A Gift To Give Away - The One Year Daily Acts of Kindness Devotional

A Gift to Give Away

Dear children, let’s not merely say that we love each other; let us show the truth by our actions.

1 John 3:18

Every Christmas one of each of my children’s presents is to choose something they would like give to someone else. Leading up to the holiday, we look through catalogs from charitable organizations from which you can purchase items for donation—things like farm animals, school supplies, clean water, and so on. We encourage our children to prayerfully consider whom they’d like to give to each year.

It’s wonderful to see their excitement and compassion for others as they decide what gift they’d like to give—one year it might be a goat and chickens, the next it could be a clean water well. They often spend hours scouring the magazines and circling their favorite options, before deciding on the one they want to give that year. No matter what they decide, Kyle and I discuss with the children how this will be a blessing to the person receiving the gift and how we are blessed to be able to give it.

This act of kindness and remembering others in need has in turn allowed our kids to feel empowered to give toward something they are passionate about in a very tangible way. Setting an example of giving on a regular basis shows our kids that this is part of our everyday lives, not just reserved for special occasions, and although we may be more intentional at certain times of the year, we keep trying, and we don’t berate ourselves when we’ve missed opportunities to show kindness or give to others.

If you haven’t been intentional about doing something kind for someone else lately, it’s okay—today you can start again. Think about how you can incorporate your own family or friends and their passions into your giving. Consistency, rather than perfection, is our goal as we seek to live out Scripture’s command to show our love for others through our actions.

—Kendra

— Today’s Act of Kindness —

Find an organization that gives tangible gifts to those in need, and purchase an item you feel passionate about.