It's so heavy we could sink!

Have you ever been given a gift that is so hard to accept--either you feel you don't deserve it or it's just too big of a gift, or you name it: ________________ ?

It's for you.

This week, that happened to us. Beyond the financial costs of the gift, it was just extremely generous and quite unexpected. It blew us away.

And all we could do was accept it. We tried to argue with him, but he wouldn't have of any of that. But then I realized that every time I give a gift, I don't want the receiver to argue with me or not accept it--I genuinely WANT to give it to them. It's true what you've heard and read: "It's more blessed to give than to receive." We've felt the blessing on both sides--both the giving and receiving.

Who are we to rob anyone of their joy? So all we could do was say "thank you" (about 1,300 times). I'd have to agree with Winston Churchill on this one:

"We make a living by what we get, but we make a life by what we give."

Let me share a little story with you. It was the changing of winter and spring seasons. Whitney had saved a little money and was excited to buy some new clothes from Pacsun. When she got to the store, all she could feel was that she wasn't supposed to use that money to buy herself anything, even though she really wanted to (and even saved for it!). She decided to go to the checkout with only a gift she decided to buy for a friend of ours. 

"Do you have about 10 minutes to do a quick survey? Our appointment canceled on us and we need someone else to do it. You'd get a $50 gift card too," the cashier said to Whitney. She smiled to herself and accepted. It's just a small example, but we've experienced numerous encounters similar to this one. When you give or choose to bless others when you either aren't planning on it or it's difficult to do, it seems that Jesus may have another plan for how he wants to bless you for being obedient.

I'm not saying it will always look the same, but regardless, many blessings are reserved for those who give.

Even though sometimes it looks like it may be hard, or hurt, or stretch us thin, Whitney and I have decided we want to live a life of giving. As we've always said, we've been blessed with so much that we have the responsibility to give. Holding out on giving to others makes it so much easier to only focus on ourselves. It even goes against our nature to give, which means it has to be a conscious choice many times.

Is God asking you to give something to anyone else--small or big? It could be time, love, a listening ear, a gift of some kind, a smile, hope, or again, you name it __________.

the power of giving

Thank you to everyone who has taught us through both example and lifestyle of the importance of giving. Your pouring into us means more than we will ever be able to say. So in simple words, but with deep gratitude, we say:

"Thank you."

Nathan