Give and it shall be given
Monday, December 07, 2009
This is such a wonderful time of the year. Generally people are friendlier and nicer. It's also a time when people are not as friendly or nice. During our Thanksgiving break, my 8 year old son and five year old daughter thought it would be nice to share food with people we pass everyday on the street. There is one man in particular who we've seen for years. He pushes an old grocery store cart around with all his worldly goods. A few times, we've given him change and a wave. This year my daughter insisted that we shared our Thanksgiving meal with him. Well, at first I was hesitant. I didn't want to offend him, but I was also just not sure if we should do it. This particular day, he was not in his normal area. He'd set up on a little alley way behind one of the grocery stores. The giggles I heard were those of excitement. Kids love to get, but they really do like to give if they are taught to. And my children are true givers. Our church provides bags called "Soul food bags" and we try to keep a few in our car to pass out. These bags contain a drink, a can of Vienna sausage and a few other snacks to pass out. I've used these before to witness to people. Well, like I say, my kids love to give.
Well, as we made it to our destination, the kids tore off their seat belts and raced out of the car. I told them to wait for me and not to just run up to him. Before I approached him, I said a quick prayer. I asked if he would mind if we blessed him with a meal. He never looked up, but said he did not accept food from the public. I was shocked and taken aback. Not that I was judging him, but it was apparent he was homeless and here we were offering a home cooked meal on a day of THANKS AND GIVING.
My son, turned around and mumbled, "You can't help everyone." I wasn't sure who I was the most aggravated with. I did not mean to offend anyone and I don't teach my kids to be so harsh. It hurt my daughter very badly. You have no idea how many hours she talked about doing this and she was just excited to be doing something nice for someone.
Well, the excitement didn't die. They were back on track and said if we see someone else we'll just share with them. And not soon after that we did. There was a group of people we often see who were sitting on the side of an abandoned building. This time, I told the kids to stay in the car and I just rolled my window down. I said, "We have some food we'd like to share, would you guys be interested?" The one lady in the group started beaming from ear to ear. She and two of the guys came over and we had paper plates, forks, knives, spoons and napkins ready to fix plates. She asked if we would mind giving them enough for her dad who was down the street. And the whole time we were with them, they spoke of God and how good he is to us all. Of our grateful we all should be.
I noticed a little way down the sidewalk another guy who was bundled up in blankets and just off to himself. I asked if he was with them. And they all said no. I asked if they would mind taking him a plate. And they were happy to share. It was like the meal multiplied before our eyes. We even had dessert for them.
I am not sure who gave the most that day. The meal we shared with them or them the smiles and gratitude. My son was so pleased to see how happy they were. We were all laughing and smiling. My five year old daughter put it best "It's nice to give."
It's almost sad that it's giving is emphasized the most during the Christmas season. Giving is a daily, year round gift. Also knowing that God gave his son to us even though we didn't deserve such a gift. It's so great to share that love with others.
I'd like to challenge each of us to give daily. Not just at Christmas or on a birthday. Give a smile to that postal worker who is the only one with a line of people out to the parking lot. Give a hug to the teacher who has been sharing the gift of knowledge to our future leaders. Give a word of thanks to the trash collector who has a job that most of us wouldn't even think about doing. And leave a note for the janitor who scrubs the toilets at your job. And don't forget to thank a soldier you pass for serving our country. And most of all thank our heavenly Father for giving us the best gift of us...himself.
Give and it shall be given...
