You Can Make A Difference

I'm sure you have heard the words "you can make a difference" at one time or another in your life.  Today I want to share with you a few ways you can make a HUGE difference in someone's life and it isn't going to cost you a lot of money or a lot of time.  Are you interested?

First of all, I want to share with you how my life is FOREVER CHANGED.  So much so that I am holding back tears as I write this post.  My goal today is not to toot my own horn.  I am not here to preach to you as my pastor would certainly tell you I do not go to church as often as I should.  However, he knows I am here if he EVER needs me for anything.  My goal is to enlighten you on what you can do to make a HUGE difference in another human being's life and remind you of what we have always been told in our journey of life.

Now I am not here to judge.  I am sure you have given in many ways at different times of your life.  We have always been givers...this is a new way for us to give.  No judgement here.  EVER!

"If you think you are too small to make a difference, try sleeping with a mosquito."

~ Dalai Lama

Five weeks ago I started volunteering at Christian Helping Hands in Pearland.  I knew they were a food pantry as our church has collected canned goods for them for years.  In fact, our church had a huge part in getting them started.  But that was all I knew.

#christianhelpinghands

My goal was to find a positive way to use my time and skills so I decided to volunteer at CHH six weeks ago.  Well the real truth is God has been nudging me to do it since last Fall.  I'm not kidding.  But when I mentioned it to the hubs he asked me to wait until after Christmas.  Even though I was feeling a really strong pull I said okay.  Well January comes around and I was so busy packing up our Christmas decor and I put it off until the end of March.  :(  So one day I stopped by CHH and dropped off my resume.  :)  The next day the Director of Operations called me to make sure I knew it wasn't a paying job!  Ha!  As of today, I have worked five Mondays.  Can I tell you how much I love working there?  It is so rewarding in so many ways.  I've made some amazing new friends from all walks of life.  Most of them are retired and one is a stay at home mom.

The best part is everyone is happy.  No one is complaining and they are happy to be there.  Do you know how awesome it is to be surrounded by people that are happy to be working for others?  It is AMAZING!!!  Your heart will swell ten times over.  I promise!

I want to tell you a little about what I do.  My first day I was partnered to work with Kelly (SAHM).  It was a perfect match.  We are both outgoing, are moms, and love to work ahead.  Neither one of us are slackers!  :)  In fact, we are always helping the many different areas if they need it.

We are responsible for the baby area (diapers, all foods, shampoos, wipes, etc.), toilet paper, soap, shampoo, deodorant, detergent, toothpaste, toothbrushes, razors, etc.  Basically everything you need to take care of yourself.  And I get to pick out the prayer blankets for the little babies.  :)  And yes, I added my own special prayer for a sweet baby boy this past Monday.  :)

I was quite surprised to find out that no one, other than Kelly and I (on Mondays) likes to work in this area.  Everyone else thinks it's a pain because there are so many little things.  Not us...we love it!

Yesterday when we reported for work, we were almost out of toilet paper and body soap.  As you know, those are very important items needed on a daily basis.  So one of the volunteers went to the store and came back with cases of TP and soap.  We were so happy!  It is not a good day if someone requests our products and we don't have them.  We take it to heart.

Well yesterday a sweet lady (a friend of one of the volunteers) came by with a delivery of items we carry in our area.  She had been told how low our supplies were.  I'd guess she spent about $100 at the Dollar Tree.  Kelly and I were so excited!!!  You would have thought it was Christmas.  The best part is we got to meet the lady, as she had forgotten a purchase amongst the items she donated.  We were able to tell her how much we truly appreciated her donations.  I could tell we made her day.  She was beaming!  And I imagine her heart was swelling, too.  :)

Here are a few pics of the items she donated.

Sunscreen is a something we normally don't have...how awesome it was she thought of picking some up!

The message I hope to get to you today is there are SO MANY ways you can play a role in making a difference in someone else's life who may have fallen on hard times.

You can make a cash donation to the shelter.

You can go out and purchase the items yourself and drop them off.

Our Kroger has pre-packed brown bags of items you can purchase.

(The prices vary as the items do.  Some of them have soup, mac and cheese, rice, beans, etc.)

You can collect donations at your church.

(If you shop your own pantry, please look at the expiration dates before donating. Just yesterday we had canned goods that were donated that expired in 2010!!!)

Crochet a prayer blanket for a baby.

Take this opportunity to have an amazing "teaching" lesson with your children on how important it is to give to others in need, regardless of why.

If you find yourself in need of help, please do not hesitate to reach out to your local churches.  They will be able to steer you in the right direction to get the assistance you need.

Guess what?  I got promoted!!!  :)  Six weeks and I have already been promoted!  I am in charge of Public Relations.  I am responsible for taking photos and writing articles for the local paper.  See, I knew someone needed my talents!  :)

#godissogood

Thank you for stopping by.  I hope you have a very blessed day.  You certainly deserve it!!!

Take care,

xoxoxo

Debbie