I am not sure I remember ever leaving my Granny’s house without something she had given me. This was especially true in my college years. Each time I stopped by for a visit, I left with containers of food, a newspaper article she had clipped, and various other things Granny had collected for me since the last time I was there. She loved to give!
It wasn’t until after college that I began to recognize the pleasure she took in giving to everyone. My grandparents never had a lot of money, but there was always plenty of food. Grandaddy grew a garden and Granny cooked and baked with love. When I was younger, I noticed that she used her cooking to demonstrate her love to family, with the spreads of food at each gathering and her particular attention to each one’s favorite dishes. But after Grandaddy died and the family spread out, Granny’s cooking and baking became an outreach. She would carry pieces of her famous pound cake and portions of a casserole to residents in her building, people that worked in businesses within walking distance, and anyone else she encountered. Even now, after Granny has been gone from this earth for years, I still hear stories of the gifts of food she shared as she encouraged all those around her.
The legacy my grandmother left behind has taught me much about the importance of gifts in the ministry of encouragement. Long after the food was consumed, the taste of encouragement from those gifts remained with those to whom she delivered. Any gift would have done the same, Granny just used the gift she had – the skill and love of baking and cooking – to administer the encouragement. Gifts don’t have to be expensive – they don’t have to be bought at all – they simply need to come from the heart.
Many people claim to have no gifts to offer, but each of us has something (1 Peter 4:10-11). God created all with value, all with purpose, and all with the ability to give. We tend to wish that we had a gift that has been given to someone else, but unless we are using that which we have been given, the world is missing something valuable.
In this time of isolation, I have been blessed to witness the hidden gifts of so many. As people begin to share and give of themselves, we become more connected and encouraged! Now is the time to think about what you can give. Whether it is a gift wrapped in a box, an act of service, a kind word, or a note of encouragement – your gift matters! Give the gift of encouragement today.
“For as in one body we have many members, and the members do not all have the same function, so we, though many, are one body in Christ, and individually members one of another. Having gifts that differ according to the grace given to us, let us use them.”
Romans 12:4-6