Exploring Hygge

Welcome back! I took a little hiatus from this blog, as I have been focusing more on my prayer blog over the past several months. <https://prayingforourworld.blogspot.com>

Today, I'd like to introduce you to the concept of "hygge". This is an Danish word without an exact translation in English, but words like "comfort", "coziness", "security", and "intimacy" all hit close to it. We'll look at how to say hygge, what it is, what it isn't, and resources for further investigation into hygge.

Firstly, pronunciation. Hygge is pronounced "hoo-ga" or "hew-gah". When in doubt, listen to it said at Google Translate or Youtube.

Secondly, what is hygge? Hygge describes activities, the simple pleasures of life.

*Hygge is a pot of soup simmering while bread bakes in the oven. 
*It is a hot beverage sipped while reading a book. It is a candle (preferably unscented according to the Danes) lit nearby. 
*It is cozy socks, sweaters, blankets, and more. 
*It is quality time spent with friends, family, and other loved ones, without the distraction of technology. 
*It is a campfire on a fall evening. 
*It is a game played together. 

*It is a simple meal made with friends as we visit and catch up.
*It is about slowing down and appreciating the simple pleasures in life.

Thirdly, what is hygge NOT? Hygge is not stressful, distasteful tasks. 
*Filing taxes is definitely not hygge. 

*Scrolling through the toxic, vicious environment currently on social media is not hygge.

*Serving a fancy dinner that keeps you from visiting with your guests is not hygge.
*Cleaning the toilet is not hygge (but it still should be done regularly!).

Fourthly, there are a plethora of books, articles, and other resources about hygge. Do a search for e-books and audiobooks about hygge at your local library. Check out different articles and blogposts about it.

In a world that encourages us to buy more, do more, and achieve more, I found hygge refreshing and thrilling. We don't need to buy more to appreciate what we already have. We don't need to host an elaborate meal with friends; a pot of soup and bread is just as good to better focus on our guests. 

What activities do you enjoy that are hygge? 
What is a hyggeligt (hygge-like) activity that you want to try?
What are ways that we can simplify our schedules to better enjoy this concept of hygge?

What can we do to unplug from technology for an hour, a day, or a weekend? 

Responding to the Border Crisis in a Christ-Like Way

I've been following the crisis at the border pretty closely. After all, Lucas and I spent four years working with refugees and immigrants in the panhandle of Texas.

The border crisis is incredibly complex, and it stirs up a lot of different emotions in people.

The first emotion that I feel in response to the border crisis is anger.
I am angered by how the asylum-seekers at our border are being treated. I am infuriated at the unloving and apathetic response of the Church. 

It's easier to walk around angry, but if I am honest and vulnerable, I am really, underneath the anger, deeply and profoundly saddened both by this crisis and the church's lack of compassion. I am saddened that our country has justified the inhumane treatment of people (men, women, boys, and girls) because of the breaking of a law. Breaking laws should have consequences, but humane ones. I am grieved that the Church is largely silent on this topic. Just like it was silent during the civil rights era in the 1960s. Just like it was silent during the internment of Japanese-Americans in the 1940s. Just like it was silent when persecuted Jews in Europe applied to get into the US and we turned them away because we valued our safety more than their lives in the1940s.

Earlier this week, I was reading an article on this topic and a sentence jumped out at me: "The children told the lawyers they were given the same meals every day — instant oats for breakfast, instant noodles for lunch, a frozen burrito for dinner, along with a few cookies and juice packets — which many said was not enough." You can read the full article here.

As I read this article, I had some tough questions run through my mind:
-Can you imagine your elementary, middle, or high school student being satisfied with this as their daily calories? -What will the lack of vegetables & milk do to their growing bodies? 
-Are the juice packets 100% juice or "juice drinks" that are just a flavored sugar-water "juice drink"?

-How would Jesus respond to this crisis at our border?
-What would Jesus expect for His Church to be doing?

I must do something in response to this poor treatment of children. I am compelled to act. And so I wanted to protest this unjust government policy, by joining these children in their meals, by eating similar things to them. But as I started to think through the logistics, I realized that A) I do need to eat fruits, veggies, & dairy in order to stay healthy and B) No one would care about one person changing their diet in protest.

My next thought was to do this for a day. And during that day, this would be my response:
*When I am hungry, I will pray for them.
*When my food budget goes unspent, I will donate to a Christian ministry reaching out to these children. 
*When I am done with these meager portions, I will spend my remaining mealtime in dropping a message to the elected officials who represent my area & my voice will be heard. 
*But most importantly, I will add my voice crying out to the King of Kings, who loves the people in overcrowded facilities, just as much as He loves the elected officials who should be making thoughtful and humane policies and as much as He loves those who serve Him as His Church.

And so, I will pray for the children, the aslyum-seekers, the workers, and the law-makers involved in this situation.
I will donate to Christian organizations to minister to those on the margins of multiple societies.
I will let my elected officials know that their political posturing is hurting children and that is unacceptable.
I will ask the Lord of Lords how He expects me to respond and I will obey.

Who Will You Obey?

I think it's safe to say that the world is a mess. It is divided, angry, hurting, and full of hate. We can easily tune into the world's message by listening to and reading the news, or even just getting on social media. We don't have to look far to encounter the undercurrent of fear that has become common in our daily lives.

We hear the world's message because we have access to technology, but God doesn't write a blog or send out tweets, so we haven't been paying His message and His teachings their due.

But amidst the white noise of the world's fear and hate, I can faintly hear my Savior speaking and we not only need to listen to Him, we need to start living out His teachings once more.

"I was a stranger and you welcomed me." (Matthew 25:35)
"I was hungry and you fed me." (Matthew 25:35)
"I was thirsty and you gave me water." (Matthew 25:35)
"I was sick and imprisoned, and you visited me." (Matthew 25:36)
"Let the little children come." (Matthew 19:14)
"Love the foreigners for you were foreigners." (Deuteronomy 10:19)
"You are Christ's ambassadors." (2 Corinthians 5:20)
"Our battle is not against flesh and blood." (Ephesians 6:12)
"Love your enemies." (Matthew 5:44)
"Pray for your persecutors." (Matthew 5:44)
"Our citizenship is in heaven." (Philippians 3:20)
"Do not be afraid; do not be discouraged." (Joshua 1:9)

The world mocks, scoffs, and tries to drown out these teachings. It tries to convince us that trusting in "chariots and horses" is godly after all, but this is a lie.
The. World. Is. Wrong.
People are scared. That is understandable. The world seems to be a scary, strange, chaotic place.

We are not acting out of love for one another. We have been acting out of fear for far too long.
Leaders are making decisions out of fear. Historically, this leads to actions that our descendants are ashamed of.
People are scared, so they lash out. Other people are hurt and scared, so they lash out, and a cycle is born.

Can reaching out in love break this cycle? The Bible seems to think so. Yes, I'll admit that loving someone who hates us won't fix things overnight, but this is the path that we, as Christians, as called to walk. To the non-believing world, it doesn't make sense to lower our guard and reach out to others in love. It may not even make sense to us in the Church, but the thing is, God didn't invite us to edit the Bible to make it more palatable for our culture. He called us to obey, even when our culture is shouting that God's way will fail.

"For I was a stranger and you welcome me in." (Matthew 25:35) Jesus didn't promise safety and security when we welcomed the stranger. He didn't promise that it would be easy or convenient. But He did call for us to welcome the stranger in our midst. We can form friendships across cultures, even when our world says that it will fail.

The world is calling for us to react in fear.
Jesus is teaching us to love others in spite of our fears.
Who will you obey?

How to Treat Strangers, Foreigners, and Internationals

This post never got published, even though it was written in 2014, when we lived in Costa Rica. I wanted to write a post from my perspective as a international traveler to you who live in the US. I wanted to let you know what my experience was like so that you could better understand the international people in your community. 

Living in a country where I didn't speak the language fluently has opened my eyes to the experience of being a foreigner in a strange land. Here are some of my thoughts which can hopefully be applied to the internationals in your communities.

*disclaimer* These statements are true for me, but they won't apply to every international you ever meet.

1. Just because I don't initiate conversations does not mean that I do not want to talk. It's just that talking is highly intimidating. I'm learning about indefinite past tense, imperfect past tense, perfect past tense, pluperfect past tense, present tense, present progressive, simple future, compound future, conditionals, and new vocabulary every day. I get them mixed up and I get confused sometimes, which makes communicating difficult.

2. Just because I don't speak your language well, that does not mean that I'm stupid. I'm working on my second language, which means I make a whole lot of errors, but just because I speak like a four-year-old does not mean that I have the intelligence of a four-year-old. (Side tangent: I haven't faced this problem in our host country, but many Americans have this mindset. Some international students are learning English as their second, third, fourth+ language. They are intelligent. Saying that foreigners need to speak English in America does not help them learn it any better, but having conversations with them does.)

3. I need your patience. It takes me a while sometimes to get the correct words together in the correct order with the correct conjugation (I hope). Please be patient with me as I try to express myself in another language.

4. Please speak slowly, clearly, and without slang or idioms. Each word you say needs to be translated in my mind. Please use simple words that are clearly enunciated. I probably won't understand slang or idioms. Abbreviations, acronyms, and slang are very difficult for me to understand.

5. Please talk to me. I desperately want conversations in the language I am learning. I want to connect with people. It's just that I'm equally terrified of having these conversations.Talk to us after church. Conversations are nice, even if we don't initiate often.

6. Invite me into your home. Invite me to the store with you. Invite me over for a meal of your typical food. It will make my day to know that you want to spend time with me.

7. Encourage me. The task of learning another language is sometimes overly-daunting. I don't always feel like I am progressing. To hear a native speaker (sincerely) telling me that I am doing well is very encouraging to me. 

8. I don't repeat back things you say to be annoying or talk more, but to make sure I understand. There is a strong temptation to just nod my head and agree with whatever you say. When I try to rephrase what you just said back to you, I'm trying to make sure that I heard, translated, and understood correctly. Please be patient as I check for understanding.

9. That look of panicked confusion is genuine, especially if we are in a noisy environment. The noisier it is, the more difficult it is for me to hold a conversation in another language.

10. I am exhausted. Learning a new language, especially by immersion, is exhausting. If I withdraw a bit, it's nothing you did, but rather, my brain is full at the moment.

11. If I understand a joke in your language, celebrate with me because it is a big deal. I don't catch many jokes, but the few I do, I'm happy for hours & hours.

12. I get my social cues from you locals. Please don't send me through the line first or what-have-you. I want to watch you to know how I should behave.

13. There is a delay between when you speak and when I comprehend. If you use a lot a gestures, my comprehension probably will go up.

14. Subtitles for movies, even if they are in the language I am learning, will really help my comprehension.

15. We are not snobs or stuck-up people too good to associate with you. When we hang out in a group of people with the same native language, it's because they are like security blankets & it's comforting to know that if I can't understand what you just said, maybe my friend would have understood and could help me. Many times, when I hang with "my people" I do so because I am just scared and intimidated. I don't always have to courage to leave my friend who speaks my language.

16. If I make silly errors with word placement, it could be because in my native language, that is the word order.

17. If I stumble over the names & places in the Bible, or countries of the world in general, it's because I'm learning every name, place, & country with my new language's pronunciation. It is hard when suddenly Jesús is Jesus, Moisés is Moses, Belén is Bethlehem, and so on. I am relearning everything in these categories.

18. Please don't judge me for using a paraphrase Bible or a different translation than you. KJV has hard words that aren't in our common vocabulary. I'm just want to understand what I'm reading. God speaks through His Word, regardless of the translation.

19. Hug me (if I am a hugger). I don't get hugs from my family.

20. Write it out for me. I read better than I speak.

21. Let me tell stories about my traditions.

22. I'm less intimidated by being asked to read aloud than to answer questions on the spot. It's a great way to include me without fear. I may not follow the discussion or the lesson, but I can read aloud.

23. Sometimes I will completely blank on a word in my new language. I will be explaining something and then bam...I don't know the word I want. I will then proceed to skirt around the word & use many more words than necessary to describe the word I lack.

24. I will stammer and stutter my way through pronouncing words in my new language. I'm not stupid, your language is just hard to pronounce.

25. Call me by name. It makes me feel a part of your group.

26. Take me under your wing. Invite me with you to the store, on errands, shopping, especially if I'm car-less.

27. Make an effort to learn or speak my first language. Even a few words can brighten my day.

28. I will have hard days when I don't want to deal with my new language. On these days I will seek out those in my language group to de-fry my brain.

29. Some parts of the day are easier or harder to speak or understand my new language.

30. I don't catch jokes. If you joke with me, I will take you seriously.

31. In church, if you want us to participate, say our name &  then ask us your question. We aren't opposed to participating, but we are intimidated. Sometimes we don't translate if we think you are addressing someone else.

32. In church, it's alright to ask us to read (it's more comfortable than answering a question point-blank!).

33. Compliment our grasp of your language. We don't feel like we're making progress. We are painfully aware of our errors & the words we don't understand. Tohave a native speaker tell us we're doing good (as long as it's a truthful statement) means a lot. Just don't be surprised if we deny it.

...For I was hungry and you gave me something to eat, I was thirsty and you gave me something to drink, I was a stranger and you invited me in, I needed clothes and you clothed me, I was sick and you looked after me, I was in prison and you came to visit me....Matthew 25:31-46

Christian Living-Doing Hospitality

I've been doing this hospitality thing wrong. Invited guests never saw the excessive cleaning and organizing that preceded their arrival, nor did they see the many dishes I cleaned up afterwards. That's because I viewed hospitality as "entertaining." So I would fix specialty foods that would take a long time to buy, prepare, cook, and clean.

I wouldn't enjoy the company as much as I could, because I was thinking of the work afterwards.

Liz's new hospitality plan:
-simple foods
-minimal dishes
-accept help when offered
-remember people aren't coming over to see my house's cleanliness, but my hubby and me.

After all, as a believer, I am encouraged to offer hospitality
without grumbling
to strangers
as my common practice

I am very grateful for my previous home. We have a man cave-den-guest bedroom, so we can open our homes to friends and family needing someplace to crash. We have a small table that extends out to welcome many. We have many kitchen appliances to make our food preparation easier. We have a desire to allow people into our home.

For this, I am blessed.

How do you do hospitality? What is your ideal way of doing hospitality?

Learning Hospitality

Hospitality is a solidly Biblical concept. (Just search for examples of hospitality through the internet and watch pick a site like <http://www.tmumc.org/documents/081207HolyHospitality-web.pdf>)

Growing up, I experienced hospitality in a variety of ways. Before holidays, my family would stay at a relative's house, who was hosting the holiday dinner. We would play their games, watch their movies, eat their food, and sometimes sleep in their beds, but we would also be helping them to prepare for the next day's dinner.

My mother was also a prime example of hospitality. As college students helped with our middle and high school youth groups, she helped them. We would have students over for dinners (especially around the holidays for those who couldn't make it home). We would "adopt" a student for the year he/she would be in our life.

My sister extended hospitality as well. During thanksgiving break in her freshman year, my sister brought two international students into our lives, so they would have a family-like place to stay. After a mission trip to England, my sister was impacted by the willingness of families in England to practice hospitality and open their doors to strangers.

I learned the most about hospitality in Uruguay. A local pastor and wife had a house church. There house had a front room, their bedroom, a small sitting room, a bathroom, a room that led to the kitchen that doubled as their kids' bedrooms, a kitchen, and a backyard. During our mission trip, I saw their house (specifically the front room and kitchen) offered and transformed time and time again. The front room was where the church met, where leaders were trained to lead discussions on Courageous, where kid's club was held when our outdoor venue was rained out, where prayer meetings were held, where a ladies' tea was hosted, and where 22 of us (from the States and from Uruguay) ate our lunches, cooked in the pastor's wife's kitchen. The pastor's wife did not grudgingly admit us into our house and fiercely protect her boundaries. She welcomed us willingly and gracefully. Lunches were served on tablecloths, with decorative flowers and scriptural promises for us to remember. Anytime I approached her saying, "I have a question," "Si, Amor (yes, Love)" was her reply.

These influences have shaped how I view hospitality. I want to be able to open my house and welcome individuals inside. I am intrigued by the concept that people don't care how nice my house looks, but rather, are pleased to be invited in. Lucas (my dear hubby-kins) and I enjoy setting up invitations for company to come over for food, fun (games), and fellowship (games). Because, for us, opening our house is a way to tell a person, "you're worthwhile; please come in."

What are ways you have seen hospitality practiced? What are ways you practice hospitality?