At this time of the year, we are are confronted everywhere we go with giving: the salvation army angels are standing outside in the cold ringing their bells, there are food and toy drop boxes in almost every store, churches and other social service organizations are hosting food, toy and coat drives, and food and toy giveaways are being planned up until Christmas to make sure that everyone has a good holiday. There are Santa letters at the post office and visits to nursing homes and hospitals. Yep, the winter holidays are truly the season of giving!
There are other types of giving as well. There's anonymous giving and in-your-face giving. There are the gifts of time and talent, as well as the gift of just putting a smile on someone's face who is having a bad day...
I've had the recent opportunity to do some giving back this season; all small things to me, but I've learned that they mean much to others. First, I sent a care package of craft supplies to a young lady in Sweden (yes, Sweden) who wanted to participate in December Daily but because she's unemployed there isn't a lot of money in her household for craft supplies. I was going to gift her things from my stash, but then I decided to just go and buy her new things; we have chatted a few times and I found out what colors she was using and went shopping! I didn't get a whole lot (I swear the postage was more than the items), but there was no better feeling for me in the world than to be able to mail that package off! And when she received it, she sent me the best message ever and my heart was so full and my smile was off the charts that day! There is no better medicine for a bad day than doing something nice for someone else! Here is a photo of what I sent to her:
Cute, right??? Making her day made my day, and I was happy and blessed that I was able to do it. She asked me what could she do for me, and I told her to just pay it forward; my friends have been there for me during my rough times and I knew exactly how she was feeling and I just wanted to put some sunshine in her day. Mission accomplished!
For the Thanksgiving holiday, my church (Victory, of course), through its outreach ministry, gave away food baskets (a full dinner, complete with turkeys) and winter warmth items: coats, hats, gloves, scarves. I wanted to participate, so I signed up to volunteer to help pack the baskets (I ended up taking the tween with me). I snapped a couple of pictures:
It was a great thing to see people (especially the children) working together on a Friday night to get the bags packed (a second set of volunteers were there on Saturday to distribute the items). We gave out 135 bags; families were signed up by church members to receive them. I was very happy to not only participate, but to have the tween with me participating as well.
I also purchased items for the winter warmth drive; I purchased 3 sets of hat, gloves and scarves. It may seem like a small thing (and in fact, it is), but again, I was happy that I was able to go to the store and do it because there was a time not too long ago when I could not. I dropped the items off before I went to the bag packing area; here's what I donated:
Someone will be stylish and warm this winter! Again, not a big thing, but it felt good to be able to give back.
That experience so touched me that I signed up to join my church's outreach ministry that night: V.O.I.C.E. - Victory Outreach in Community Efforts of Victory Apostolic Church! I attended my first meeting last week and worked the registration table for our upcoming holiday giveaway, registering families that are in need of food baskets and toys for their children. Which brings me to this: if you are looking to make any donations this year, I hope that you would consider donating toys, coats, winter items and gifts for older children (which are always in short supply) to our Annual Christmas Toy Drive. You don't have to be a member of Victory to donate; we will be accepting donations beginning this week through next Tuesday (December 15th). We will be serving members of our church, families of the local school district and working with a social service organization for referrals, so donations are both needed and appreciated. Here is a flyer about the event:
Victory Apostolic Church is located at 20801 Matteson Drive in Matteson, Illinois. If God so touches your heart to donate to this effort, I would appreciate you.
Last, but not least, I purchased ornaments and decorations to make a special friend's home more festive for the holidays. I enjoyed shopping for the items and my efforts were appreciated! It wasn't a huge thing to me, but I was happy to make someone else happy and to spread some holiday cheer! Here's what I bought:
Even if you don't donate to my church, I pray that you will support your local ministry's outreach efforts as well as maybe a letter to Santa (my ex-husband and I used to do that before we had children and it was the bestest ever!) or an anonymous drop into a toys for tots box while you're out shopping for your family. Why? Good question! Here are some answers: 1) because it just feels good!; 2) to show gratitude for your blessings; 3) to help someone else; and 4) it aids in character development.
Last, but not least: 5) it is what the Bible commands you to do - See Matthew 25:31-46 (Verily I say unto you, Inasmuch as ye have done it unto one of the least of these my brethren, ye have done it unto me... Matthew 25:40). What does that mean? It means that every time you give back, you are serving Christ. The Bible tells us that Christ was concerned about the poor, the downtrodden and the forgotten. In this passage of scripture, He was speaking about the judgment, when those who gave back will be separated from those who did not. He also took on the persona of those less fortunate: those in prison, those hungry, those in need of clothes - and said that if you helped those people, then you helped Me. (You should go read that passage for yourselves...). Basically, we will be held accountable for giving (or not giving) back to those in need. It puts a new perspective on this notion of giving back, doesn't it?
Giving back need not always be monetary; everyone isn't able to give financially. Nor should you measure your giving by anyone else's; the point is to make the sacrifice of giving, whether it be monetary, physical or just your time. All are worthy sacrifices and you kill two birds with one stone: 1) you get to show your light in the world and 2) you get to serve Christ all at the same time!
That leads me to today's question: how are YOU giving back this holiday season???? I sincerely hope that you are... Holla @ Darvi and let's talk about it. If you want/need ideas on how you can give back, I can help with that too; I have been coordinating outreach programming on and off for the better part of 25 years...
The scripture reading for this week is as follows:
December 7th - Jeremiah 33:14-16
December 8th - Psalm 72:1-7
December 9th - Psalm 72:8-14
December 10th- Psalm 72:15-20
December 11th - Psalm 95:1-7
December 12th - Malachi 3:1-3
December 13th - Matthew 1:18-20
Be blessed and have a great week! And do some giving back this year - you won't feel bad about it, I promise! xoxoxo
Thanks again for food for thought. We go grocery shopping to help fill the food boxes during this season of giving. Just like you said, it doesn't have to be big gifts but something small and something someone can use.
ReplyDeleteExactly, Lois!
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