How to Delight in Christmas Gifting!

December, with all its anticipated excitement, celebration, and happiness is finally here!! It is indeed a time to celebrate, thank those we love and appreciate those who have helped us throughout the year.

However, it is also a time to consider the plight of others. As poet John Donne so profoundly wrote, “No man is an island entire of itself; every man is a piece of the continent, a part of the main.” Despite our successes and accomplishments, there are many in the world…. around the region…or even down the street…. who are less fortunate. So, to end the year with true significance, why not help someone else?

If you think one person can’t make a difference, consider this story:

One day a man watched a little girl walk along a beach at low tide. Occasionally she would stop, pick up a star fish, and throw it back in the ocean. When he could no longer contain his curiosity, he approached her and asked, “What are you doing?”

She responded, “I’m saving starfish by throwing them back in the ocean.”

He responded, “I see that, but you do know you cannot save them all? So what difference are you making?”

She responded, “I know I can’t save them all… but I made a difference to that one.”

So, who can YOU help?

Here are five suggestions for this Christmas season:

• Perhaps you know a struggling single mother in your church. Make an anonymous gift through the church or donate that used car in good condition that sits unused in your garage.
• How about the homeless person on the street corner you pass without noticing? Take that extra winter coat or buy a new one to give him or her. Purchase gift cards at Wendy’s or Chick-Fil-A so you can provide a meal.
• Is it time to finally stop talking about donating blood and actually do it? While many people are squeamish about the needle, that one small act of donating a pint of blood can save someone’s life. And you can give on a regular basis because blood is always in high demand.

My stepdaughter, Cera, lives in Marshall, NC. This small town outside Asheville, North Carolina was devastated by flooding because of Hurricane Helene. Cera worked tirelessly with other residents to clean up the mess left by the flooding. While she lives outside the center of this disaster, she is helping to raise awareness and money for this small town because most people had no flood insurance. It is estimated to cost over $50-60 million to restore this town.

• If you’d like to give, visit www.helpmarshall.org or contact the Nanostead Foundation who is helping spearhead the recovery and is Marshall Relief Hub at (828) 222-0258. If you (and /or the company for which you work) would like to make an even more significant contribution, please contact me and I can connect you with the 501-C-3 that is being established for this

• Looking for the perfect gift for your friend, spouse, or employees? Samaritan’s Purse, an international relief organization headed by Franklin Graham, has an incredible catalog of Christmas gifts that can change lives worldwide. For example, you can provide a week of hot meals for a child for $7, feed a family in Sudan for a month for just $35, and for $100 provide a water filter to a family that will provide safe, clean water (which we take for granted). For $14 you can give an impoverished family a dozen chickens and a chicken coop so they can raise eggs to eat and sell. Visit www.samaritanspurse.org/catalog24 for more details.

I often ask people a question that causes them to really stop and think, “As Americans are we blessed just for our own good?” The obvious answer is, “No, we are not.” It is no accident that while most of the world struggles to survive daily we have such abundant affluence.

So, this Christmas, if you want to experience (or rediscover) the true spirit of Christmas, take a hint from what Jesus said in Acts 20:35, “It is better to give than receive.” Make giving to others a new Christmas tradition. Even better, make it a daily habit. You will never know what one random act of kindness can do for someone else…and the far-reaching effects that your simple gesture can set in motion.

Merry Christmas!