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3 Ways You Can Share God’s Love for $10 | Join the #GiveTen Challenge!

Tricia Goyer shares 3 ways you can spread God's love for only $10! Learn how you can too with ECCU's #GiveTen campaign!

3 Ways You Can Share God’s Love for $10

As the holiday season rolls around I hear a lot of “I wants” from my kids. Catalogs show up in the mail. Commercials flash on the television. Every store is filled with racks of glittery, flashy toys that draw my children’s attention. My children are too easily drawn to what they can get, and my goal as a mom is to show them what they can give. Here are 3 ways I’ve done that.

Operation Christmas Child

We have participated in Operation Christmas Child for many years. My children pack a shoe box with gifts and OCC sends that show box around the world, sharing the love of Jesus with children. The children receive gifts, but they also receive the Good News of Jesus Christ in a 12-lesson Bible Study Course. With a trip to the Dollar Store my kids and I were able to fill three boxes for $10 each. We filled them with puzzles, balls, toothbrushes, socks and more!

I love that my children can choose gifts for another child on the other side of the world. You can visit samaritanspurse.org/occ to find out more about Operation Christmas Child.

Care Bags for the Homeless

Every Thursday night on our drive to serve at a Teen Mom Support group, my children and I see the same homeless man. And every Thursday I hear the same questions from my kids, “Did he eat today?”, “Where does he sleep?”, and “Mom, can we stop and help him?” That’s when I came up with the idea that would could help … even with $10. At the Dollar Store we bought snack items, a toothbrush, toothpaste, lip balm, wet wipes, soap, socks and more.

One of my daughters even included one of her small pocket Bibles and my youngest kids wanted to share their candy! We delivered the bag last night, and my kids were so excited to give I to him. And their new friend had a huge smile on his face as he received it.

Gift Items for Teen Moms

It’s hard being a mom. It’s even harder being a teen mom without many resources. Even at a young age moms sacrifice for their children. That’s why I thought it would be nice to buy some gifts and bless two young moms. We visited the Dollar Store, and we gathered kitchen items for one young mom.

For the other young mom we bought items to pamper her, such as fuzzy socks and nail polish. I will be taking these items to our teen mom support group next week. We’ll be able to share with these moms that they are important to God and others, and they deserve to be loved!

Do you have someone your family would love to bless this Christmas? I’m partnering with ECCU for their #GiveTen campaign. It is a simple movement of Christians living out their faith – $10 at a time. I was so blessed to see the ways my children and I were able to work together to spread compassion, happiness and generosity for only $10. Now, it’s your turn!

I’d like you to find the most creative way you can to share God’s love for $10. I’m SO EXCITED to hear what you come up with! Share your idea with me and ECCU for your chance to win a check for $500 to do more in your community. Wouldn’t that be fun?! I love when we all work together to share God’s love!

Join ECCU's #GiveTen campaign and bless someone today!

About ECCU’s #GiveTen Challenge & $500 Giveaway: 

ECCU is a full-service credit union designed for Christians. Their competitive checking, savings, investing and loan products help you do more with your money. So with every dollar you spend, you’re supporting ministry.

At the start of the season of giving, now is the time where offering thanks and helping others is top of mind. How would you spend $10 to do the most good for someone else?

Share your ideas and stories on ECCU’s Facebook page and enter to win $500 to continue blessing others!

Click here for official rules and learn how to enter: www.eccu.org/GiveTen

#GiveTen this season & enter the @ECCU Generosity Challenge! http://eccu.org/GiveTen #giveaway

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*Thanks for ECCU for sponsoring this post. All opinions are my own. Thank you for supporting all Tricia Goyer collaborations and sponsors.

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Disclosure of Material Connection: Some of the links in the post above are “affiliate links.” This means if you click on the link and purchase the item, I will receive an affiliate commission. Regardless, I only recommend products or services I use personally and believe will add value to my readers. I am disclosing this in accordance with the Federal Trade Commission’s 16 CFR, Part 255: “Guides Concerning the Use of Endorsements and Testimonials in Advertising.” Read full privacy policy here.

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2 Things to Remember This Christmas … And Every Christmas!

2thingstoremember

2 Things to Remember This Christmas

& Every Christmas!

For a child is born to us, a son is given to us. The government will rest on his shoulders. And he will be called: Wonderful Counselor, Mighty God, Everlasting Father, Prince of Peace. Isaiah 9:6

During these frantic holiday days, it’s easy to forget that the whole thing is supposed to be about the Prince of Peace. That title holds a lot of meaning.

What does “the Prince of Peace” mean? Here’s #Christmas encouragement from @TriciaGoyer:

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Prince:

Jesus came and told his disciples,“I have been given all authority in heaven and on earth.” Matthew 28:18

We’ve given Jesus authority over our souls and our homes, but have we given Him authority over our Christmas? (I know, I had to pause and really think about that one.)

Peace:

You will keep in perfect peace all who trust in you, all whose thoughts are fixed on you! Isaiah 26:3.

When our minds are filled with all the tasks of Christmas, peace comes when we focus on the Prince of Christmas.

There is no doubt that you’re going to read many great blogs this season on how to do Christmas better, but I’ll leave you with only these two suggestions:

  • Give Jesus authority over your Christmas.

  • Fix your mind on Him.

If we get nothing else done, we’ll find success in these!

P.S. And feel free to give yourself a timeout! Your Christmas will survive, I promise!

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Disclosure of Material Connection: Some of the links in the post above are “affiliate links.” This means if you click on the link and purchase the item, I will receive an affiliate commission. Regardless, I only recommend products or services I use personally and believe will add value to my readers. I am disclosing this in accordance with the Federal Trade Commission’s 16 CFR, Part 255: “Guides Concerning the Use of Endorsements and Testimonials in Advertising.”

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Christmas Traditions | Perfect Memories Top Any “Perfect” Gift

View Through a Window of a Family on Christmas Eve

Christmas Traditions

Perfect Memories Top Any “Perfect” Gift

 

When I think of Christmas, I remember family gatherings around my grandparent’s dinner table. I also think of times my family spent together, creating our own special memories. For example, one year I received a tape recorder. On Christmas Day, my mother, father, brother and I recorded stories, changing our voices to fit our various roles. While I no longer have the tape of our recordings, the memory of our fun is something I’ll never forget.

Think back. What are some of your favorite Christmas memories?

Perhaps you may remember a few of the special gifts you received, but most likely these memories have nothing to do with presents.

“One of my favorite traditions with my small children were to create gingerbread houses and gingerbread men,” says Linda from New York. “Also, on Christmas Eve, my husband takes the guitar out and we turned off all the lights and sing Christmas carols by the tree.”

What are some of your favorite #Christmas memories? Share with @TriciaGoyer:

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“My children and I baked a birthday cake for Jesus for Christmas Eve,” says mom Eileen.

Martha, another mom, also likes to focus of the birth of Jesus at Christmas.

“One of the most meaningful things for our family at Christmas was around the Crèche,” says Martha. “We put out the Nativity scene the first week of December. Then, after attending the a candlelight church service on Christmas eve, we read the story from Luke and let the youngest one in the family place the baby in the manger to signify the wonder of His birth. It’s a great way to make the Christmas story really meaningful for children.”

These are great ideas for you to try, but no matter what types of traditions you want to start, remember these principles:

  • Think back on your favorite Christmas memories. Try to create these kind of memories for your kids.
  • Check your attitude. Your attitude will set the tone for the whole event. If mama is happy, your kids will be happy.
  • Be flexible. Rigid people are brittle and break easily. What type of memory do you want your children to have, a happy mom or uptight mom?
  • Have child-wonder. Kids don’t care about a perfectly decorated house. They think that laughter and fun times top that any day!

You can make Christmas a wonderful time for you and your child. Remember, perfect memories top any “perfect” gift!

Perfect #Christmas memories top any “perfect” gift! @TriciaGoyer

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Disclosure of Material Connection: Some of the links in the post above are “affiliate links.” This means if you click on the link and purchase the item, I will receive an affiliate commission. Regardless, I only recommend products or services I use personally and believe will add value to my readers. I am disclosing this in accordance with the Federal Trade Commission’s 16 CFR, Part 255: “Guides Concerning the Use of Endorsements and Testimonials in Advertising.”

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The Gift of Presence | The Best Christmas Present You Can Share

Christmas Gift packed in white box with red ribbon

Today the plan is to wrap and write. No, it’s not some new writing technique. I literally have to start wrapping Christmas presents . . . and write at least 2,000 words in my work-in-progress.

I have to admit that wrapping is not my favorite thing. I LOVE the buying. I LOVE thinking of someone and coming up with the perfect gift. If I had my way, I’d rush from the store and immediately give the gift to the person I bought it for. Wrapping is just a necessary chore that I do to conform to the standards set by society.

The truth is, that I’m gonna pay my kids to do most of my wrapping for me. Yes, a few years I had my kids wrap their own gifts. Gulp. Partly because I don’t like wrapping, and partly because I was so excited to show her what I got her. Sigh. I can’t do that this year though. They want to be surprised on Christmas morning. No fun!

Of course, the gift-giving that we get all crazy and excited about is supposed to represent the gift of Jesus being sent down to earth. Too often, I forget this when I’m pushing my shopping cart through WalMart and trying to find that “one thing” for that “hard to buy for person” and find “something that won’t cost and arm and a leg.”

This morning though, as I was reading in John chapter 17, I discovered something REALLY cool. I discovered what Jesus is giving YOUR family and friends this Christmas. It was right there in black and white . . . or in this case since I have a red-letter Bible, red and white. Check it out:

“My prayer is not for the world, but for those you have given me, because they belong to you. And all of them, since they are mine, belong to you, and you have given them back to me, so they are my glory!” John 17:9-10

There is a lot of giving going on. God gave us to Jesus. Jesus knows we belong to God. And we are Jesus’ glory. (So where does the gift that Jesus is given to our friends and family fit in?)

God gave us to Jesus. Jesus knows we belong to God. And we are Jesus’ glory. @TriciaGoyer

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Check out that part, “So they are my glory.” My study note in the NLT Life Application Study Bible says,

“What did Jesus mean when he said ‘they are my glory’? God’s glory is the revelation of his character and presence. The lives of Jesus’ disciples reveal his character, and he is present to the world through them.”

So I have to ask: Does your life today reveal Jesus’ character and presence? If so, Jesus is present in the world through you. And that presence is a present to your friends and family!

Is Jesus’ presence in your life a present to your friends and family? @TriciaGoyer

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Today, I have a long list of things I need to do that deal with presents. But my prayer is that in the midst of it, Jesus’ presence (through me) will be a gift that I can share. The cool thing is it’s one I don’t have to wrap and I don’t have to wait to give … perfect!

Prayer

Dear Heavenly Father, thank you for this time of year when we remember and rejoice in your great gift to us. Help me not get too wrapped up in the things of Christmas, but rest in the meaning of Christmas. May my life reflect your presence and character and may it spread to those around me.

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Disclosure of Material Connection: Some of the links in the post above are “affiliate links.” This means if you click on the link and purchase the item, I will receive an affiliate commission. Regardless, I only recommend products or services I use personally and believe will add value to my readers. I am disclosing this in accordance with the Federal Trade Commission’s 16 CFR, Part 255: “Guides Concerning the Use of Endorsements and Testimonials in Advertising.”

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Unwrapping the Gift | The Angels

MOB-Dec15

Unwrapping the Gift – The Angels

In our household, Christmas doesn’t seem like Christmas until the tree is set up and the angel graces the top. Dressed in a white dress with feathery wings, our ceramic angel looks a bit like Elsa from Frozen. She’s a total sissy if you ask me.

During the Christmas season it may be easy to forget about how awesome angels were when we’re surrounded by chubby cherubs or Elsa look-alikes, but, Moms, we’d be doing our sons a disservice if we didn’t reveal angels according to the true Biblical account. We have a lot we can teach our boys about this. The real angels were very cool dudes who ushered in the answer for the greatest mystery of the universe.

“And in the same region there were shepherds out in the field, keeping watch over their flock by night. And an angel of the Lord appeared to them, and the glory of the Lord shone around them, and they were filled with great fear.” Luke 2:8-9 (ESV).

Church Christmas pageants aren’t complete without adorable children dressed in angel costumes declaring, “Glory to God in the Highest and peace on earth and good will to men.” The angels sent by God, however made the shepherds very afraid. These were no princesses in pretty dresses–they displayed the power and glory of their Creator.

Message Delivered

When the shepherds headed to the hills with the sheep that night, they didn’t expect to meet eternal messengers. Angels in the Bible are exactly that: messengers. They take the words of God and deliver them to men. Their words are not their own. They only speak what God tells them.

These messengers were eternal beings. They were created by God and were witnesses to the earthly struggles. Angelic messengers were sent many times in history, but never with good news such as this:

And the angel said to them, “Fear not, for behold, I bring you good news of great joy that will be for all the people. For unto you is born this day in the city of David a Savior, who is Christ the Lord. And this will be a sign for you: you will find a baby wrapped in swaddling cloths and lying in a manger,” (ESV).

That was their message: God was coming to earth as a man. The immortal was becoming mortal. An unbelievable message indeed!

The Mortal Discovered

Can you picture the angel’s whispered awe when they witnessed the babe in the manger, “He has his Father’s eyes.” Jesus was everything they knew God to be, and something completely new too: flesh.

“For God in all his fullness was pleased to live in Christ,” says Colossians 1:19 (NLT). Christ in His human nature was the visible essence of the invisible God. The very angels who worshipped God on His throne witnessed God cloaking himself in flesh by becoming a frail babe.

God-come-to-earth became alive as a man. As everyone knows, what lives can also die. God, who was eternal became mortal. But why? What would make God lower himself in such a way? The clue was in the words they proclaimed.

Mystery Solved

“And suddenly there was with the angel a multitude of the heavenly host praising God and saying, “Glory to God in the highest, and on earth peace among those with whom he is pleased!” Luke 2:10-14 (ESV)

The reason for the birth was peace on earth. Not the peace like men and women have prayed for—begged for. Even 2,000 years after Jesus’ birth there are still fights and wars and battles between (and within) men.

Instead, because God chose to live as a mortal, and die as one too, sin and death were overcome.

The mystery was that the angel’s praises weren’t just for that night, but for all time … and for all people. Angels were sent to deliver the best news ever: God made into mortal man made a way for all men—not just Jews during that generation—to become children of the one and only God.

Read the rest of the post and find out who the mystery is for over at themobsociety.com!

The angel’s praises weren’t just for that night, but for all time & people @TriciaGoyer

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Disclosure of Material Connection: Some of the links in the post above are “affiliate links.” This means if you click on the link and purchase the item, I will receive an affiliate commission. Regardless, I only recommend products or services I use personally and believe will add value to my readers. I am disclosing this in accordance with the Federal Trade Commission’s 16 CFR, Part 255: “Guides Concerning the Use of Endorsements and Testimonials in Advertising.”

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6 Ways to Find Freedom from the Frenzy this Christmas

Festively decorated living room

Christmas is my favorite time of year, but it hasn’t always been that way. For many years I looked at December as a list of duties and obligations. The decorations, parties, events, and gifts. Everything!

The thing is, we are the ones in control. We choose what we allow into our holiday celebrations and what we won’t. We are the architects of our December schedule. The holidays happen by our design.

And that’s the problem. We don’t take time to design. We fill our schedules before we design what they should look like, and we end up in a great big frenzy!

Freedom from frenzy comes when we remove the “oppression of overdoing” that has a hold on us. To do this, we need to start by figuring out specifically where that oppression is coming from.

Here are six ways to find freedom from the frenzy this Christmas:

1. Make a list of all that worries you about Christmas tasks and events. A great start to fixing the problem is knowing the problem!

2. After each item ask, “Why does this worry me?” Be real with the answers.

3. Make hard choices. Once your worries are written down, then it’s time to tackle them. How you choose to tackle them will be unique to your situation. You are the only one who can make the choices, but here are a few ideas to find freedom from the frenzy:

  • Events: Choose one or two important gatherings to participate in. Say no to the rest.
  • Gifts: Decide the one gift your family member would like the most—forget all the sales, forget what the neighbor kids are getting—and buy only that. (Remember that when asked, most kids would rather have TIME with their parents than GIFTS from their parents.)
  • Decorations: Pick out your favorite holiday decorations. Only put up those. Keep the rest boxed up. Just because you have them doesn’t mean you have to use them.
  • Cards: Whittle down your Christmas card list to a few select individuals—those who aren’t online and don’t see updates of your family on a regular basis.

Read the rest of the post and discover the other steps you can take over at momlifetoday.com!

 

And download the Freedom from Frenzy worksheet to help you eliminate stress this year!

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Find out 6 ways to find freedom from the frenzy this holiday! @TriciaGoyer

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Disclosure of Material Connection: Some of the links in the post above are “affiliate links.” This means if you click on the link and purchase the item, I will receive an affiliate commission. Regardless, I only recommend products or services I use personally and believe will add value to my readers. I am disclosing this in accordance with the Federal Trade Commission’s 16 CFR, Part 255: “Guides Concerning the Use of Endorsements and Testimonials in Advertising.”

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A WWII Christmas | A Lesson on Vmail (with Writing Prompts!)

WTG - WWII Christmas

A Lesson on Vmail (with Writing Prompts!)

by Cara Putman

 

What’s that sound? Listen really hard. Do you hear it? It’s the sound of the mail Jeep pulling up to the mailbox. The click of the lid being closed. You hurry outside, eager to get the mail before your brother can.

Now imagine the date is 1943, and your big brother is serving in England. You wonder when—and if—he’ll make the move into Europe. So far he’s safe . . . but it’s been weeks since you’ve heard from him.

vmailSo each day you race to the mailbox as soon as you hear the mailman leave.

When you reach the mailbox you pull open the lid and reach inside. As you pull the mall pile out, your hands begin to tremble. A small rectangle is nestled on top of the small pile. It’s here!

V-mail was a unique way that the United States shipped mail to and from the troops during WWII.

A single sheet of paper, one portion had a space for your address and the address of the person receiving the mail. The rest was to be used for the letter. If you were in the military, you had to assume that your letter would be read by military censors. As a result, you couldn’t include any specifics. Or the letter would have a black mark where the censor had cut out words or sentences.
Once the letter was received by the military, it was photographed on microfiche and shipped overseas or to the States in rolls of film that were developed at the destination and then delivered to the recipient. What was received was smaller than what was sent, but the result was the same. A touch of home for the lonely soldier and a reassurance that the soldier or sailor was still alive.
Have you ever written a letter to a soldier?
What would you write to a soldier or sailor?
What do you think they would like to read about?
What would it have been like to receive a letter from home in the days before internet, email, cell phones, and TV?

To find out how you can send your own letter to troops and download the Vmail Writing Prompts worksheet, stop by FreeHomeschoolDeals.com!

 

About Cara Putman

Screen Shot 2014-11-21 at 9.43.43 AMCara C. Putman graduated high school at 16, college at 20, and completed her law degree at 27. The best-selling author of more than a dozen books, Cara is active in women’s ministry at her church, teaches graduate courses at Purdue University, practices law, and is a homeschooling mom. She lives with her husband and 4 children in Indiana.

You can learn more at caraputman.com.

 

About Where Treetops Glisten

Where Treetops GlistenThe crunch of newly fallen snow, the weight of wartime.

Siblings forging new paths and finding love in three stories, filled with the wonder of Christmas.

Turn back the clock to a different time, listen to Bing Crosby sing of sleigh bells in the snow, as the realities of America’s involvement in the Second World War change the lives of the Turner family in Lafayette, Indiana.

In Cara Putman’s White Christmas, Abigail Turner is holding down the Home Front as a college student and a part-time employee at a one-of-a-kind candy shop. Loss of a beau to the war has Abigail skittish about romantic entanglements—until a hard-working young man with a serious problem needs her help.

Abigail’s brother Pete is a fighter pilot hero returned from the European Theater in Sarah Sundin’s I’ll Be Home for Christmas, trying to recapture the hope and peace his time at war has eroded. But when he encounters a precocious little girl in need of Pete’s friendship, can he convince her widowed mother that he’s no longer the bully she once knew?

In Tricia Goyer’s Have Yourself a Merry Little Christmas, Meredith Turner, “Merry” to those who know her best, is using her skills as a combat nurse on the frontline in the Netherlands. Halfway around the world from home, Merry never expects to face her deepest betrayal head on, but that’s precisely what God has in mind to redeem her broken heart.

The Turner family believes in God’s providence during such a tumultuous time. Can they absorb the miracle of Christ’s birth and His plan for a future?

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A WWII Christmas | Through a Story Window: Using Historical Fiction to Teach History

WTG - WWII Christmas

Through a Story Window: Using Historical Fiction to Teach History

by Sarah Sundin

 

“Another boring history special?” My ten-year-old daughter heaved a sigh and plopped into the armchair.

I smiled in understanding. At her age, I was bored silly when my father watched Victory at Sea. Now, since I write novels set during WWII, I love documentaries on tanks, planes, and ships. My husband and sons love them. My daughter? Not at all.

Later that afternoon, I returned to find Anna alone, her eyes fixed on the TV. The same channel. The same historical era. But now they were showing a documentary on Anne Frank. A girl, just like my daughter.

Through Anne’s words, my Anna was able to imagine life in that cramped annex . . . and in the concentration camp. Through story, history became real.

Grabbing that moment, I talked with her about Anne Frank, the Holocaust, and World War II. She checked out books from the library, searched the internet, and did an oral report for her English class.

The next summer, we visited Nuremburg, Germany. The Nazi stadium still stands, stark and harrowing. Four of us ventured onto the stage where Hitler swayed the masses, but Anna refused, her arms wrapped around her middle, her face pale. “That’s the man who killed Anne Frank.”

As my heart ached for her, I also rejoiced inside. She got it.

Reading historical fiction and biography brings history to life. Stories allow children to experience history in their imagination—like mental time travel. And once the child’s interest has been hooked, history lessons shift from boring to fascinating.

A lesson on westward migration? Yawn. The same lesson after you’ve read Little House on the Prairie and can picture yourself in the back of a covered wagon? Gripping.

How can we use historical fiction and biography to teach history?

  1. Seek out good historical fiction and biography from the era the child will be studying. Your librarian can help!
  2. Use the printable as a worksheet or to guide discussion.

Stop by FreeHomeSchoolDeals.com to read the rest of Sarah’s post!

About Sarah Sundin

Screen Shot 2014-11-20 at 4.26.02 PMSarah Sundin is the author of six historical novels, including In Perfect Time (Revell, August 2014) plus a novella in Where Treetops Glisten (WaterBrook, September 2014). Her novel On Distant Shores was a double finalist for the 2014 Golden Scroll Awards. Sarah lives in northern California with her husband and three children, works on-call as a hospital pharmacist, and teaches Sunday school and women’s Bible studies.

You can find her at sarahsundin.com

 

About Where Treetops Glisten

Where Treetops GlistenThe crunch of newly fallen snow, the weight of wartime.

Siblings forging new paths and finding love in three stories, filled with the wonder of Christmas.

Turn back the clock to a different time, listen to Bing Crosby sing of sleigh bells in the snow, as the realities of America’s involvement in the Second World War change the lives of the Turner family in Lafayette, Indiana.

In Cara Putman’s White Christmas, Abigail Turner is holding down the Home Front as a college student and a part-time employee at a one-of-a-kind candy shop. Loss of a beau to the war has Abigail skittish about romantic entanglements—until a hard-working young man with a serious problem needs her help.

Abigail’s brother Pete is a fighter pilot hero returned from the European Theater in Sarah Sundin’s I’ll Be Home for Christmas, trying to recapture the hope and peace his time at war has eroded. But when he encounters a precocious little girl in need of Pete’s friendship, can he convince her widowed mother that he’s no longer the bully she once knew?

In Tricia Goyer’s Have Yourself a Merry Little Christmas, Meredith Turner, “Merry” to those who know her best, is using her skills as a combat nurse on the frontline in the Netherlands. Halfway around the world from home, Merry never expects to face her deepest betrayal head on, but that’s precisely what God has in mind to redeem her broken heart.

The Turner family believes in God’s providence during such a tumultuous time. Can they absorb the miracle of Christ’s birth and His plan for a future?

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Why Does Mentoring Matter? A Lesson From Mary

Pregnant woman relaxing on couch with her friend

Mary, the mother of Jesus is one of the most well-known women of all time. She was also a teen mom facing an unplanned pregnancy. This Christmas we will see evidence of Mary’s story all around us. And as you hear it through Christmas songs and Christmas shows think of three things:

  1. Mary was signed up for a big task she wasn’t prepared for.
  2. Mary no doubt faced criticism from people around her.
  3. Mary found someone to turn to … a friend who could help Mary to succeed in her new role. It was Mary’s older cousin Elizabeth.

Elizabeth played an important part in Mary’s life. We know this because the book of Luke begins by telling us Elizabeth’s story first. Elizabeth was the wife of a priest. She was very old and had no children, but God blessed her in her old age by allowing her to get pregnant. After Elizabeth’s story comes Mary’s story … another surprise pregnancy. Can you imagine what a shock that was to everyone who knew both women? (Yes! I’m sure you can!)

The cool thing is that the angel Gabriel told Mary about Elizabeth’s surprise pregnancy. It’s as if he was saying, “Look, there’s someone in your same situation. Turn to her. She can help you.”

Mary did go to Elizabeth. In fact she lived with her older cousin for three months. Elizabeth was the first one who rejoiced over the child Mary held within her womb, and I imagine Elizabeth was there to encourage Mary as she coped with the idea of becoming a teen mom.

Like Mary, each of us should have people in our lives who we turn to for help, support and encouragement. Being a mom isn’t an easy thing, and facing an unplanned pregnancy is even tougher.

 

When I had my son Cory I was 17 years old, and there were a group of women from my grandma’s church who supported me. They were the first ones who showed me that the child that was growing inside me was a gift. They gave me a baby shower, and they fought over holding my son after he was born.

As my son grew, there were other women I looked to … and most of the time they didn’t even know I was watching. One of them was Cheryl. Cheryl was patient with her children, she gave them big hugs, she laughed with them and played with them and I modeled myself after her. The thing about finding mentors is sometimes we can observe them without them even knowing. And if we’re really lucky they enjoy their role of giving us advice.

Later, when I had two kids, I met a friend named Cindy. She and I were the same age and we became quick friends. Cindy was a support to me because we traded babysitting, talked about parenting problems, and we encouraged each other. She was someone who was walking the same road as me, and her advice helped more times than I can count.

No matter who we are, or where we live, each of us can look around and see the people we have in our lives. Some may cheer us on, some may guide our parenting, and others may just be there to walk along side us. If the mother of Jesus needed someone to look to for support … shouldn’t we? Everyone needs mentoring, someone to provide a little help and support.

Everyone needs someone to provide a little support. #mentoring @TriciaGoyer

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Teaching Children the Joy of Giving

teaching your children the joy of giving

Teaching Children the Joy of Giving

The kids were buckled in my minivan and warm heat blew through the heat vents. A cold snap had hit Little Rock, but that hadn’t kept us from venturing out. My three young kids and I had a special mission. We’d just gotten through shopping for our boxes for Operation Christmas Child. Bella, Alyssa, and Casey worked so hard to make careful choices—a mix of fun things like cars and stuffed toys and useful things like pencils and erasers.

As I drove, I glanced in the rearview mirror at their red-cheeked faces, noticing their greatest gift hadn’t gone in the box. Instead, they carried the joy of giving deep in their hearts.

It was a gift they received as they gave.

And that warmed me even more than the heater vent.

“Mommy, where will our boxes go?” four-year-old Alyssa asked as we drove.

“I don’t know, sweetie. I’m not sure we get to pick. Where would you like them to go?”

“Africa!” she called out, and her brother and sister agreed.

“OK, well, you can pray about that. And maybe they WILL get sent to Africa.”

“No, Mommy!” Alyssa said in dismay. “I don’t want them to send the boxes. I want to get on an airplane and take it myself to the kids that don’t have shoes and toys, just like you did.”

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I knew immediately what she was talking about. This summer I was blessed to go to Kenya with AWANA International. I love AWANA. All six of my kids have been in the program. My older kids ages 25, 22, and 20 look back on that time with good memories. And my little ones 7, 4, and 4 are now part. We have a Sparkie and two Cubbies in the house.

I love the Scripture memory and Biblical foundation AWANA lays in children’s hearts, and until I was invited to go to Kenya I had no idea they had AWANA clubs in 108 countries. In fact, 2.5 MILLION children take part in AWANA clubs around the world!

In Kenya, I loved spending time with the kids and seeing their faces glow as they shared scripture and songs with us. One pastor, and school principal, also asked us to pray for a special request. Would we pray that funds would be provided so they could put in a concrete slab at their school so their children wouldn’t have to work and play in the dirt and mud?

The ministry leaders and I looked at each other. We knew we could do more than pray. We knew we could help BE the answer. So we shared the need with our churches and friends.

The best way to teach children the joy of giving is to model it . . . and then to teach them to give as they are able. 

Do you know of a special need that you believe God would like you to help meet? Here are some easy ways you can help your children learn the practical steps to caring for others’ needs.

  1. Take orders and bake Christmas cookies.
  2. Create a “donation box” out of craft paper and ask friends and family to contribute.
  3. Make a short video for Facebook (with the help of Mom and a smartphone) asking for donations for their cause.
  4. Write a letter, sharing the need, make photocopies and pass it out.
  5. Do extra chores to raise money to give.

 

Teaching Children the Joy of Giving

My children made a video to raise money for this cement pad in Kenya. Maybe your kids can do something similar!

As for those shoeboxes, my daughter was very happy to discover they WERE going to Africa! (Isn’t that a God thing?!) And she’s praying someday she’ll be able to go, too. Since she’s only four years old, she has a few years. But I’m sure God will provide!

Blessings,

Tricia Goyer

How can you teach your children the joy of giving? @TriciaGoyer shares 5 ways here:

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My Unexpected God Gifts

unexpectedgodgifts

My Unexpected God Gifts!

There were three things that I wasn’t going to have at our Thanksgiving table:

  1. Deviled eggs
  2. Jello Salad
  3. A Large green salad

Well, it turns out we ended up with two out of three on our table, and I didn’t make either! First, I got a text Wednesday night. My neighbor Cindy said that her husband was going to stop by with something for us. Bruce came by with … a jello salad! Cindy had been planning to make one herself and after reading my email she decided to make one for us, too. How fun is that?!

Then Thursday, John and I took the three youngest kids to serve at our church’s Thanksgiving Community Dinner. We had a great time hosting a cake walk and various games for the dozens and dozens of kids. One of the moms from our Teen MOPS group even helped with face painting!

When we got home that afternoon I walked in to find our 20-year-old son Nathan putting the finishing touches on deviled eggs. He made them as a surprise! He hadn’t even read my email, but he knew how much everyone would appreciate them. Double cool! (No, the green salad never did get made, but our full tummies didn’t miss it!)

I had to chuckle as I thought about how things had turned out. Isn’t that how God works?

 

God is the best gift giver, isn’t He? When we’re looking for Him in the midst of everyday life He loves to surprise us in fun ways. He knows the desires of our hearts, and He often brings people into our lives to provide the unexpected. Missing out on jello salad or deviled eggs wouldn’t have been a big deal. But how fun that God used my friends and family in that way.

Are you excited about God-gifts this holiday season? I’m sure that God has a few in store for you

Are you looking for Christ this Christmas? Seek Him out. See Him in simple gifts and special acts-of-kindness. Also, ask Him how you can bless someone else in a fun way.

How will you look for God gifts today?

God is the best gift giver! @TriciaGoyer

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Disclosure of Material Connection: Some of the links in the post above are “affiliate links.” This means if you click on the link and purchase the item, I will receive an affiliate commission. Regardless, I only recommend products or services I use personally and believe will add value to my readers. I am disclosing this in accordance with the Federal Trade Commission’s 16 CFR, Part 255: “Guides Concerning the Use of Endorsements and Testimonials in Advertising.”

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