I’m excited to share this story with you- I asked our daughter, Sarah, to share, not because we wanted to have a “brag fest” about our children or grandchildren 😉  Rather, when we discover the joy of making God smile, life becomes infinitely sweeter.

May you know the God of love and graces smiles upon every act of kindness you give in His Name.

Sarah Joy Gilliland

And God Smiled…

Doing some fall cleaning several months ago, I was hit with that semi-annual overwhelming sense of we have too much stuff!  Too many lego pieces, too many DVD’s w/ missing cases, too many naked Barbie’s, too many toys w/ dead batteries.  It’s not all lost and forgotten toys- our kids still play with most of them,   but the sense of “too much” enveloped me.

So, my husband and I talked about Christmas budgets, and the Christmas gifts that were meaningful to us growing up and decided it was more about experiences most of the time vs an actual gift.  We adopted the “3 Kings/3 Presents” idea.  (Hey if it was good enough for Jesus- it’s good enough for us 😉 ) The basic idea is simple really-  a “gold” present- something a child would want and treasure, like a favorite toy; a “frankincense*”(*incense used for offerings) present- a gift that will be used in worship or spiritual life, like a Devotional book; and a “myrrh” (*oil for anointing the body) present-  something for the body, like clothing or shoes.  *And we’re keeping stockings…but filling with mostly basics (Chewable vitamins, toothpaste, hair stuff, favorite candy, socks & underwear etc…)

As we geared the kids up for the “less means more” Christmas and the meaning behind it, I’ve been praying that we could see the ripple effect in our kids’ lives.  That Christmas would really be about giving more than receiving and that they would learn a different appreciation for the abundance Americans have.  And then the following happened:

My 7 yr old, Finley, is a December birthday. What child wouldn’t like the feeling of “Chrismakuh” (Basically about 10 days of presents between multiple families)?  But this year I casually mentioned- “what if you did something different this birthday? Like raised money for World Vision or Operation Christmas Child stuff?”  I didn’t want it to feel like a “mom idea”, but our kids love Operation Shoe Box, Salavation Army kettles and even the Children’s Miracle Network change machine at Dairy Queen…. So I figured sometimes parents can make suggestions and see what takes root.  It also helped that she had a friend from school with a birthday at the same time, and her mom was looking for similar approaches. 

The girls looked through a World Vision Gifts Catalog ,

(you can also click on the link and donate 🙂 )

I began to see her eyes twinkling at the possibilities.  “I really like school mom, do you think we could get a girl my age to go to school?”  After double-checking that she’d probably still get a gift or two from parents/grandparents –  off she went, telling her friends about her grand plan to help someone go to school in another country. 

On her birthday invite we made a simple statement- “Sharing this with friends hoping to not to seem “pushy” — this is a no pressure thing!  Finley has requested no gifts, however Finley & a friend, Allie, are raising money to pay for schooling for another girl their age through World Vision.  If that’s something you want to get involved with, just slip a dollar or two in a card– every little bit helps get them to their goal!”   (thank you to all who joined in to make this possible!)

The day Finley and Allie opened their birthday cards and started pooling the bills the excitement grew!  They quickly determined they had more than enough for a girl to be sent to school, and Allie chose 2 rabbits and Finley chose 2 chickens with the leftover funds.  Finley summed it up very well on the way to school the next day.  “I feel so good mom.  It was an awesome birthday.  I think that God is happy too because it’s doing “His Will”” Wow- my 8 year old really did grow up overnight!  I had a pretty proud momma moment in the car- I love to see my kids “get” the big picture. 

Finley has often had questions about “why can’t I hear God?” and “how does God talk to us”?  So, we’ve talked about “God’s Will” and how we hear God in different ways, but especially in the Bible- and one thing that I was so happy to tell her that she was LIVING OUT God’s Will for her life in that moment.  The Bible tells us God wants us to “take care of widows, orphans, those with less etc”… more than one place. 

I can confidently tell her “Babe- you are living out God’s Will, you are hearing Him, and you are obeying- and you’re getting to feel the joy that comes from doing that.  God is smiling at you Finley- and everyone who became a part of your kindness!”

 I’m looking forward to our 3 Gifts Christmas, and also some exciting family memories to be made with a few surprises.  I don’t know if the World Vision Birthday party will become an annual thing (I think that would be awesome) but I do know the smile on that girl’s face was about as deep & wide as they come.  And I know that over the years all of our kids will have more examples and opportunities in their lives to show that they don’t have to be on their knees waiting for the specific Will of God to drop in their laps, they can be out serving and taking care of God’s creations- doing His Will while seeking out specific gifting’s for their lives.  And I know Keith and I can strive to model that to them, but we can also learn from them and the generosity that flows so easily from the heart of a child that wants to make God smile.

*On a side note, my company does matching funds for charitable giving, so the girls’ money will actually double to 2 girls going to school, 4 rabbits, and 4 chickens.  Yet another example how God multiplies blessings- pressed down, shaken together and overflowing!

We are always Amazed by His love!