Faithful Friday: Love in a Shoebox

How can a shoebox give hope?  When it is packed with goodies, sent with love, and includes the best gift ever - the message of Jesus!

Mark 16:15 “Then he told them: Go and preach the good news to everyone in the world.”

We've decided to donate through Operation Christmas Child in memory of Austin, as one of the many acts of kindness we'll do this month.  It's an added blessing that our church is partcipating so it makes sending the shoeboes even easier.

The kids and I have been packing our shoesboxes over the past couple days.  Well, techinically they aren't shoe boxes, they are plastic containers with lids around the same size.  We thought they might be more useful to the child receving and durable to hold their treasures.

I've been touched by how excited they have been to do it and the serious conversations we've had around the table.  As they put in flashlights, we discussed how many of the children live in a world of darkness - both literally and figuratviely.  And although the gospel is shared with each child who receives a box, the kids wanted to include items within and on their box declaring the love of Jesus.  We've prayed about the kids who, within weeks will open these boxes of hope.

Originally our kids decided to do teenage boxes, figuring most people would probably buy for younger children.  We enjoyed it so much though that I surprised them tonight with an extra bag of goodies to do for the next age down as well. 
I think we've found an annual tradition and one that I hope to grow next year.  We jumped on too late to make a large impact, but every single box makes a difference.

Want to help?  Click below to learn how to make a shoebox.  Or, if you want to donate online, you can even track where your box ends up.  If you're local and you get it together this weekend, I'll even pick it up and take to church with me Sunday morning.  ....Get packing!  :)

How to Pack a Shoebox

Operation Christmas Child seeks to bring hope

and joy into the life of a child through the shoe box gift, but it doesn’t end there. Operation Christmas Child has worked with the local churches in over 150 countries to make sure that children know that long after the candy is gone and the toys have worn out, God loves them, has not forgotten about them and longs for them to be His children. We share with them a very simple, but profound message of hope, a message that you have probably heard before: John 3:16.

Faithful Friday - Pause. And Be Thankful.

Tis' the season! 

Know how I know?  A quick glance at my ever-growing busy calendar!  I just gave it a once over and realized there is not a "free" weekend again for the rest of the year.  Seriously!?

Dinners, Dinners, and more Dinners. (unbuttoning pants now...) Parades.  Holiday functions.  Church activities.  Family get-togethers.  Annual Traditions. 
And So. Much. More.  With the hustle and bustle of the holidays, it is easy to get lost in the chaos and forget to pause in Thanksgiving and enJOY the moments.

"All our busy rushing ends in nothing."

- Psalm 39:6 NLT

That's one of the reasons I adore the new Facebook tradition of posting a thankful thought each day.  Not only do I enjoy posting, but it is so nice, especially after the political season, to see positivity in my news feed! 

Pausing to reflect on our blessings is truly the way we should start and end each day.  It is not happy people who are thankful - it is thankful people who are happy.  Such truth in that!

The first season in my life I remember pausing in thanksgiving was after our wreck.  Each night I would record thankful thoughts, prayers, scriptures, etc.  Such a blessed way to end each evening.  If I came across a difficult period, I would simply flip the book to the beginning and read over what was written. 

Prior to that I wonder how often I gave it thought.

Sure, I was thankful but did I pause in it?  Give humble thanks for what I have?  Praise God regularly for the good he'd given?

I'm sad to recall I did not.  Or maybe it just didn't mean as much until recent years.  After life turned upside down.  Tragedy has a way of putting things into perspective.

My hope for you is that tragedy isn't your wake-up call.  For some, there are no second chances.  Make the most of your life here and now so you can enjoy the hereafter.  I know I'm ever-thankful for every blessed moment God gives me.

What are you most thankful for this week?

Come, let us sing for joy to the Lord;
let us shout aloud to the Rock of our salvation.

Let us come before him with thanksgiving and extol him with music and song.

For the Lord is the great God, the great King above all gods. - Psalm 95:1-3