When you could be cheated out of giving (and a giveaway)


The forecasters weren’t doing us any favors. Predictions called for frozen precipitation from winter storm Diego this past weekend the dates scheduled for our community symphony and chorus Christmas concerts. We’d been practicing for months and foregoing the opportunity to realize the fruit of that practice made us all a little sad.
 
 

I’ve always seen these weekends as a great big gift to our community. The tickets are free and once they become available, thousands of them are gone in less than an hour. It is a tradition for many families to attend the concerts together. Several in my own family as well as friends planned to attend.

But the bad weather threat continued to hang over us. We prayed for a reprieve from it.

It made me think of something my pastor friend Warren wrote to me decades ago when he was mentoring me back from the train wreck I’d made of my life. 

“It’s a terrible thing to be cheated out of giving,” he penned.

Oh, how those words stung when I read them. Unlike the situation with the weather which was out of our control, it was my own selfish actions that had caused me to be cheated out of giving. A deep resolve formed in me not to allow that to happen again.

Paul quotes Jesus in Acts 20:35, “It is more blessed to give than to receive.”

Seeing the joy a gift is to others does indeed bring a huge blessing to us. In this season of giving, it’s nice to stop and remember why we do what we do. We love because He first loved us. We give because He first gave to us.

It turned out that the snowy weather went a little north of us and our concerts went on as scheduled. The audiences seemed delighted they were able to open their gift from us.

As for us, when the last note had been played and sung, we went home full of Christmas wonder and gratitude because we were able to give. 

And speaking of giving, I'm having another giveaway this week on my blog. Please comment here or on Facebook to be entered in a drawing to win a copy of Faith in the Fashion District and a mug. And please consider Faith in the Fashion District or The Key to Everything for those on your Christmas list. The contest ends at 5 p.m. on Friday, December 14, 2018.

The contest is closed. Susan Davis is the winner of a copy of Faith in the Fashion District and a mug. Congrats!!
 

Also, this Thursday begins the giveaway with Anaiah authors. Please join my new  page, Beverly Varnado Readers Page,  here  to keep up with the giveaways.