Originally shared by Associational Missions Strategist Jamie Rogers in the November CMBA Newsletter:
I love Chuck Lawless, professor at Southeastern Baptist Theological Seminary. In fact, every time I get to be instructed by him, I tell my wife what a treasure he is to God’s Church. If you are familiar with him, you will know that his blog (found through chucklawless.com) often includes a series of lists like the one I am sharing here. These are excellent ideas to inspire you to seek out ways to be a blessing to the people around you the upcoming holiday season.
- Invite someone that is grieving over to your home for a meal or coffee. The Thanksgiving and Christmas Seasons can be a joyful time of year for many of us, but for people who are going through a tough time they can be extremely depressing. If you know someone that is hurting for whatever reason, consider inviting them to your family’s Thanksgiving Day meal, or just a random night of the week for supper.
- Look for ways to be encouraging. There is honestly enough bitterness and anger in our world. Those of us who follow Jesus are supposed to be different. Rather than buying into the cynicism of the world around us we can stick out by being different, and one way to be different is to choose to be an encourager to the people around us. Try this: look for reasons to speak words of encouragement to other people, and then say them to them. Think of your pastor, church staff member, Sunday School Teacher, or any other random person that you notice a reason to be encouraging to.
- Invite an international friend to your family’s Thanksgiving or Christmas celebration. We have a number of new international people that have moved to the CMBA area over the last few years. Many of them have never made a REAL, American friend. As a part of The Church here what better way is there for us to welcome them here and to share the hope of the good news about Jesus with them? Holidays are days where they may be more apt to accepting your invitation. So, whether you work with them, frequent a restaurant they own, they teach at your child’s school, etc…this is a good time to make a new friend and invite them over! (We can help you connect with them if you need someone.)
- Be grateful. Those of us who follow Jesus have all the reason in the world to be grateful. We were sinners, enemies of God, and dead in our trespasses and sins, BUT GOD, who is rich in mercy and love sent His Son to save us by giving us eternal life. If you don’t have any other reason to be grateful this season, well there you go!
- Be Joyful. Joy is not a circumstantial feeling; it is a mood of the heart. Christians should be people marked by joy. This Holiday season we can be a blessing by carrying in us and with us the joy of the Lord.
- Don’t be a grouch. This goes along with the previous two, but there is too much grouchiness in the world today. We are not to be like everyone else. We can remember truths about us that God has shared in His Word and be changed by them!
- Find someone to be generous to this season. I know many of us are hurting financially this season, but there are people around us who are worse off than we are. Whether it’s through your congregation’s Operation Christmas Child Shoeboxes, the Association’s Prisoner Packets, Food Donation center (We have several churches in GREAT need of food for theirs. You can contact us about congregations that could use it.), or Christmas partnerships, you can find someone or some place to be generous this Season. Jesus said, “It is more blessed to give than to receive.”
- Pray for people you know are hurting. No matter what the reason, pray for people you know are struggling, and send them a message that you did and are praying for them.
- Send a handwritten note. When is the last time you got a handwritten note from someone? It still means something to get a handwritten note from people with words of encouragement.
- Prepare a meal for someone that could use a break. Do you know a single mom? Do you know someone that’s facing a hard season? There aren’t many ways that are better to bless someone than by taking them a homecooked meal to help them through a busy day or season.
These are just a few ways you could be a blessing this season. I know there are many more. What other items would you add? Go and do some of those as well.