when push comes to shove...

...this whole advent conspiracy is harder than I thought. I remember feeling so on fire about it. Looking at the statistics and just feeling compelled to give and to make a difference. Fast forward almost a month later, and now it's becoming a reality; however, the last month I have also been bombarded with catalogs, emails, tv commercials, and newspaper ads all telling me what's on sale and what I need this Christmas. The scary part? I started buying into it. Wanting things for myself and slowly feeling my desire to give became a little less. Yuck. It's sickening how quickly I was able to start telling myself that there are things I need more than people need water and food and to know Jesus loves them.

People want Christmas lists and ideas and I am now forced to put my money where my mouth is and to be honest, it's kind of hard. It's hard to say instead of buying me something can you give to this charity? It's a sacrifice. A sacrifice of things that I'd like. But in reality, isn't Christmas all about a sacrifice? A sacrifice that God made by giving up his beloved son to come take on my sins? A sacrifice of his relationship with Jesus. Shouldn't I be jumping at the chance to sacrifice for the people (read- everyone) that he loves and desires to be fed, clothed, and loved?!

So I watched the video again. I remembered those statistics. I remembered that this Christmas season will be ten times better because I can wake up on Christmas morning, not with extra clothes or stuff for the house but instead knowing that:

-a little girl in India will have food, water, a chance at an education, and will hear about Jesus: http://www.compassion.com/default.htm

-a homeless man or woman in Philadelphia will have an ID and the ability to get a job again:  http://phillyrestart.com/front

-a young girl from Kitale, Kenya will be free of a life of prostitution and given hope for a new life http://www.mosaicdesigns.org/p/about-neema-project.html

-a village in the jungles of Peru will have a well built and clean water to drink:
http://www.water.cc/redeem


So, here's your reminder, like the one I needed. The reminder about what Christmas can be if we can give up a little of ourselves for someone else. That we can celebrate joyfully this season and remember what it's all about.