A Different Kind of Christmas

We had a really great Christmas!  We decided to do things differently this year and focus more on giving to people who don't have basic necessities instead of giving to people we knew who already have enough and asking for things for ourselves.  I read The Advent Conspiracy this year after finding out about it through our church last year.  I would highly recommend it to anyone and it is a very short book, which helps to fit into anyone's schedule too.  :)  So we did hand made gifts, which of course the girls love to do, we asked people to donate any money they would have spent on gifts for us and we were able to make donations to the Charles Mulli Foundation as well as to our church's Advent Conspiracy projects to help Syrian Refugees as well as a really cool organization in St. Louis that helps immigrants who have come here but are now struggling.  I really loved the focus we were able to have and the stress we did not have and the girls were really happy to get to help out others.  We really loved it!

We also learned about Christmas traditions in other countries, of course including Ethiopia.  So we learned about Ganna, both the holiday and the game, and the three circles of the church.  We learned about Timkat, the celebration of the baptism of Jesus celebrated on January 19.  When I told the girls about the game they play, yeferas guks, A thought it was such a funny name she laughed and spit water across the classroom.  I love learning more about Ethiopia and the wonderful culture. I think about our babies over there and wonder what their life is like and if they're being taken care of and then I think about all of the children that already exist around the world who are most definitely in broken situations, unthinkable situations, they are not safe and they are not taken care of, and it breaks my heart truly and deeply.  I just pray to God to show us direction on how we can help and to move the hearts of others to become informed and find ways to help.  There are so many wonderful organizations all around the world and sometimes we can give prayers, or money, or mission trips, or adoption, or child sponsorship, or Operation Christmas shoeboxes or anything to let people know that we care. 

There is so much that each and every one of us can do.  Just do something......

 And the King will answer and say to them, ‘Assuredly, I say to you, inasmuch as you did it to one of the least of these My brethren, you did it to Me.’  Matthew 25:40