If you’re new around here, what we try to do with A Season of Giving is focus our hearts and minds on others through acts of giving and service. Christmas isn’t about having camera-ready homes and perfectly wrapped presents (although we admittedly love those things), it’s about sharing the good news about Christ’s birth with a lost world. And while we are to be His “hands and feet” throughout the year, this is the perfect time to focus anew on that goal.
This is our FOURTH year running this series, and we’ve made a few changes along the way (you can see all of our other posts here). I usually only post about it here on the blog once or twice, and then the rest of the daily ideas are posted via social media, so please be sure that you’re following us by using the buttons below. From left to right, as you click on them they’ll link you to Facebook, Instagram, email blog updates, Pinterest, Twitter, and Google+. While we’d love for you to follow us using all of these methods, I’ll post daily on each of these channels so you can follow.
Follow us here:
This is our calendar for December; if you click on it a larger pdf will open so you can print it and post it on your fridge or bulletin board. And please share this post with anyone who will find it helpful!
Click on the calendar to download and print.
Some of these activities take more than a day to complete. For example, when we gather coats or canned food, we usually give our friends and neighbors up to a week to drop off items at our homes, and then we deliver them (lots of people want to give at this time of year and are more likely to do so when you make it easy for them). So on December 5th, I’ll put out the word that I’m collecting coats, and then finish up that act of giving the next week. You can obviously adjust the schedule to fit your needs–this is just a guideline, and even if you only do three or four of the things on this calendar, you are making a difference. Last but not least, if money is tight, you can still give. Many of the items on the calendar don’t cost a thing but time and effort.
Our hashtag is #ASeasonofGiving, of course, and if you have any great ideas, please use it so we can see what you’re up to!
We also will pin daily to our A Season of Giving Pinterest board that you can follow {here}, and this year we’re going to open it up to all of you so that you can pin your “giving ideas” as well. You’ll have to be following me first (just click on that black “P” icon above!) and then leave me a comment or message me through Pinterest asking to be added to the board.
Please leave suggestions for additional acts of service and giving in the comments–we love to add new ideas to the calendar!
And because we still love pretty houses and beautifully wrapped gifts, come back tomorrow, as we kick off our 2014 Holiday Open House:
I’m grateful for each and every one of you–thank you for giving.
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These are lovely ways to make this season having true Meaning instead of just giving. Five years ago we started a new way of giving and it has become the highlight of our year.
We host a family “Blessing Party” where each of us invites people who have blessed our lives throughout the year. No obligation invitations, it is all about recognizing how others have blessed us. We have had our car repairman, yoga instruction, boot camp trainer, Bible study partners, teachers…the list changes from year to year with some repeats (of course, and thankfully!!!) but it also has new people added and so the realization that blessings come and go but never stop mattering grows each year.
Many people are surprised when they hear what they did that we found to be a blessing and many are surprised it mattered which just proves that it is the little things (and big ones at times) that impact lives. We had several people last year who heard about the party from someone that was invited to our gathering and shared that although they couldn’t put together a party on short notice, they could write a note or make a phone call to those they realized had blessed their lives too. Our Blessing Party ended up being an outreach ministry beyond anything we could have imagined.
If you have people that you know BLESSED your life this year, let them know. It is amazing how much love can come from a few words and an act of appreciation.
Wow, Ginger–what an absolutely amazing idea! I love it! It makes you take the time to be deliberate about saying thank you, and I’m sure made a huge impact on your guests. Way to go–thanks for sharing!