Tag: giving

Posted on in Being Gracious, Gratitude, Miscellaneous, Wisdom, Worship

Even More Special

When I was little, we would often get seasonal candy, such as Hershey’s kisses or chocolates with decorative wrappers. Like many families, we enjoyed pastel colors for Easter, orange/brown/red for fall or Halloween, green/red for Christmas, pink/red/silver for Valentine’s day, etc.

My favorite was either Reese’s peanut butter cups or Special Dark Hershey’s miniatures. They still are at the top of my list, along with various types of Hershey kisses!

The miniatures typically came in a bag with other items, like Krackel and Mr. Goodbar. My mom would always save the Special Dark pieces for me since I was the only one who enjoyed them. She still does!

Recently, I bought my own giant bar of Special Dark chocolate. It’s hard to pass up a good sale! 🙂 As I was reviewing the nutrition information on the back of the wrapper, I noticed something I have never seen before.

There was a little note that mentioned the Milton Hershey School (MHS), which was founded in 1909. Apparently, the school has helped educate over 10,000 children in need.

I have never heard of this school before, so I looked it up online. It’s amazing!

It gives lower income children an opportunity to get ahead at no-cost to the families. In essence, it is like a boarding school that provides K-12 education, meals, clothing, non-denominational religious training, sports, healthcare, counseling, and other cares.

Some students are from the local area, and others come from several states away. Each of them receives high quality education and care, as well as structure and tools to succeed in life. Wow!

But, what’s more interesting is that the costs are paid primarily through a trust set up by Milton and Catherine Hershey. I don’t know all the details, but what struck me the most was the vision for the school and the means to keep it running for over one hundred years.

I couldn’t find any sort of evidence of  fundraising or donations, but that may also occur. Plus, it appears buying more chocolate is another way to support the school! 😉

Perhaps MHS is well-known locally in Pennsylvania, and at times, publicity can be a good thing. But, I appreciate that this organization has been quietly doing good and making a difference for all these years without drawing attention to itself.

The Milton Hershey School is a wonderful example of how we can use our gifts, tools, and resources to bless others. With the current cultural and political shifts we are facing, it is refreshing to find an organization who continues to do the right thing, for the right reasons.

I’m grateful for how much God has blessed me, and it doesn’t take much to bless others. Just a little planning ahead can make a big difference for someone in the future.

The holidays are just around the corner. This season, I will be thinking of ways to bless those in need. I hope you will too. It may be as simple as buying some chocolate to share, or perhaps it means setting up something with more longevity.

Let God lead you, and then, whatever you do will be even more special!

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God, thanks for all the ways You bless us. Thanks for letting us partner with You to serve others. Open our eyes so we can see more ways to bless others with Your abundant grace and goodness. In Jesus’ Name, Amen

Questions: What holiday treat is your favorite? Have you started to buy holiday candy yet?How can you use your gifts to bless someone else today?

Tasks: As a registered dietitian, I’d remind you to be wise… but also enjoy God’s goodness through celebrating. In other words, buy some chocolate and enjoy it!

 

 

Posted on in Finding Grace Weekly Recap, Miscellaneous, Parenting

Finding Grace #225

You may have seen the acronym GRACE as God’s Riches At Christ’s Expense. Grace is also God’s unmerited favor, or God doing for us what we cannot.

I find grace overflowing with God’s love, joy, peace, blessings, mercy, power, provision, protection, and wisdom. Thank You, Jesus!

Where did I find God’s love and favor—His abundant grace—this week?

This was an exciting week! Lydia and I had some great moments and conversations. We ate some fun meals, watched some movies, and put together a 500 piece puzzle. The puzzle is called “Artsy Cats” and showcases famous artists as cats. My favorite is “Clawed Monet.” We also talked about some deep topics about life and faith.

This week, I am grateful we were able to connect with our neighbors a little more. We have all been social distancing, but the kids have been missing each other. I suppose it is important to find some balance; they can’t stay apart forever! They played over a couple of days, and I handed out snacks, like usual. I have missed having them over!

This week, I had an exciting meeting at a local college, where I am going to teach a class this fall. It is a cool opportunity to teach undergrad dietetics students. I am grateful for the chance to ‘give back’ to my profession and help advance my field. I always enjoyed school and am a bit of a nerd, so academia feels like home! (I am looking forward to doing this in addition to my part-time position at the VA.) I feel so blessed! Now, I need to revise the syllabus and prepare assignments for the next semester. Prayers appreciated! 🙂

Today, Lydia and I enjoyed volunteering at our church again. A couple weeks ago, the church and another local ministry gave out 25,000 pounds of fresh fruits and vegetables. Today, we gave out 50,000 pounds of produce!

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These are only a few examples, but God’s grace never runs out!

There’s grace in every situation—we just need to look for it. God promises if we seek Him, we will find Him (see Jeremiah 29:13)!

Posted on in Being Gracious, Miscellaneous, Parenting

Victory in Volunteering

Raise your hand if you like to volunteer! It has been said many hands make light work.

Recently, Lydia and I had a couple of opportunities to serve our local communities. While it is always my goal to set a good example for Lydia, I also hope she can feel more connected to Dave this way. He loved to serve others and was always so good at it!

Last week, I helped a friend deliver Meals on Wheels. Several of my patients over the years have received meals through this program, and I wanted to see more of it behind the scenes.

On Friday, we drove to our friends’ house in a nearby community. Leading up to this, Lydia had been excited to help. That is, until she realized we were “just” delivering the meals to everyone’s door. She mistakenly thought we were going to make the meals, and she was eager to cook and put them all together.

Sensing a teachable moment, we started talking about serving others and volunteering. I mentioned how I didn’t really know what to expect, since I hadn’t done it before, but that we would just show up and do whatever was needed. When we are volunteering, we really don’t get to call the shots!

Lydia thought about this and we role-played how it would feel for someone to “volunteer,” yet tell everyone exactly how they were going to “help.” We talked about how that could make some people feel, to be told what to do when they didn’t ask for any input.

In the end, there was not much room for the food and Lydia and her little friend, so they stayed to play while the other mom and I went into town.

As a side note, later, I did explain how sometimes partnerships occur when one party offers services or something specific to the other party, and together, they agree on how to best use the resources. That kind of helping is a little different than straight-up volunteering, though!

Then, on Saturday, Lydia and I volunteered with a program at our church. The goal was to distribute huge boxes of fruits and vegetables FREE to anyone who stopped by. No strings attached.

Once again, Lydia was so excited to help! She wondered if we would be working hands-on with the food. Of course, I worked to managed her expectations for this event, too.

We ended up inside, helping check people in and out. Even though we had a small part, I explained that each job is important. If we didn’t do our part, it might prevent someone else from doing theirs. She was so proud to help!

We had a lot of fun and even met some new faces. We look forward to the next opportunity to serve at church in a couple weeks!

This week, Lydia and I have continued to talk about what it means to serve. For example, I asked her what would make a good volunteer.

We brainstormed ideas and came up with these: Show up on time and be ready to work. Be willing to do whatever is asked of you. It’s okay to be out of your comfort zone. Have a good attitude and don’t complain. Always give your best to God. Don’t be showy or expect a reward for helping, but be grateful for the opportunity to make a difference.

Honestly, I used to second-guess my ability to help others. My skills didn’t always match up with what I thought was needed. But, I have realized (usually) just doing something is better than doing nothing. There is room to grow, but no time to waste.

For me, this is Victory: To stretch myself on behalf of someone else. To let God use me in new ways. To keep showing up without getting credit or always seeing the final outcome. Perhaps, by serving others, I can even help someone else find freedom, too!

There are many ways to love and serve others, even if it looks different than you expected. Really, you can be kind and generous any day of the week, even if it is not at an official event. Smile. Carry groceries. Bake a pie. Show up. Speak out. Hold the door. Create space for others, too. Either way, it is important for us to “do,” not just talk about what to do!

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God, thanks for giving us the heart and capacity to serve. Help us have right motives and glorify You in all we do. Help us be difference makers and draw people to You! In Jesus’ Name, Amen

Questions: Do you volunteer regularly? Where do you like to serve? Are there any challenges around you that could be remedied with a little help?

Tasks: Next time an opportunity to help someone presents itself, jump on it! Don’t be afraid or overthink it. Just do something! Be wise with your resources and pray how to best use them. Don’t be foolish or selfish; let God work through you to love others!

Posted on in Being Gracious, Miscellaneous, Wisdom

Little Drummer Girl

At home, Lydia likes to bang on her own makeshift drum—an old Garrett’s popcorn tin from when she was little. The popcorn is long gone, but it has provided hours of headaches entertainment in our house over the years. Ahh, my little drummer girl!

“I wonder what the little drummer boy’s name was.” –Lydia’s Christmas carol commentary

In the song, The Little Drummer Boy, the (fictitious) little boy has nothing in comparison to other gifts brought. Yet, he gave what he could…a simple song. In some ways, we are all like the poor little drummer boy.

God is the Giver of all good things (James 1:17). He has given us the best gift in His Son, Jesus. Nothing we can bring will ever match His glorious sacrifice. All that we are or ever will be already belongs to Him, because it came from Him. So we can only give a portion back to God out of what He already gave.

The value of what we bring comes in the form of gratefulness—humbly accepting all He has done for us. As any loving parent, aunt, or uncle understands, it brings God great joy when we praise, honor, and adore His precious Son, Jesus.

What can we offer Him in return? In Luke 10:27, Jesus said that we should love the Lord with all your heart, soul, mind, and strength. This might include your time, effort, or money (1 Chronicles 21:22-25). God loves a cheerful giver, and out of His own abundance He ensures we always have plenty (see 2 Corinthians 9:7-8).

You may not feel like you have much to contribute, but like the little drummer boy (whatever his name), we each have a gift to bring… And when you lay all of it before the King, He takes it and makes something good.

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The great news is that because of Jesus, we don’t have to stay “stuck” in our circumstances or grief (or any emotion). We can rejoice that God continues to work all things out for our good and His glory (Romans 8:28). Praise God!

In our brokenness, we become a vessel He uses to bless others.

Because we are all so unique, this will look differently for each of us. For me, this recently has meant bringing my grief to the Lord and then being available to talk with others in their pain. Helping others has been healing in and of itself!

For someone else, it may be caroling at a nursing home, visiting a prisoner, or feeding the hungry. Maybe babysitting, writing an encouraging note, or giving a hug is more your style. Be generous. It all counts! They’re all gifts to the One who receives it. (see Matthew 25:35-40).

“And whatever you do, whether in word or deed, do it all in the name of the Lord Jesus, giving thanks to God the Father through him” (Colossians 3:17).

Each of our gifts, talents and struggles will be different. But, we ALL honor the King when we bring our very best to Him.

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Father God, Thank You for Jesus and all the wonderful things you have given us. We can’t out give You, God. You are so generous to provide good things for us. Help us bring our very best to you. In Jesus’ Name, Amen

Questions to consider: What are your gifts? How might they honor God and help someone else?