Impartial Giving!

My brother Griffin and I sat on the floor before the roaring fireplace in our old farmhouse. We were eager to peruse the big Sears, Roebuck Catalog’s toys section and pick the ones we wanted Santa to bring down our chimney on Christmas Eve. We knew he wouldn’t. We had grown accustomed to seeing the Red Flyer wagons, and Schwinn bikes we so desired in the yards of white kids in Halifax and Enfield during the days following Christmas. If Santa belonged to the whole world, why was he such a selective giver? Still, we hoped the chubby white man in a red suit, with rosy, red cheeks, wire-rim glasses, and a white beard might have a change of heart and give some of his toys to us poor black kids this year!

Giving is one of the major themes of the Bible and God. God is a giver by nature. God is an impartial giver. He is not a respecter of persons (Romans 2:11 KJV). And “You can’t beat God giving, no matter how you try” (Caravans). In Genesis, He gave us his breath and we began to live. In the middle of the Bible, to redeem us after we listened to the devil and fell into sin, God gave us His Son. And the Son, Jesus, gave His life for us. Then, in the book of Revelation, He says, “Behold, I come quickly, and my reward is with me to give every man according as his work shall be.” 

God wants us to be impartial givers, too. Sincere caring is needed more than the things we often give each other during this season. I believe we should value our ministry colleagues as members of our own family. Appreciate that some, possibly more than usual now, maybe smiling with torn and bleeding hearts during this special season of the year. You can give them your shoulder to lean on. Give everyone a genuine smile and a warm and sincere greeting.  

Griffin and I never got the Red Flyer wagon or the Schwinn bike. But our loving parents made sure we got something, a spinning top, a cap pistol, whatever they could afford. Ultimately, we had an abundance of genuine family love, and Christmas was always the best day of the year for us!

Focus Quote: “Share each other’s burdens, and in this way obey the law of Christ.

        –Galatians 6:2 NLT

Personal Note: Betty and I will be away for a while and the S & S Weekly Focus will be on hiatus until after Christmas. So Merry Christmas to ALL and a glorious New Year!

  

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