The “Pick Giveaway Winner” plugin randomly selected…
Your 1 winners on “A Word, A Number: My Word for 2012 and My Review of 7 by Jen Hatmaker” are:
D Hopkins
Congratulations! Please check your email and reply with your mailing address so I can send you your copy of 7!
Ever wondered where your time, money, energy, waistline, closet space or sanity ran off to? Before I even thought about “picking a word” for 2012 I was already wrestling with the concept of ENOUGH. It’s a word that has challenged, encouraged and flat out rearranged me the past few months so I figured it was worth some more prayer and consideration. God exercised His extreme “smartness” and timing and at the first of the year I was given an opportunity to review a new book by an author I have mentioned here before.
…Seven, a social and spiritual experiment my family embarked on which I chronicled…except for the opposite of all that. Drowning in tension over our own materialism and losing the battle against consuming, we decided to go radical for a year and see what God would do. Boiling seven areas of excess down to just seven choices in seven months, we put our greed and apathy on the table and said, “God, transform us.” Somehow against all odds, the project was completed, the words were written, and Seven is now a book.
Month by month Jen takes you through her family’s personal experiences as they embark on this fast from materialism, apathy and elitism. As she states, “This isn’t a sage’s manifesto but a sinner’s repentance.” She doesn’t see 7: An Experimental Mutiny Against Excess
This is the second Jen Hatmaker book I have read. When I do I think, “I so get her” or “She so gets me” or “Why doesn’t everyone get this?”. She points out that the richest 20% of the world’s population {that includes me and you, most people in America} is responsible for 86% of the world’s consumption…
Excess has impaired perspective in America; we are the richest people on earth, praying to get richer. We’re tangled in unmanageable debt while feeding the machine, because we feel entitled to more. What does it communicate when half the global population lives on less than $2 a day, and we can’t manage a fulfilling life on [many, many] times that amount?
7: An Experimental Mutiny Against Excess
You see, we really do have enough {more than enough}…enough time, enough money, enough energy, enough talent & skill…it’s simply a matter of how we invest those resources. More importantly, God has given us exactly what we need for what He is expecting us to do.
By his divine power, God has given us everything we need for living a godly life. We have received all of this by coming to know him, the one who called us to himself by means of his marvelous glory and excellence.
1 Peter 1:3 NLT
GIVEAWAY!
If you would like to win a copy of 7: An Experimental Mutiny Against Excess
Entry deadline is 11:59pm {Central Time} on Monday, January 23, 2012
One winner will be chosen at random and announced Tuesday.
Disclosure: I received a complementary copy of this book for review, as well as a copy to give away to one of my readers. All opinions, unless quoted, are mine. This post contains affiliate links.
Life is Crazy Beautiful 
i would love to try the 7 articles of clothing – but its also very scary!! with varying wardrobes between work, home, working out, socializing, and church, i don’t know if i could do it. (first world problem if there ever was one!)
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After some health problems and associated weight gain the last year or so, I’ve been much more limited in my clothing (because I refuse to spend any more money on clothes!). I’m not down to 7…but maybe 27 (not counting shoes & accessories)…I loved reading Jen’s stories about her clothing month, so funny! Thanks for the visit 🙂
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Honestly this book scares me. Because I know that it will challenge me and I am afraid of it! 🙂 Excess comes in so many forms but “busy-ness” is my worst. Always feeling too busy and not using the time I do have wisely!!
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Kristin, sounds like you need month 7 of 7!! Been there, done that, for sure.
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Dining out, in and of itself, is one of the low-profile excesses of materialism and consumerism. It doesn’t have to be a fine dining experience; even quick and inexpensive fast food jaunts can add up pretty quickly. There is plenty of truth that if we skip a dining experience regularly, we can free ourselves up to donate or sponsor a child in a third world county. BTW, consider how many North American youth participating in 30-hour famine conclude the fund-raiser with a “well-deserved” feast?
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So true! Even just a fancy coffee habit could sponsor a couple of kids if abstained from. We do feel entitled, don’t we? This is an area I have felt convicted about for a couple of years now, so I’m just hoping sharing about it might inspire others as I work on these things myself! Thanks for stopping by 🙂
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I would love to win a copy of this book. I agree, Americans are just plain fat. We all kinds of stuff we really don’t need. I think I am overloaded in the area of electronics – mac computer, iPhone, Kindle Fire, Laptop, tv. Ugh, no wonder I struggle to get alone with Him. Did you redo your blog? I love!
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I agree, Barbie…I’ve gotten to the point where I’ve just HAD it (I feel a closet/basement purge coming on)! All of the more, more, more we chase after really does squeeze God out. I did do a small cosmetic change to the blog on the spur of the moment. Same color scheme (even the same artist), but I felt the need to lighten it up a little. I think I was rebelling before against the trend of “whiteness” in blogs, ha ha. Thanks, I’m glad you like it 🙂
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This book WOULD help me with my “word” of Less! LOVE IT!
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Right?????? 🙂
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I would love to win this copy not only for myself but for all the Partenering Families we work with at the Mustard Seed. God does meet all our needs , I hope through this book I may grow and in return plant generational seeds that young families will harvest for a lifetime .
God Bless your journey
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What a difficult and soooo necessary ministry you have taken on…may God bless your obedience and love as you reach out to families!
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I like your word! Thank you for visiting my blog, I am honored. I like how we “like” the same things… Mercy House (yay) You Version Bible and blogging! I like how you went beyond your word and added a giveaway. This book looks amazing and I would probably say the area in my life right now that is excessive is SUGAR. Yep, I’m addicted to it and I need to stop it. 🙂
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Sugar is a tough one! Even when I am reminded of how yucky too much of it makes me feel I still find myself consuming TOO much of it. Thanks for stopping by!
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I am so excited to read this book! THANK you again for the giveaway and I think I will chronicle my family’s journey through the book on my blog. I really can’t wait to start reading!
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What a great word for 2012! I hope you have Enough. 🙂
I wrote about my word of the year on my blog if it interests you to read it! 🙂
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Ter, thanks for stopping by! I know that I always have enough…my prayer is that I will always remember that and that I will conform my idea of Enough to God’s. I hope that the “you” that Emerges at the end of 2012 fits His perfect plan for your life. Blessings!
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Sounds interesting! We have been making some changes over here with food excesses and using lower salt and sugar and fats. Wanting to cut back on pop and other things too. Moderation is a word I need to remember.
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Yes, “moderation” and “enough” go hand-in-hand, don’t they? Just another way we need to pray we can be more counter-culture, so we can have that abundant life God has promised us in Him! 🙂
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