Live On What You Give

I'm back for a little visit to my favorite personal blog.  Let me catch you up a bit to where we've been, where we are now, and where I hope we're headed.

1. In October of 2008 we began a month-long experiment to stay out of the grocery store.  With some preparation, lots of trial and error, a little innovation and much inspiration we made it a whole month and the experiment was a success.
2. In August of 2009 my husband lost his job and we were free-falling for almost a year.  Self employment has its perks, but financial security is not one of them.  We lived on severance pay, savings, tax-returns, unemployment benefits and food storage.  After nearly 12 months of that we depleted most of our stores.  We came through it alive, with our marriage stronger and our family closer, so I'd say that was a success.
3. In October 2009 we decided to have a Nothing New holiday season.  Some of that is chronicled here.  It was also a success, though I can't remember how much fidelity we devoted to that particular experiment.
4. In August of 2010, my husband began working for a new company for half the salary he'd made at his previous job.  Still, it was better than unemployment or the poor house, so we made it work.  The trick with that company was that they rarely paid on time.  In fact, we spent the entire holiday season from November-December of 2010 without being paid.  That was tough.  I will admit that our overdraft line of credit was what kept us going through that period.  We spent a year planing that game.
5. In August of 2011 we got a new job.  It is going well.  They pay on time and are good to work with. He is happy and in his element there.  I am adjusting to the time it takes him to commute.
6. We once had an emergency fund that covered several months of expenses, no car payment and no credit card debt.  Now we have $1000 in our emergency fund, a car payment and a little bit of debt from our year of robbing Peter to pay Paul after we got the job that rarely paid.  We are still working towards and waiting for the restoration of all things.

In keeping with fourth quarter money saving traditions of the past, I'm back with another super personal family experiment.  This one goes hand in hand with No More Grocery Shopping and is called our "Live On What You Give" experiment.  Here's how it works.
Each month we donate a certain amount of money to charity.  This is beyond tithe that is one of the tenets of our faith. I've been thinking a lot lately about the level of our giving and if it accurately reflects our ability to give.  I've also thought about just how far those funds are able to go and that's where I came to the inspiration for this experiment.  What if I had to live on what I give? What if I can't spend at the grocery store any more than I have given to meet the needs of others around me?  What if we could only provide for our children what others were willing to donate? What if my family had to live on the donations of another family, would it be enough?  How would I make up the difference if it wasn't?  These are just a few of the questions I have.

So, this time of year, as we make room for more, we give away toys, clothing, canned goods and participate in fund raisers for local food pantries and shelters.  What if this season we can only spend to the level that we give.   For instance, if I donate $X to charity, I can only spend $X on groceries.  When I buy gifts for my kids' birthdays (they are all during the holidays), that gift can only be to the level that I am also able to donate for a child in need.  If we have a holiday meal, I can only make and use items that I will also donate to a family in need.

Mostly, I want to test two quotes from wise men of my faith. 
The first is this:

“You cannot give yourself poor in this work.”

Marion G. Romney

And , the second:

“A person cannot give a crust to the Lord without receiving a loaf in return.”

Melvin J. Ballard