Giving 5

When we've travelled in places around the world (still a sense of disbelief that I can actually say that!), we've seen time and time again how people live in ways very different from ours.  We've seen glimpses of the extremes between rich and poor and the inequities between men and women.  And we've done lots of reading to know that the very worst of those differences includes slavery - people that are working for others under threat of violence in atrocious conditions so someone else can get rich.  It's happening around the world - even in North America.  There is no way I can just sit passively on the sidelines.

Take time to watch this TED video where Kevin Bales explains what's happening and why.

Slaves working in mines in 

the Democratic Republic of Congo

(from Free the Slaves website)

I've been thinking about what I can do to make a difference about this but I don't yet have a clear vision of what that should be.  So for now I'm educating myself, reading, following the talk and praying about my actions.  Free The Slaves is one of the sites I've been following.  More and more, especially during this season,  I've been praying about this, asking God to direct my heart and my giving.

Giving 4

My friend, Linds, recently wrote about China Kidz, a hospice and palliative care home for children in China.  It's amazing to read what one couple is doing to make a difference in the lives of the weakest little ones.  I'm sending some grippy socks and bibs for little Angel and Isobel to help them through the cold winter.

Meadow was happy to help me work on the bibs last week.  She was busy pinning and unpinning and then collected all the little scraps, twisting and turning them into little packets that I stitched up for her.  She alternated between calling them ice packs and hot packs!  What fun it was to cut and stitch with her, as she asked questions and we enjoyed each other's company.  I hope she will grow to love fabric and stitching as much as I do.

 Earlier in the day we'd gone to the fabric store and I told her it was like a candy store for me.  When we pre-shrunk the fabrics in the evening, she was sniffing them and telling me that they didn't smell like candy.  The next day she kept asking why I liked fabric better than candy and reminding me that she "actually liked candy better"!  What fun times our grandchildren provide for me!

Giving 3

When I found the World Bicycle Relief organization last year, I was thrilled!  After being in Africa, we knew exactly how valuable a bike could be and we'd seen lots of them being used in very inventive ways.  Giving a person a bicycle means that they can get to school quickly, loads can be carried easily, jobs can be taken further away and completed and they have a whole new-found mobility.  For only $134 you can help a girl in Zimbabwe get to school every day!   I am so, so happy to be able to give to an organization that is impacting people in such a positive way with a very simple vehicle, for just a few dollars.   Ride on!!

from their blog

bicycle taxi in Lake Nakuru town

(the passenger sits on the padded seat - 

it's amazing to see!)

distracted driver talking on his cellphone!

in Tanzania near Arusha

Giving

As I ponder how to write about the next giving we will do, I must ask you to go to A Holy Experience and read what Ann has written today about The Greatest Giveaway.  That woman writes with such wisdom - I know God is using her to touch my heart and I pray that yours might be moved too.

Giving 2

Our church partners with Canadian Lutheran World Relief to provide resources and help to communities around the world.  At Christmas time, we choose gifts, from the catalogue Gifts From The Heart, to help families around the world.

$15 provides a fishnet

$30 gives a sack of potatoes

$20 educates a teacher

$50 provides medical care
(photos from CLWR site)

In many instances, CLWR is able to partner with the Canadian International Development Agency who matches gifts up to 3X.  That means a $50 donation can be $150 by the time it leaves Canada.  

I love that our gifts can mean  new opportunities and so much potential for another family!  I think this year we will give a gift of chickens - good food like eggs and  the possibliity to generate some income by selling eggs means a lot for a family.

There are so many opportunities like this one, sponsored by other organizations.  Consider picking one or two and honoring your loved ones in a very special way.

Giving 1

Inspired by the sermon "Grace of Giving"  at Rockpointe Church today, by Vanessa and her giving project,  and to combat the materialism of Christmas in some little measure, I want to find meaningful ways to help others this season.  I thought about this during my 2.5 hour drive home from Airdrie today and decided I want to find one cause to support each week from now until Christmas.   I'd like to show you some of these special projects and invite you to tell me about yours.  

The first project I love is Operation Christmas Child, sponsored by Samaritan's Purse.  Each fall, I fill a few shoeboxes with toys, school supplies, clothes, candy, and personal hygiene items and send them to the office in Calgary.  After being processed, they are shipped, along with thousands of other shoeboxes, to children around the world in more than 17 countries who may have never received a gift of any kind.  This year many of the boxes are being shipped to Haiti.  Last year, more than 640,000 boxes were collected and some day  I hope I can volunteer to help deliver boxes.  Our daughter Heather and her husband, Jonathan, were part of a team that delivered one year in Mexico and it impacted them in a huge way.    

I want to share that I am not telling you about this giving project to brag but rather to joyfully share what we have decided to live out in our lives.  By documenting in a public way, I hope you will be inspired and perhaps find a new project to support.  My blog has always been a documentation of my life and this is an important part of Christmas for me.  Thanks for listening :)