Party time.

Ok, so I haven't posted in a few days, things have been rather crazy around here. For the past several weeks my sisters and I have been planning a surprise retirement party for my Dad. And it truly was a surprise! My Dad retired last June so he never saw this coming haha. My Dad is a retired contractor and one of the men who had once worked for him suggested the idea this past winter and we have been working to make it happen ever since. We invited many of the people he built houses for and worked with over the past 25 years! I am exhausted, but so glad we were able to put this together for my Dad. I have to admit, I was not in my normal groove, so to speak, but this week will be much better. I was soo much more stressed this week and I know it's from trying to do it all on my own. Why do I think sometimes the Lord is only interested in helping me with things of the "church"? Ready to start a new week!

Love is a verb, so we loved...

Pinterest. Full of great ideas and it's where I got my great idea for today from. I saw a post on there about bags you can make up and just keep in the trunk of your car to give to homeless people when you come across them. Well I live in small town USA and don't often see homeless people but this seems like a brilliant idea.

 I've been meaning to make these up for a couple of weeks now but finally got to it today. Actually only after I was headed to Walmart and there was a man sitting on a nearby corner, with his dog, holding a sign did I actually start working on this. So I turned to my son and told him that if he was still there when we got out of the store we would help him. Inside I purchased some protein bars, water and several other foods that are packaged individually, will keep, and will not melt. I also purchased toothpaste, toothbrushes, deodorant, bars of soap, and gallon sized zip locked bags. Once we got to the parking lot I could still see the man sitting there so I told my son that we would get one bag made and then assess the situation from there. Some of the things we would try to figure out were whether or not he even wanted food, maybe he just needed a ride, and I also had to make sure it seemed safe. We searched through the bags and got a  full bag ready for this man. We hopped in the car and headed that way.

My son was definitely apprehensive about this (as was I but I was not about to show him). We talked about how God calls us to help those who are in need. As we got closer we could see that his sign read that he was traveling and hungry, I don't think God could have been any clearer that we were supposed to help this man. He wasn't asking for money or a ride,  he wanted food and food we had. I pulled in a parking lot next to him and turned to my son and asked if he was getting out to come with me, he quickly told me no and I quickly told him he was. This is something I hope we get to continue to do together (and I'd say often, but I don't want to run into homeless people often). My son reluctantly got out of the car with me and the man was already heading to us as well. I quickly walked over and handed him the bag of "goodies" and he thanked us over and over and I told him that God loved him. I hope he knows that! We got back in the car and as we pulled away we saw another man sleeping behind a dumpster. I think my son was amazed, we just don't see that here. I was a little shocked myself to be honest. We didn't go disturb him, maybe the two of them were travelling together? As I drove away I watched the man, part of me wanted to drive back by to see what he did with the stuff, but I can't think like that. I have to do what God asks me to do and leave it at that. Tomorrow I may go back and investigate further into the man behind the dumpster?

When I make up the other bags I plan to include a card of encouragement with a scripture or two in it. I was thankful to be able to share this learning opportunity with my son today. I hope it made a lasting impression on his heart of what it feels like to give. My son knows that we struggle ourselves, but God always provides for us, so if we're able we should help provide for others as well. We are thankful for such an awesome family to take us in when we were down on our luck. I pray that man today was blessed with his "goodies", and I will continue to pray for him. I have also thought of a few other things to do differently next time we are given the opportunity. I would ask the person for their first name so that I can pray for them by name. And I would actually include the bar of soap I purchased, haha, totally forgot it in this first bag.

I keep reminding myself that it's the small things that count. Can't get much smaller than this, so simple, yet could be such a blessing to someone truly in need. Excited to see what the Lord asks of me this week! I will keep praying everyday that He helps me love people to Him!