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Guidelines for Alternative Giving
- Introduction
- Plan Your Gift Giving!
- Give Yourself
- Buy With Conscience!
- Remember Whose Birthday It Is!
Introduction
Giving is at the heart of Christmas! We remember God's great gift by giving to others. But do we get caught up looking through Christmas catalogs, store shelves and sale papers only to find that we have forgotten whose birthday we are celebrating?
Plan Your Gift Giving!
In the midst of the Christmas rush, it is difficult to be intentional about your gift giving. Take time out before the Christmas season to make decisions about your gift giving practices. Consider the following suggestions:
- DO make plans to discuss alternative ways of giving with your household or those with whom you usually exchange gifts.
- DON'T look at catalog or go to the malls to it get ideas" of what to give.
- DON'T buy anything you can't pay for this December.
- DON'T wait until the last minute when the commercial pressures are the greatest.
- DO consider the true interests and needs of the person to whom you are giving.
Give Yourself
The best gift is the giving of oneself through sharing time or skills. Those who are busy may find that giving an uninterrupted period of time to a child, a family member or friend on a regular basis can be the best present. By using your skills, you can give yourself in what you make or do.
- COOK traditional foods like cookies and fruitcake or a personal specialty like bread or apple butter to give to others. Invite friends to share their family recipes;
- SEW a simple pattern, then personalize it with embroidered initials or an appliquéed design. Sew chair cushions, pillows, place mats or a rug to suit the recipient's tastes. Sew a soft toy or beanbags or puppets for a child.
- TUNE UP a friend's car, or offer other special mechanical expertise.
- RENEW an old possession. Make new clothes for a well-loved doll, rebind a tattered book, refinish a scarred chest or chair.
- BUILD shelves, a spice rack, a window box, a bird house, a gerbil cage, a sand box, a doll house, a lamp, a set of blocks or a game.
- PLANT spring bulbs on pebbles or in a bulb glass to bloom in the middle of winter. Plant a terrarium in an aquarium or large jar. Plant a windowsill herb garden.
- TEACH a language, how to play a musical instrument, swimming or tennis.
- PHOTOGRAPH family members or friends. Make a collage or album using photographs from past Christmases, gatherings or special times.
- WRITE a history of your family (for family members) or a history of your friendship with a particular person. Include some old photos.
Buy With Conscience!
We are not opposed to the purchase of gifts. However, we do believe that purchasing gifts requires careful thought. Consider the following:
- DO give gifts that reflect the values you want to share. What does it say, for example, to give a war toy to a child?
- DO respect the environment in the gifts you select. How is the environment affected by the production of and disposal of the gift?
- DO consider gifts from self-help craft groups where your purchase supports the preservation of traditional crafts and skills as well as the efforts of low-income people to become self-sufficient.
Remember Whose Birthday It Is!
When we celebrate a birthday, we give gifts to the person whose birthday it is. Moreover, we are careful to choose what that person expressly wants and needs. Is there any doubt about what Jesus wants us to give him? He pointedly insists that in order to give to him, we must find him in the hungry, the thirsty, the stranger, the naked, the sick and the imprisoned.
- VOLUNTEER your time to help in a program or participate on a committee which serves the poor, the elderly, the homeless, the jobless, those in prison or in hospitals.
- OFFER your skills to help keep organizations going, such as cooking, teaching, auto repair, bookkeeping, counseling, or maintenance.
- DONATE money to support programs in your denomination or community which help people in difficult situations. As a "birthday gift" to Jesus, plan to give 25% of your Christmas budget for those who Christ came to serve.
Many More Interesting Christmas Articles
Page updated 22 October 2012
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