Why Celebrate Spend Yourself Week

It’s simple, really. The One Body One Hope theme passage begins with Isaiah 58:10.

“If you spend yourselves on behalf of the hungry

and satisfy the needs of the oppressed,

then your light will rise in the darkness

and your night will become like the noonday.”

If you read the verse carefully, you’ll realize that it includes both a challenge and a blessing (for you theological types, an “if... then” clause). It’s true that our salvation does not depend on our works, but we are also told that faith without works is dead. And scripture is pretty clear that often the place of God’s blessing is also the place of sacrificial love. We are called to love one another--not just in word, but in deed, too. We are called to spend ourselves.

It’s not always easy to spend ourselves. Sometimes we just don’t want to do it. Sometimes we don’t know how. But the Lord promises to “guide us always, satisfy our needs in a sun-scorched land, and strengthen our frame” (Isaiah 58:11) if only we will spend ourselves. It is our hope that you’ll find great joy and connection with your Savior and His work in the world this week as you join us in finding ways to love and live sacrificially.

How to Celebrate Spend Yourself Week

1. Decide on a way to spend yourself.
   Ideally, this should be something that your entire family agrees to do together. It will be easier for you to hold each other accountable and stay strong in your conviction to stand in solidarity with those who are hurting.

2. For five days (Monday, Dec. 2 through Friday, Dec. 6): SPEND YOURSELF!
   We’ve provided a devotional reflection for every day of Spend Yourself Week so you can truly focus on what it means to love and live sacrificially. We suggest setting aside family devotional time every day of Spend Yourself Week so that you can discuss what you’re doing and talk about how God is speaking to you.

3. Celebrate what God has done!
   On Friday, take some time to celebrate with your family and friends and tell stories about how God worked in your life this week. Maybe you want to share a meal together, participate in an act of service, or just be together. If you've saved money during this time (for example, putting a dollar in a jar for every time you complain, or saving up the money you would have spent on more elaborate meals) now is the time to reflect and donate. How will your gift impact lives?

Ways to Celebrate Spend Yourself Week

We have some ideas for how you, your family, and friends can join together and stand in solidarity during Spend Yourself Week. Feel free to use this list as a starting point, but pick something that will be meaningful for your family to sacrifice for a week.

• Replace one meal a day with rice and beans. Meat is a luxury in most countries, not only because it is expensive and because it can be hard to come by. We take for granted the well-stocked meat counters at our grocery stores.

• Drink nothing but water for the duration of Spend Yourself Week. Replacing milk, juice, coffee, smoothies, alcohol can be a way to remind yourself that many families don’t have clean, safe water to drink.

• Give up television for one week. Or screens altogether!

• Fast from social media or apps that you regularly use.

• Match your social media time with time spent in devotions, reading the Bible, or volunteering.

• Give up complaining. Liquidate $10 in quarters for each child, and have a stack of dollar bills for the adults. Anyone caught complaining has to put a quarter or dollar in the jar. This exercise not only raises awareness of all the good gifts we've been given (and how very little we have to complain about) but also that it cultivates a culture of gratitude.

What else can you come up with? What act of sacrificial solidarity would be meaningful for your family? We'd love it if you'd share your ideas!