The First National Day of Thanksgiving 3 Oct 1863,  Proclamation by Pres. Abraham Lincoln.                 No human counsel hath devised nor hath any mortal hand worked out these great things.  They are the gracious gifts of the Most High God, who, while dealing with us in anger for our sins, hath nevertheless remembered mercy.

It has seemed to me fit and proper that they should be solemnly, reverently and gratefully acknowledged as with one heart and voice by the whole American people.  I do therefore invite my fellow citizens in every part of the United States, and also those who are at sea and those who are sojourning in foreign lands, to set apart and observe the last Thursday of November next, as a day of Thanksgiving and Praise to our beneficent Father who dwelleth in the Heavens.   And I recommend to them that while offering up the ascriptions justly due to Him for such singular deliverances and blessings, they do also, with humble penitence for our national perverseness and disobedience, commend to his tender care all those who have become widows, orphans, mourners or sufferers in the lamentable civil strife in which we are unavoidably engaged, and fervently implore the interposition of the Almighty Hand to heal the wounds of the nation and to restore it as soon as may be consistent with the Divine purposes to the full enjoyment of peace, harmony, tranquillity and Union.

Well it’s about that time of year again, when we begin to remember how it was at ma ma’s house, all the aroma of the hoilday season begin to come rushing back again.  It’s that time of year when we take stock of where we are, and where we have come from.  And as the year draws to a close, we look to new beginnings.  For many they are thankful for the material things of life, money, car’s houses…etc.  Many are thankful for their families and friends and all the good times they shared.

But how many of you know that the word of God say’s, He knows what we have need of , shelter, food, clothing the material thngs of life.  thought God does not want us to base our grtitude only upon the material things, but rather God would have us to look deeper………!

For the child of God, as we approach this Thanksgiving, we give thanks yes, for our country, for family and friends. The material blessings that God the Father has blessed us with.  But there is much more to the story than that.  We remember the diffcult times of the past months and give thanks for how the Lord brought us through.  We remember the great joy of the blessings of God through the year.  Prayer’s answered, love one’s saved or encouraged.  His visitation with us in what at the time seemed like our darkest hour, but he gave us peace.

We remember who we were before we meant Jesus, before we accepted His offer of forgiveness, before we said not our will, but His will be done in our lives.  What a difference a change makes.  Instanly we were washed in His blood and went form the dark soul of despair, into His marvelious light, we went from being an enemy of God, to be called a friend of God, His child!

And somehow as we travel this road of life, we begin to realize that what Jesus Christ did for us, is so mind blowing, and we are so unworthy of it, that all other things, people become insignificant.  The palmst said it like this,               

Psalm 95:1-6                                                                                                                                                                                                                  O come, let us sing unto the LORD: let us make a joyful noise to the rock of our salvation.
Let us come before his presence with thanksgiving, and make a joyful noise unto him with psalms.
For the LORD is a great God, and a great King above all gods. In his hand are the deep places of the earth: the strength of the hills is his also. The sea is his, and he made it: and his hands formed the dry land. O come, let us worship and bow down: let us kneel before the LORD our maker.”

So just what does the Christian “Give Thanks” for.  It’s simple we give thanks for the sacrifice on the cross, by our Lord and Savior Jesus Christ, from which all blessings flow.  Remember Jesus this Thanksgiving

If you’re looking for a ‘get rich quick’ scheme then you’re in the wrong place. If your primary mission is to become a millionaire then you may want to step back a moment.

By all means have this as a personal goal or an objective, but as a mission? This organisation has an objective to create 100 millionaires by 2012, but its mission is at a different level.

The way you set out to achieve success, and what you want to do as a result of that success are worth considering.

For example, a great way to get people on your side is to give before you receive. An approach that attracts prospects towards your offer is much more appropriate and successful these days than a pushy sales pitch.

Similarly, you’ve probably heard the saying; “Give a man a fish and you feed him for a day. Teach a man to fish and you feed him for a lifetime.” Our mission is the latter; to teach people how to market online, to start and run a business and to manage and grow their wealth. Along the way we may sell a fishing rod and net, but teaching folks how to use them is provided as part of the package.

If you’re prepared to give as well as to receive, then click here, enter your contact details and get your voyage underway.

Mark

Want a chance to win one of our fab tees?  Check our friend Melinda Joy’s blog. Then visit our shop at www.chewylou.com/shop and go tell Melinda which is your favorite design. Personally, we’re digging our new GIVE shirt for the holiday season (proceeds benefit the Hudson Family Foundation) but we’ll let you decide which you like best.

Here are the contest details (remember, enter through Melinda Joy):

TO WIN: 1 “Give” Shirt & 1 “Believe” Shirt will be given away to one of my readers!

HOW TO ENTER

1) Head over to their site and tell me which shirt is your favorite
2) Blog about this giveaway and leave me the link
3) Follow my blog (blogger/FB)
4) Follow Me on Twitter, and leave a comment with your twitter name
5) Tweet about this giveaway @melindajoy926 (This can be done DAILY)
“Chewy Lou Shirts Giveaway @melindajoy926 here: _____(link)_____”
6) Post my button on your side bar and leave me the link
7) Subscribe to my blog via email/google reader
Send this giveaway link to 5 of your friends and let me know you did or post this link as your FB status – honor system

Deadline: December 8th at noon EST

Open to: US & Canada

GOOD LUCK!

From Lisa (Oelmann) Smith, one of two IDEA League representatives for GiveTEN:

“In the picture is Lancaster Primary School Guidance Counselor, Jamilah Sawyer, and Haley Smith.  Haley is in the “Regional Program” at the school (or the special ed/needs class).  I met Jamilah several years ago.  We both go to our YMCA at 5:30 AM for our workouts.  Our conversations were usually about running and sometimes about Haley and the school system. This is Haley’s first year in the public school system, but she did receive speech therapy through the school for several years.

Today when Haley and I arrived at the school, Ms. Sawyer asked to see both of us in her office.  When we got there she handed Haley a gift bag.  I allowed Haley to take it to her class, I never imagined how special the item was inside the gift bag full of tissue paper.  When I came to pick up Haley, I met her speech therapist in the hall (she had been in the Ms. Sawyer’s office when we picked up the gift).  The therapist teared up when she asked me if I could believe what Jamilah had given Haley.  I explained that I had not seen the gift.  When she told me what it was I had tears streaming down my face.  This was Jamilah’s third or fourth marathon and she ran her best time.  ”I even beat Oprah’s time” was her comment.  Speechless was how I felt…and so very, very touched.  I tried to return the medal, but she insisted on giving it to Haley.  Here is the letter she enclosed in the bag:

October 27, 2009

Dear Haley,

My name is Miss Sawyer and I am your Guidance Couselor at Lancaster Primary School.  I am also a friend of your mom and a sister in Christ; therefore we are family!  I am so encouraged by your walk and your strength.  I want to give you my medal from a marathon I ran because you are an overcomer.  You are a winner in my book!

Keep striving, keep the faith!  I ran for a perishable prize, however it was a shadow of the incorruptible crown we are striving for in Christ Jesus, (1 Corinthians 9: 24-26).  You are a wonderful testimony of God’s love.

Sincerely,
Miss Sawyer

How wonderful some people are!!!
Love, Lisa (Haley’s Mom)

DOWNLOAD FisierulMeu.Ro
DOWNLOAD Filehit.Net
DOWNLOAD Centupload.Com

“I’m a woman, I can do everything I want!”

Women can get everything they wish for. Women have everything a guy can ever dream of, it’s just up to the guys to discover the way we want to be treated for giving something. Therefore, if they don’t have what they want from us, it’s their fault! They did not discover the magical way!

You, guys, should only follow the basic steps you were educated with: be respectful, some jokes are just inappropriate when being with a woman you are interested in; feel the passion of every single move, word, look, don’t repress it; offer her attention, it’s probably the most important thing a woman desires – women can interpret that attention in thousands of ways and it’s sure they will find the best way that fits to your feelings. You are evil with yourselves. You don’t actually want to do the mistakes you do, you want to be just as pure as women are, in all sorts of fields, but you are trying to seem as superficial as you can, being afraid of what you really are, because you have never been like you desire to be!! You, guys, don’t really know what that feels like and you are used to being like you are, you indulge in this situation, without analyzing it deeply. This is the real problem, I must say!

Women like crazily in love guys. They are so childish, they cannot hide that inside them anymore because it’s a feeling that beats them and makes them weak. Don’t get me wrong, women don’t like weak men! They don’t really like plasticine men, to do whatever they want with them. No! Women like men to seem weak because this weakness brings up the sincerity!

You, guys, have born perfect, but you have destroyed this feature by the wrong interpretation of women and you have changed, considering them something they are not! This is the problem that lead to this war between men and women! Trying to understand other people around you is a very good thing, but not considering some aspects and the wrong interpretation because you don’t want to give a go to something that might be true, this is bad!

take care-

I had coffee with a couple friends this morning.  Normally I don’t drink coffee.  Love the smell, hate the taste.  But Austin’s Coffee has a pretty commendable Latte.  Also, I’m normally not a morning person, but I had good company, and being the brilliant people they are, we ended up having a really good conversation.  One of the things we discussed was regarding giving and receiving.  Here are my thoughts:

I think people in our culture generally do 2 things: Take (or earn) and/or they might also give.  Rarely do we see true receiving going on.  Our culture is so programmed to earn what we have (which isn’t necessarily a bad thing); it’s part of being a society built on capitalism.  A recent (in the last couple decades) trend has to do with the realization that we’ve gotten good at earning, and maybe even realize that we have much, much more than we need.  This leads to giving.  I think this is an absolutely wonderful trend; I blogged about it a couple of weeks ago.  What I think is so difficult, largely because of our cultural training, is to receive something that is truly free.

My friend recounted a time where he was giving away fast passes at a theme park.  People could not believe, or accept, that what he was doing was giving them something truly free.  We’ve been programmed to always ask “what does it really cost”.  It might not cost money, but it might cost time or effort in some other area.  Or at the very least, it’s being paid for by an advertising budget somewhere and we’re obligated to at least look at it.  Part of our confirmation curriculum is for each group to participate is some sort of mission project.  One group gave out free car washes.  People were blown away that the cost of the car-wash was nil.  If people asked they would tell them where they went to church, but it was never pushed on them.

What makes it so hard to receive?  I believe it has to do with pride.  To receive something freely given requires us to sacrifice our pride and admit that we are in need, that we aren’t completely self-sustaining, that we aren’t “an island”.  For those of us who have set our whole self-worth system on our pride, this is devastating.  This is the same reason why Jesus says that it’s easier for a camel to go through the eye of a needle than for a rich man to enter the Kingdom of Heaven.  It’s not that there’s something fundamentally wrong with money, or being wealthy; it’s that, generally, for those people, the cost of their pride is too high a price to pay to receive the most wonderful, truly-free gift ever: eternal life!

No matter where you’ve been this year

No matter what has or has not happen

No matter if it makes any sense or not

Give thanks.

P.S.
I’d like to know if you have a thanks giving you want to share!
Just leave it at the comments!

If you think of life as like a big pie, you can try to hold the whole pie and kill yourself trying to keep it, or you can slice

it up and give some to the people around you, and you still have plenty left for yourself.

Money is like manure; it’s not worth a thing unless it’s spread around encouraging young things to grow.My name is Zoë and I am seventeen. I live in New York but I have the undying need to get out there and help change this world! I will be going to Romania for a month or two (Depending on how much money I have..!) to care for orphans.

The orphan problem in Romania is rampant. Orphanages are very understaffed, and that’s where volunteers come in!

Oftentimes an orphanage is just a building filled with hundreds of babies and children, who are forced to lie in cots all day and night because nobody is there to care for them. Please help me make a huge difference in their lives by bringing them the love and care they need to survive.

This is the exact program I will be doing, if you’d like more information.

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

CLICK HERE TO HELP ME!

…Any little thing helps! I will send a personal thank you to everyone who helps and will keep you updated on my trip using this blog.When I will be leaving, what I’m doing while I’m there, pictures of my adventures and of the children and friends I make there, etc.

Thank you all!

New Music from D-Block Members Jadakiss and Sheek
Jadakiss-Pain
Sheek Louch-Give It Up
Downloand Inside

Jadakiss-Pain …::DOWNLOAD::…
Sheek Louch-Give It Up …::DOWNLOAD::…

If you think of life as like a big pie, you can try to hold the whole pie and kill yourself trying to keep it, or you can slice it up and give some to the people around you, and you still have plenty left for yourself.

Money is like manure; it’s not worth a thing unless it’s spread around encouraging young things to grow.My name is Zoë and I am seventeen. I live in New York but I have the undying need to get out there and help change this world! I will be going to Romania for a month or two (Depending on how much money I have..!) to care for orphans.

The orphan problem in Romania is rampant. Orphanages are very understaffed, and that’s where volunteers come in! Oftentimes an orphanage is just a building filled with hundreds of babies and children, who are forced to lie in cots all day and night because nobody is there to care for them. Please help me make a huge difference in their lives by bringing them the love and care they need to survive.

 

This is the exact program I will be doing, if you’d like more information.

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

CLICK HERE TO HELP ME …Any little thing helps! I will send a personal thank you to everyone who helps (…If anyone helps!) and will keep you updated on my trip…When I will be leaving, and, if you want, I can send you pictures once I am back home from the adventure! (Of course if you don’t want to be bothered that’s fine too!)

Have you ever asked yourself, “Am I a giver?”

What is a giver anyway? Webster’s defines a giver this way: one who gives; a donor; a bestower; a grantor; one who imparts or distributes. Hmmm, I think I do those things, ….sometimes.

Not too many years ago we lived in a small 1000 square foot house with just nine children at the time. Our limited space would only allow a certain number of items to occupy that space at any given time without a sense of chaos. We learned very quickly that with so many kids who acted like magnets attracting lots of stuff that we needed to get rid of somethings. We decided to keep the kids and giveaway some stuff. My husband implemented a couple of rules, which are: 1) If you want something new, you have to giveaway something. 2) For every new item you receive you must giveaway the same number of items.

These are great rules that can add peace and order to your life and leaves you with a huge sense of freedom. Now we live in a larger house and have more space, but I can tell you that when 13 people walk into a room with just one item and leave it there that space fills up very fast. We’ve relaxed a bit on these rules and now it’s time to get busy at giving away. There have been too many days that have past that we’ve not followed these two simple rules.

As I think about what it takes to be a ‘giver’, realize that the principle of these rules don’t only apply to my stuff. This goes beyond physical possessions. In order for me to be a true giver, or a donor, or a bestower as Webster defined is in my opinion to give something without motive in mind, such as, just making space or cleaning house so to speak.

I wonder, can I live a ‘giver lifestyle’ by giving away something of eternal value  every single day? Can I do this for a week, a month, even a year? I better not get ahead of myself here. But what if I get up each day and commit to give away at least one thing just for that day. With this thought in mind, I’ve decided to create a Giveaway Challenge for myself. Since we’re approaching the holidays that are deemed the giving season, I think this might be a good time for me to begin. (Not that I need a reason, anytime would be a good time.)

What can I give away?

Let’s look at a few examples.

Stuff-We all have plenty of material possessions so I can start here. I can walk through every room in my house and find something I can giveaway.

Food-I can share some home baked goods with my neighbors, produce from my garden, or bring a meal to a sick friend.

Help-I can shovel a driveway, return a lost pet(or child), repair a fence or do laundry for a young mom who just had a baby.

Teach- When I was a child my dad told me something, which is that, “You learn something new everyday.” I’ve never forgotten that. If I learn something then I can give it away by teaching it to someone else.

Encouragement- I can send a note to a friend, speak kindness or praise to the new cashier or the waitress who’s having a rough day.

Faith-I can tell someone about the love of Jesus. I can pray for someone.

The list goes on. There are a multitude of things I can giveaway. I think I can do this challenge. But hey, what’s a challenge with out  a few guidelines. I’ll start with the two I’ve already mentioned.

Here they are:

1) If I receive something, I must give something away.

2) If I receive something, I must give away an equal number of whatever I’ve received.

3) If I don’t think I’ve received anything that day, I must give something away anyway.

4)My giveaway cannot be selfish in motive. I cannot give in hope of getting something in return.

5) My giveaway must meet a need in another person.

6) If I leave my house I must bestow my giveaway to a friend or a stranger, not someone living in my house.

7) At the end of the day I will write down at least one of my giveaways for that day. (This will help me stay on track)

Join me in this challenge, won’t you? Together we can encourage and inspire each other to grow as givers. If you accept this challenge with me, I’d love to hear what some of your giveaways are. I will share some of mine here with you.

Here’s to being a giver Today!

Blessings All

DOWNLOAD FisierulMeu.Ro
DOWNLOAD Filehit.Net
DOWNLOAD Centupload.Com

Saw this at a blog called The Last Word by Marta O. Smith.

What does Thanksgiving mean to you? Getting together with family and friends? Feasting until you are so full you can’t move? Pilgrims and pumpkin pie? Macy’s parade? Football? Scanning the sales ads in preparation for Black Friday (biggest shopping day of the year)?

Do you take time to give thanks on Thanksgiving? Many families have a tradition of taking turns saying what they are thankful for before they eat Thanksgiving dinner. We should be able to give thanks every day of our lives, because we are blessed every day of our lives. And the more we take time to give thanks, the more blessings we will recognize. At the very least, let’s take the month of November and make it a month of truly giving thanks. Maybe we’ll make it a habit.

So what do you think? What are you thankful for?

 “Enter His gates with thanksgiving and His courts with praise; give thanks to Him and praise His name.”  Psalm 100:4

We have entered into the season of giving thanks.  There is an atmosphere of giving.  It is a time when we reflect on the many blessings of the past year.  It is when we look to the Lord and recognize His goodness to us as individuals, families, and as a nation.  If it was not for God, we would cease to exist.  It is by His Hand that we have been kept and cared for.  It is by His hand that we have had provision, and it is by His hand that we are protected from our enemies. 

We are encouraged to come before the Lord God our Maker and celebrate His love, mercy, goodness, and faithfulness toward mankind as a whole.  Let us lift up praise and thanksgiving to the One Who is watching over us.  Let us acknowledge the One Who is faithful through all generations.  Let us take time throughout our days and stop and reflect on His love and goodness to each one of us!  God inhabits the praise of His people.

ENCOURAGEMENT:  Let us celebrate this season of thanksgiving by giving thanks to the Lord God our Creator Who continues to bless our lives and nation.

“For the Lord is good and His love endures forever; His faithfulness continues through all generations.”  Psalm 100:5

Audiences were touched by a song written by blind music teacher Nguyen Van Thanh which he performed recently at the Nguyen Dinh Chieu School for the blind in Ho Chi Minh City. He wrote the song as a special gift for his students.

Nguyen Van Thanh (standing) helps a student at the Nguyen Dinh Chieu school for the blind in Ho Chi Minh City ( Photo: SGGP)

The song incites students to believe in a happy future despite the hardships of being blind, he says. “I just lost the light but I still have the opportunity to study and teach, and I have friends around who love me,” said Thanh.

Born in 1970, Thanh lost his vision after suffering a serious illness at the age of three. He was sent to study at Nguyen Dinh Chieu School and later went on to study at Pedagogy College.

Upon graduation, Thanh applied for a teaching position at his old school for the blind, hoping to pass on his experiences to a new generation and honor his former teachers.

Fellow teacher Thanh Xuan said, “Students … become absorbed in Thanh’s music and quickly learn his songs by heart.”

The teacher has been honored with several awards for his performances in musical festivals over the years. And with Thanh’s unwavering dedication, several of his students have also gone on to win top prizes for singing at annual music competitions held by the education sector.

Thanh’s songs have even been performed at the Pacific Asia Music Festival for disabled people in Thailand, Japan and China and lauded by the international community.

Some songs, including “Teachers’ words,” have now been translated into English. He sings his songs with a fervor and love for life, inspiring hope in others.

Thanh wakes up early each day to catch a bus from his house in Cu Chi District and heads to Nguyen Dinh Chieu school where he works until 8PM. Despite the grueling schedule and hard work, he says he never thinks about quitting. “I [think about] my beloved pupils on the way to school and hear the laughter of my wife and baby on the way back home,” he says.

“Owing the old school … I spend my whole life repaying it,” Thanh sings from his song “In debt,” written when he first came to teach at Nguyen Dinh Chieu school.

On November 18 Thanh received the coveted 2009-2010 Vo Truong Toan Prize for excellence in teaching.

Related article:
Crowds hail teachers at annual ceremony

Bookmark & Share

We are just tickled pink today.  The lovely ladies from Southern Weddings Magazine are offering to give a copy of the new issue (out on the stands) to one of our readers.  All you need to do is check out their website, and leave a comment below.  Post your comment by Monday, November 24, 2009 at 5pm.  We will use Random.org to select a winner and Southern Weddings Magazine will send you a copy! How exciting!

While on the Southern Weddings website, don’t forget to check out the Mega Photo Contest, and if you just cannot wait any longer, you can also order a copy online. 

Thank you Emily and Lara at Southern Weddings Magazine! Good luck everyone.

All pictures are from Southern Weddings Magazine.

The Christmas season has started in full swing (although many will not officially acknowledge it until Black Friday…which starts at 11:59 PM on Thanksgiving for most).  Decorations are all ready going up and Christmas cards are already disappearing off the store shelves.  Along with all of the good of the Christmas season comes a little of the not so good: The arguments and disagreements over holiday tree vs Christmas Tree and the fact that many cannot afford a tree nor decorations let alone a gift.

Both of these negative situations can be solved although in drastically different ways.  One takes an attitude change, while the other requires a change of heart.  The attitude change will have to come from Christians being ok with other people calling this a holiday season or calling a tree a holiday tree.  Now, hear me out before you start writing me the nasty gram asking why I don’t support the season or the tree being called Christmas.  I am a strong supporter of both…but I realize this is only significant for those who follow Christ.  If I did not follow Christ I would not care what it was called.  Why would we, or should we expect those who do not follow Christ to acknowledge His sovereignty over this holiday when they don’t acknowledge His sovereignty over anything else.  If I really thought my arguing or debating with non-Christians about it would change their mind I would be right there in the thick of the fight, debating with the best of em.  However, I think the best I can do to honor Christ is to impress upon those who follow Christ to honor Him and to show the love of Christ to those who don’t.  On the occasions that I have been allowed to share what the holiday means to me, I don’t hesitate to exalt Christ, what His birth means to and has done for me, and why I cherish this time of the year…but don’t look for a picket sign in my hand or for me to rail against those who call it a holiday season or a holiday tree.  If they don’t follow or know Jesus Christ, to them, it is just that…a holiday.  They are not celebrating His birth, they are just celebrating.  Rather than criticize them for what they are not calling it, we should rejoice for what we can call it.

The other situation requires a change of heart and I am so excited at the hearts that are being changed.  Although CrossRoads Community Church is one of the smallest churches in North America, we have consistently tried to meet the needs of the people in our community and in our city.  However, recently as we have tried, we are finding that other people in the community are beating us to it.   Local organizations like Crazy Christmas are stepping in and stepping up and meeting the needs of children and families in the community.  People at work are banding together and providing Thanksgiving meals and Christmas packages for neighbors and former co-workers who are unemployed.  Even though some of these groups are non-Christians, nothing else could be more God honoring than to give what you have to meet the needs of others.  Suffice it to say, even though the turkeys are not yet cooked and the trees are not all decorated…more and more it’s beginning to look a lot like Christ-mas.

            Its all about heart … 

Finding the passion the reason to support or help and charity, fundraiser, or other worthy cause needs to be from the heart.  Plenty of people will disagree and say ‘it’s all about the money’. It does not matter if the charity is being used as a tax write-off, at least they will meet their fundraising goals by year end.  As we approach the holidays and years end the wallets and checkbooks tend to open more than they have all year.  Is it because the cause is one that the contributor is passionate about or is it because their accountant advised they need to give away more before year end.

 Leave it to the eyes and heart of a child to test the willingness to part with your hard earned money.  You really think it is a coincidence that Girl Scouts sell cookies, or the little league baseball teams get new uniforms outside a Wal-Mart while you are vulnerable, change in hand and more difficult to say ‘no’. Yet when we walk out at this time of year and see those little red buckets and hear the clanging of a bell we run the other way… wonder if they put a child in the place of the retired senior citizen if the donations would go up?

 Fact: A child’s heart is about the size of a clenched fist; an adult’s heart is about the size of two fists.

 Hmmm twice the size of a heart we adults have and yet a child is more apt to donate their piggy bank to the nearest animal shelter so the doggies can eat than an adult will write a check.

 We had the opportunity to participate as an event sponsor of an inaugural 5k race in our home town raising funds for Lung Cancer awareness.  As a grassroots operation, using little advertising but word of mouth, social networks etc.  The race had over 800 people sign up and raised over 80k for the cause.  We had never participated in event in this capacity and it was an overwhelming experience to see genuine heart-warming giving of the participants, from young kids to elder gentlemen in their 80’s the cause was the reason they were there, not to get a tax break at the end of the year.

 Fact: Blood takes about 20 seconds to circulate throughout the entire vascular system.

 It takes about as long to get the warm feeling of genuinely helping someone in need. There is a difference to help those in need rather than to help out of self-greed.  As the holidays approach think of the people that are less fortunate.  It does not mean you have to go broke helping others.  There are more needs than just financial that can be fulfilled.  Whether it is helping at your local soup kitchen, animal shelter, or fundraiser… as long as you are giving of your heart and for the right reasons, this can be a very special season.  Give of yourself and the reward is immeasurable and is better than any tax-break will be.

- till next time
CJ

A post over at My Wildlife’s Words  got me thinking. My grandfather used to volunteer much of his time at soup kitchens and homeless shelters. But he never gave money, outright, to someone who was panhandling. I asked him why. And he said to me, “Because you never know if they’re going to do the right thing with it. Before you can help them they need to know how to help themselves.” He always did a litmus test with people begging for change. He’d tell them no, but if they wanted he would buy them a bowl of soup. If they took him up on the offer of a bowl of soup he’d buy them a meal, give them information on where he volunteered and often slipped them more money. If they turned him down he knew they weren’t ready to be helped.

But in my younger days I still gave them money any time they asked. And naive little me, visiting the Detroit Art Institute was approached by a gentleman who had run out of gas. Please? he pleaded, My wife and kids are sitting in the car. We just need enough gas to get home. I handed him a 5 dollar bill. He thanked me and approached another couple with the same story. I just assumed that he need more than $5 in gas to get home. We toured the gallery and walked to a nearby place for lunch. Crossing the street I see the desperate gentleman I had been approached by earlier, sitting with this buddy, drinking something out of a brown paper bag. I’d been had.

So I became jaded. I refused anyone who approached me for money. I wasn’t about to do my grandfather’s litmus test. Me? A lone female taking strange men or women to lunch? But I volunteered at our local homeless shelter, serving lunch a few times a month. I donated to causes that meant something to me.

I remember one particular Thanksgiving my sisters and I all met at my parent’s house in Louisville. My sister and I had to run out to the store. On our way, in an abandoned parking lot was an old station wagon. The back was made into a makeshift sleeping loft. Clothes and personal belongings were heaped in garbage bags. A woman dressed in tattered clothing sat outside her car with a sign begging for money. No work, she claimed. They lost their home. Trying to make it back home to California. Two children, in equally tattered clothing sat beside her. My sister cried, “Stop! We need to help them.” I kept driving and told her, no.  She was annoyed. And in the grocery store she grabbed her own cart and filled it with food. She insisted on stopping on our way home to give them the food. The woman tried to look grateful but told my sister what they really needed was money. Embarrassed, my sister reached into her purse and handed her a twenty. She tried again to leave the food but the woman refused. Puzzled, my sister got back in the car and we drove home in silence.

Later that night, on the evening news, was a story about that very woman. Evidently, a reporter followed her “home.” She used her electric garage door opener to shuttle her car away to safety. And then, presumably, entered her home. A very nice home. A very nice neighborhood. Homes with 3 car garages. Manicured lawns. When the reporter tried to interview her the door was slammed in his face. But of course, he had more information. It was estimated that she scammed $30,000 a year. Her husband was gainfully employed. She was well-known for several haunts, using different stories and signs.  And she used her children in this scam especially around the holiday season.

While visiting Savannah recently we were in a very nice specialty food store. They had gourmet jams and jellies. Wine and sweets. They also had a deli with hot and cold food. A man approached me and my son. He asked for money for some food. I saw this as the perfect opportunity to teach my child about helping someone in need. My husband was close by. There were plenty of people in the store and I could use my grandfather’s litmus test and feel safe using it if the man took me up on my offer to buy him a meal. He did take me up on my offer. We approached the counter so he could tell the server what he wanted. The server refused. I told him, No. This is my friend and I’m buying him a meal. The server still refused and told me panhandling is illegal. I told him I offered to buy him a meal. Reluctantly, he gave the man the food and I paid for it. But then he sternly told the panhandler to leave the store and never come back. And then sternly told me it was against the law to give money to panhandlers. There was a stiff fine and it was posted all over the city. I guess if they discouraged people from giving money to panhandlers they would leave and try elsewhere. So much for the lesson for my son. It turned into a big lesson for me.

Help or not to help? And who is it helping? I worked in the employment industry for a short time. Couple that experience with any of the charity work I’ve done I’ve learned there are people who want to help themselves and a “handout” will tide them over until they can make it on their own. And I’ve learned there are others that simply want the handout. Many people who need the help don’t know it exists. This country is a country of enablers. We want to reach out to others (Give me your tired, your poor). But we need to do a better job of making sure that the people who need it know where to find help. Most of all, we need to help create a society that doesn’t expect or rely on handouts to get by.

Just wanted to update after a long silence….great news:

Tijuana 2010 is a go!!

We’re building another house!

We’re taking more school bags and fair trade soccer balls!

We Need your help!!!

Our housebuild fund is starting to get money pledged…we have somewhere around 2600 – That’s almost halfway!!

Check out the link to giving at the top of the page if you’d like to partner with us!

cheers

james