Government shutdowns and food insecurity demands attention on every platform from news to social media. We’d be blind to not be aware of the impact. No matter one’s political stance or what the government is trying to do or undo, a very real fact remains: almost everyone is affected by this shutdown. Retailers with less income, furloughed workers struggling to feed and house their children, extended family members trying to stretch their own food budgets…and the hungry suffer most of all when the government ceases to work properly.
It’s easy to be a helper in this season of want versus being able to give thanks…so why should you get involved? Many of us live with more month than money, so the first instinct is self-preservation. I’m already strapped. There’s nothing I can do. Resist that temptation and choose to give, if for no other reason than the fact that in giving, you reap the benefits.
Studies repeatedly confirm the value of giving. When you give, expecting nothing in return, something magical happens inside of you. Your heartrate goes down. Your mood is improved. Stress declines. You reap the reward of your giving. You become healthier and happier. Research confirms this over and over again. One study proved that your LDL (bad cholesterol) and your BMI (body mass index) decreased after just two weeks of giving to others. I don’t know about you, but I could use a lot more of that!
But it goes beyond that. Whether your motives are base or selfless, kindness is the social glue binding our communities together. When we give in even small ways, we add another layer of the insulation protecting our neighborhoods from the horrific violence and suffering we see around the world. As never before, we need to learn a very simple lesson: Give. Give wholeheartedly. Give expecting nothing in return. Just give.
Here are a few practical examples:
- Pick up a few cans of self-stable top pop canned goods and drop them off at a nearby food pantry.
- Buy some groceries and deliver them to a neighbor with no paycheck coming in.
- Donate a portion of your next check to a charity your trust, one which really helps the underserved, one with no paid employees. While we appaud the service of the many agencies who help others, we also realize many earn fat paychecks for that work. Find a ministry in which every dollar benefits the hungry. Your meager dollars will do more good.
- Buy fast food gift cards to give to the homeless along the road, or distribute blessing bags to people on street corners. What a great way to bind a neighborhood together in meeting to assemble them!
- Serve at a neighborhood food pantry or meal program. Practically every community offers a ministry for service, and they need help. As numbers seeking assistance continue to skyrocket, the people assembling grocery lines and cooking nourishing meals are stretched to meet the need.
The impact of generosity is very basic. Yes, it’s good for you, and more importantly, it’s good for your community. You can be part of the social glue binding your community together. You can make your neighborhood a safer, happier, healthier place to live.
