“Each of you should give what you have decided in your heart to give,
not reluctantly or under compulsion, for God loves a cheerful giver.” -2 Corinthians 9:7
We have a children’s book in our home “Small Gifts in God’s Hands” by Max Lucado. It is a heartwarming story about a boy who offers his little lunch to Jesus, just a small gift, but in God’s hands it is multiplied and over 5,000 men are fed! The point of the story is that often times we perceive our offerings to be small or insignificant, but when offered to God cheerfully and with a pure heart can make a big difference for the Kingdom.
This past Valentine’s Day our family made some yummy chocolate cupcakes! We decided to run by during lunch time and deliver one to my wife’s (Dawn) grandma at the nursing home. We were only there about 15 minutes and it didn’t seem like a big deal to us, but later on Dawn’s mom phoned and said that she had spoken on the phone with her grandma. Grandma was so touched that we had stopped by and spent time with her and remembered her on Valentine’s Day. Wow! A cupcake was a small gift, but in God’s hands it was big!
Back last Christmas Eve we were at the nursing home visiting Grandma and singing her some Christmas carols. I felt prompted to take our girls and go around and visit with the other residents during their dinner. We gave hugs, encouraged and simply listened. We discovered that several of the residents had no one coming to visit them over Christmas. What? Not one person was coming to visit them? I am so glad that the Holy Spirit whispered to me about taking time to walk around and visit. We were there anyway – no big deal – just a small gift, but yet in God’s hands I believe that small gift was multiplied.
Where can you get involved in the places you are already at? At work? At school? On your daily commute? At the store? On your street? God has many opportunities for us to be His hands and feet today – we just need to open our hearts, our eyes and our ears to him. It may not seem like a lot to stop and talk to someone. It may seem insignificant to us and to the world, but “No gift is small in God’s Hands”.
- Grandma and our kids during a visit
3 Responses
We also went to the Nursing home Christmas Day adn loved being able to love on the people there! No gift is too small in the Kingdom of God- if we are to live lives of service and humility we must exemplify those acts with our children! One life has the power to touch another!!!
Thanks for your comment Megan! Children are the best ones to do Nursing Home ministry – I believe something heavenly occurs when children who are just natural and honest interact with senior citizens, and I also believe that for the elderly a special ‘spark’ turns into a flame when a child is near – I’ve seen a twinkle in their eyes when they see kids coming!
I absolutely ENJOYED reading this post. In fact, I was so inspired by your post, I browsed the Meet the Need website and created an account, and signed up to meet one of the needs in my area. Again, I REALLY appreciate you posting this…I definately needed the reminder…doing even the littlest things daily can go a really long way (: