{"id":35968,"date":"2023-11-24T03:30:17","date_gmt":"2023-11-24T11:30:17","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.lccredding.org\/church\/?p=35968"},"modified":"2023-11-17T18:49:32","modified_gmt":"2023-11-18T02:49:32","slug":"november-24-2023","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.lccredding.org\/church\/2023\/11\/24\/november-24-2023\/","title":{"rendered":"November 24, 2023"},"content":{"rendered":"
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Giving Tuesday<\/strong><\/h2>\n

\u201cA generous person will prosper; whoever refreshes others will be refreshed<\/em>.”\u00a0Proverbs 11:25 NIV<\/p>\n

The Tuesday after Thanksgiving is called “Giving Tuesday.”\u00a0I’m not sure how it got that designation, or who thought up the idea.\u00a0But I like it!\u00a0 Maybe after the Black Friday and Cyber Monday shopping, someone thought it would be nice to do some giving.<\/p>\n

I’ve always loved to give.\u00a0My mother told me I’ve always been like that.\u00a0I would go through my cupboards and give away toys, hair accessories, simple jewelry and clothes.\u00a0I so enjoyed giving to my nieces and my neighborhood friends.\u00a0I admire my mother’s ability to let me do that…but she herself was such an example of giving.\u00a0She gave through her food, and in spite of her limited budget, she always had something to put in the offering plate at church.\u00a0She was an incredible giver!<\/p>\n

When Floyd and I got married, we had to talk a lot about this because, of course, I wanted to keep giving.\u00a0We didn’t have much money to give, but I still wanted to give from my “things” that I had.\u00a0I so admire Floyd\u2014instead of fighting me on my desire to give, he decided to join me.\u00a0That began a lifetime of giving for us.\u00a0We didn’t have much, but we always gave.<\/p>\n

Two memories come to mind.\u00a0When we were newly married, we were at a staff gathering, and an offering was taken to send one of our workers to Pakistan. The Lord spoke clearly to both of us to empty our pockets and wallets and give “everything” we had.\u00a0We didn\u2019t have much that evening\u2014I’d be surprised if it was even $25\u2014but we did it. It was a wonderful journey of faith to see how God, in turn, met our needs in the days ahead.<\/p>\n

Another time we were traveling and speaking in churches.\u00a0We had spoken at a church in Ohio. During the service, an offering was taken for a missionary.\u00a0Again, we felt prompted to give our all, little though it was.\u00a0After church we went and sat in our car (a YWAM vehicle that we were using for our travels). The petrol tank was almost empty. We had nowhere to stay that night, and we hadn’t eaten dinner.\u00a0So, we sat in the car and prayed.\u00a0We decided with some creative maneuvering we could sleep in the car.<\/p>\n

As we were starting to get things arranged, a car drove up to the driver’s window.\u00a0A man introduced himself.\u00a0He had been at the service that night, and was touched by the sermon Floyd gave. He was at home, readying himself for bed, when the Lord spoke to him to go back to the church and find us and give us a gift.\u00a0He was sure we would be gone, but he obeyed\u2014and gave us $100. That was a fortune to us! We got something to eat, put petrol in the car, and found an inexpensive motel to stay for the night.\u00a0And there was some left over to help us as we went to the next place we were speaking.<\/p>\n

I have so many of these testimonies tucked away in my heart\u2014some special ones from even before I married Floyd. These testimonies have created a foundation of trust in my heart.\u00a0They showed me that I can give as the Lord leads, and He will always take care of me\/us.\u00a0He took care of us and the houseful of hippies in Afghanistan when we often didn’t have money for the next meal to feed everyone.\u00a0God has been a wonderful provider\u2014and He loves to give too!<\/p>\n

I can’t think about the Lord without thinking of His love and generosity.\u00a0Through these last years when things were so hard, the Lord gave to me continually.\u00a0He gave love, comfort, strength, grace, courage, protection, healing, wisdom, and so much more.\u00a0He provided for our needs over and over again.\u00a0I can hear in my mind my mother saying so many times, “You can’t out-give the Lord.”\u00a0There is not a truer statement.<\/p>\n

Father, help us to be generous givers, just as You have given to us. Amen.<\/em><\/p>\n<\/div>

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