't cry, it just sank in what I was about to do - and then I was like holy cow!). So as we're standing around waiting for the start, we just happen to run into our friends the Meriwethers who were also running in the race. It was great to have some people to chat with for the 30 minutes leading up to the race. So I got in line to start (it's a wave start, meaning they release a group of people every 2 minutes - there were 8,000 people in the half marathon and 5,000 people in the full marathon = a ton of people!) Brent was so great - he was walking along the side taking pictures and cheering me on. I guess it definitely helps to know what a runner needs once you've done it yourself - he completed the Music City Half Marathon when I was pregnant with Gabbie back in 2009. Anyway, I felt so great for the first 5 or 6 miles - I felt like I was going to definitely blow my goal of finishing under 3 hours out of the water. That is, until "it" hit me and unfortunately I had to make a pit stop in one of the hundreds of portable toilets along the course. UGH. YUCK. I emerged from the nastiness a little lighter and ready to hit the ground running - literally. I was still feeling great - we ran through the hospital property which was lined with all the nurses, doctors, a few patients and TONS of other supporters. It was quite emotional, but I did everything I could to fight back tears knowing I could potentially hyperventilate if I got too upset. I was determined to run as much as possible, including the 1 mile path through the hospital property. From there, my body started telling me it was feeling the pounding pavement. By mile 9 I started having a few physical pains - my thighs were starting to cramp. Feeling as though they were about to charley horse - I had to pull over twice to stretch to prevent from cramping. Then, my Achilles tendon started SCREAMING to stop. It was pretty painful even thought I tried pushing through the pain. I came to a tough realization if I didn't stop running, I might not be able to finish. So I walked mile 10, which of course really hurt my time. By the time I reached mile 11, I was so excited that I was just 2 miles from the finish - WOW. I didn't have a watch, but at every mile there was a clock with the race time. Because of the wave finish, we started 23 minutes into the race start time, so not only was I running, drinking water, pacing myself, I was doing math at every mile to figure out my current time so I could make sure I finished under 3 miles. Around mile 11.5, I passed a couple talking about the time and that we had 9 minutes to make it to the finish line before the 3 hour mark. Suddenly, I decided to push through the pain, and get to my finish line in my goal. The race finished inside AutoZone park in Memphis, which was so cool. I crossed the finish line and ran right past all of my family and best friend. It was such a neat experience and so very surreal. I had just finished 13.1 miles and while I know there are SOOO many bigger races that require MUCH more physical endurance (ie: JimmyMoncrief and Ironman Louisville), this was a huge accomplishment for me. A top 10 bucket list for my life and I had just completed it. Even through the crazy pain in my legs, I knew that this would not be my last race. I believe it's safe to say I have "the bug" to run again.
I took a quick pic with Elvis (gotta love Memphis), then hiked up the stairs to grab some food and drinks. While I thought eating would not sound good post-race, I was completely wrong. I immediately scarfed down a slice of pizza, some yummy soup and the best cup of beer I've had in my life followed up by chocolate milk. All of that sounds disgusting (especially the beer), but man it was amazing. I finally got to meet up with my fans: Brent, Mom, Dad, Jennifer, Tre, Brittany, Bronson, Brian, David, Uncle John, Casey, Brad, Brittany & Ada. They were such good sports to wait on me and watch for me for the entire race time. It was incredible to have such great support. I have to say, if you ever have someone competing in something like this you really should go support them. Even if you only see them once or twice along the course, having support there to cheer you on, is absolutely incredible and exactly what you need to get through such a physical competition.
I really appreciate everyone who came - I really appreciate my husband forcing me to take an ice bath. And yes, it was as terrible as it sounds. T E R R I B L E. I sat in a bath tub with ice for about 6 minutes. Jimmy tells me next time it has to be 15 minutes - YIKES. However, I got through it by knowing immediately following I would be able to take a hot shower AND the next day, I knew I'd be able to walk. And you know - I was right! woo hoo
So looking back on the race, it really went well. I am really proud of my time of 2:52:40. I made it under 3 hours which was my goal. I ran a great pace and the few problems I did have are nothing in comparison with what could have potentially happened. I know what I need to do for training for my next race and I am pumped to get back out there and run again. Running truly is just as much a physical event as it is mental. I knew that going into it and remembered it consistently throughout the course. Thank you all for your support - kind words and donations to meet my goal to be a St Jude Hero. The race raised over $2.8 million for St Jude Children's Research Hospital! WOW. Incredible. SUCH an inspirational race and one with a great cause. I was so proud of my family for not only being there, but running the 5k. I know it was super special for Tre - a 12 1/2 year survivor and St Jude patient. Amazing. Thank you all again!
Bring it, 30.
Here's a link to some pictures and a video of me crossing the finish line.
