Giving season doesn't end with the holidays

After the holidays are past and we all get on with the business of living, we sometimes forget to keep giving.

But places like food banks, hospitals, and animal shelters need donations all year long. The needs are always there but the excitement of the giving season slows down.

I want to remind everyone that giving isn’t just about money. It is true that most organizations need money but they can use others things as well.

When my youngest daughter was little, she decided to go down her slide with her legs tucked under her body. When she hit the bottom, she knocked her knee cap off to the side. The result was numerous trips to the Shriner’s Children’s Hospital in Spokane.

On one of these occasions, she needed blood drawn and it seemed like the nurses just couldn’t find a vein. At the point when this child couldn’t accept another needle, a nurse brought in a “comfort blanket” made by a group of Spokane ladies. This blanket helped my daughter calm down enough to let the nurses actually draw blood.

This is a prime example of giving. My family has made comfort blankets ever since and we don’t just give them to Shriner’s. We give them to any facility that treats children.

You can also give your time. The animal shelters always need volunteers and foster families for the animals. Love goes a long way in helping one of God’s creatures who is scared and lonely.

I truly believe that God counts all the ways we help others as giving. Our Lord just requires that you do it with happiness in your heart and not for the praise you receive from others.

Giving back isn’t about your glory. Matthew 6:14 says, “Be careful not to practice your righteousness in front of people, to be seen by them. Otherwise, you will have no reward from your Father in heaven.”

The other aspect of giving is that you can never outgive the Lord. What you give will come back to you in hundreds of different ways.

My favorite giving verse is Luke 6:38, “Give, and it will be given to you.” I can testify from personal experience that the more I give, the less I need. I always seem to have enough to eat, my wages cover all my bills and I have good health and a great family.

These are things that I just can’t buy. It isn’t just the Bible that tells us that we should give to others. Financial guru Suze Orman says, “Don’t hold on to what you have so tightly that you can’t receive what you need”. She tells all her clients to generously give and open doors that were previously closed.

That’s what God wants all of us to do. Be generous and loving. Show the face of God to the world and in return received the wonderful opportunities that our Lord will send our way. Praise be to God.