Monday, February 22, 2010

Days 3-7!

Hi All!

I thought since all of us work very hard during the week, I would combine days 3-7 for you to pick and choose the days you'd like to share with us...those days which are especially meaningful to you.

I'm so thankful for each of you and for sharing this little piece of your life with this group! I feel a real sense of closeness with each of you.

Don't forget to read previous postings...they all are very special! Blessings to each of you as you travel along this road to health, healing, and wholeness.

Have a great week!!

Marisa

16 comments:

Anonymous said...

On Saturday we received a sizable check we had been waiting for over several weeks. It impressed me that it arrived just before the Sunday we had commited to giving a Haitian Relief gift. I had prayed about the amount of our gift..that God would speak to my heart and reveal the amount. When the check came, I knew the answer had come for God and I gave a tithe from the check to Haiti. A friend stepped up and gave a sizable check. Along with the other offerings our small congregation was able to give a donation that will be used for the work of an orphanage in Haiti. And I prayed for Shalimar and her work in the orphanage ministry.
Gini (mom)

Anonymous said...

I have a friend that I met this year at church, and her son committed suicide. She has created an organization to educate people on children and mental illness. She is having a 5K Hope Walk on April 18th. She asked me if I would design a poster and brochure for this. I'll be staying after work tonight to work on it. If you're interested in creating a walking team, you can go to http://www.johnshope.org.

Faithers

Donna said...

Well, my gift today seems rather trivial, but I gave my husband a gift by replacing the sheets on the bed with his favorites. He has been kind to me during this time of my being sick by not saying anything about the knit sheets which I love. So today, I decided that this would be my gift to him because I love him.

Anonymous said...

Today I gave my husband the things I had purchased for his birthday on the 25th. I gave them today because I wanted to give him something on a regular day to show my love for him...a just because gift. But what will I give him on Thursday? I agreed that he should go out to lunch with his son on Thursday, since Scott called to invite him. That is a big gift. We can celebrate another day.
Gini (mom)

Anonymous said...

I ran across this quote in a devotional today, and so I thought I would post it. :)

"Silent Gratitude isn't very much use to anyone." Gertrude B. Stein

Faithers

Scott said...

I, recently, met the most wonderful woman in the world, so the return on my gifts began before this project even started. However, to tell you all how it is going, I want you to know that today, I made one of my students smile by helping him to make a good choice that resulted in a large reward he really wanted.

Marisa and Brittany said...

Okay...I have to confess!! I was a bad girl last night :( My husband came to bed after I had been asleep for awhile and asked if I would warm his feet...they were frozen!! Of course I snapped, "Noooo way!!" After all, I was toasty and warm and SLEEPING!! Man...put those puppies on my legs and BAM...I'd be wide awake.

Anyway, I lived in guilt all day today because here we are right in the midst of our 29 day challenge and I snap a big fat "NO WAY!!" to my husband last night!

So, tonight when he got home from work, I apologized for my selfishness and had my lotion in hand and gave him a foot rub :)

He thanked me for my thoughtfulness and said, "Oh by the way, I would have never put my cold feet on you...I was just teasing you when I asked you to warm them." LOL!!

God has such a sense of humor, doesn't He?? I felt guilty all day really for no reason and Ron got a foot rub to boot...

Now that's what giving with no strings attached is all about...

At least until this weekend when I need something rubbed HA!!

What a great day!!

Marisa

Anonymous said...

Saturday i bought a coffee for a co worker. she was happy.

Sunday i took my mom shopping and we had lunch together.
when we spoke Monday i gave her uplifting and encouraging words/prayer.that we all need to work on less worrying and more faith.(i have to work on this daily too)

I cooked a meal Monday and shared.

nothing earth shattering but the small acts and talks i feel add up and really can make your day better also.

Karen

Anonymous said...

I have a co-worker who I haven't had the best of relations with over the years. Her and I both drink coffee, so I brought a new kind of coffee into work today and made a pot for us to share. We had a good day today. I think she appreciated the gesture. :)

Faithers

Rhonda said...

I love reading all the comments. I am going to have to meet all these girls that i do not already know.

Monday and Tuesday - I enjoyed fixing a friend a cup of coffee and talking about taxes for her business. I spent part of 2 days putting together orders for a Pampered Chef Catalog Party. About a month ago, I had a Pampered Chef Party, one of my friends that was there lost her house in a fire on Feb 12th. So I organized a party for her. She was named the host and recieved all the host benefits. She lost so many things in the fire that were irreplaceable. We just wanted her to know that we cared and wanted to share in her loss. The order will come in next week and it will be fun to give her all the stuff she was able to get.

Donna said...

Tonight, I was able to give the gift of reading to my soon to be 3 year old grandson. We read nursery rhymes, a story about dinosaurs, and a book about a little boy wanting to be an ambulance driver. He then curled up on my lap and promptly fell asleep as I massaged his feet. It was a real blessing to me to have this special time with him.
I also received a gift this week of being told by another grandson that he is going to be a big brother!!! That will be # 10. I am thrilled!!!!

Scott said...

My friend, Linda, posted this comment on my blog (http://lynija.blogspot.com/) and I thought it very appropriate for here also.

Hi All,

Very, very true. It is so easy for me to judge someone who isn't giving good service or for not being more customer orientated etc., etc. Some people don't pay attention to their relationships, even if they are being paid to do so, but for some there are very good reasons.

I read a long time ago that possibly the waitress is in a bad mood at the end of a long day because her feet are killing her or the clerk isn't giving you their full attention because their teenage son didn't come home last night and they are worried sick. "Be kinder than necessary because every one you meet is fighting some kind of battle."

If I look beyond the surface, there may be all kinds of reasons why people behave as they do....and I have to get beyond the perfectionist in me and remember that I can be pretty low on giving people my full attention when I am doing something really "urgent or important" that is, in reality, far less of both than the person right there in front of me.

In The Purpose Driven Life (I have lent my English copy to someone so cannot look it up - the perfectionist would lol!) there is a little prayer asking God that every day I make a difference in the lives of the people I encounter...it can be just a smile, a word of thanks or appreciation, taking the time to notice that someone is hurting...no matter what, people and relationships (including the very fleeting ones) are more important than all the rest of it. Jesus taught us that by example; if I start by trying to emulate Him, I won't go far wrong.

Have a blessed day.


Keep giving...Scott

Marisa and Brittany said...
This comment has been removed by the author.
Marisa and Brittany said...

I am so blessed by all of you and your comments...and your faithfulness to our little 29 day venture!!

I feel so honored and privileged to know such giving, dedicated people!!

On my way home from work on Wednesday, God prompted me to go to Hobby Lobby and purchase some "just because" gifts for some of my colleagues who are going through some challenging transitions. I wanted them to know how much they're loved and appreciated by me and most importantly...GOD!

Well, God had other things in mind as well because when I pulled into an empty parking spot at HL, I noticed in front of me was a woman with jumper cables in hand...her car wouldn't start and asked me if I would lend her a hand. I immediately thought of God's prompting me in that direction and thank Him for the blessings I received out of giving.

I gave my friends their little gifts and merely signed a note saying "God loves you!!" The blessing I received was that each one had an inclination that it was me (out of all the employees) who adorned their desks with little sweet nothings and I was inundated with words of appreciation.

Even though I gifted anonymously, God blessed me 100 fold with all of their kind words!!

Thanks to each of you for sharing this precious journey with me. I have gained a deeper love and appreciation for each of you through this and I've really enjoyed being more "others" minded and not so fixated on me!

'Til we "meet" again!!

Marisa

Rhonda said...

Wow, another week is history. Wed - Friday on this 29 day gift challenge. I babysat my neighbor's tripliet boys twice. Each time she was taking one of them to the doctor. They had colds that had moved into ear infections. Also on Wednesday, I put on my 2 timezone watch and set one face for the time in China. My neice and brother-in-law and team flew out Wednesday for a mission trip with Project Partner to there. My watch (which I never wear anymore) reminds me each time I look at it to pray for them. The funny thing is that this watch has a tendency to pinch me so I am reminded regularly to pray. This team of pastors from Kansas will not be home til March 8th.
Friday morning is a day Scott and I have set aside for each other for many years. We exercise, eat breakfast and spend some time catching up. Yesderday was nice because we have both been very busy and missed our Friday mornings for a couple weeks. It was a needed time to reconnect before he had to go to his clinic at AU. In the afternoon, I worked on Lys's taxes and Chris's FAFSA. Projects I will help them finish this weekend.
Life is a precious journey and even typing how I give away my day has made me even more aware of that.
So before us a new week. God help us listen to You and pursue the good that you call us too.
Rhonda

Susan said...

Last week seems like a blur, but I did get some 'gifting' done each day. I became a "note writer" a couple of years ago so I hope those count! Right now I seem to be spending more time in prayer for friends, specifically those with troubled family members (esp adult children).

I was blessed to spend the weekend traveling with my 18-yr-old daughter, and then my 19 yr old son made a quick trip home from college. I've been talking to them about the importance of understanding scripture, and wrote a one-page document on the chronology of the Bible. They now have that as a reference, which gives them a good working-knowledge of the historical context of scripture. I hope that is a gift that keeps on giving!

Another gift I'm enjoying -- Girl Scout cookies!!

Have a blessed week!