Christmas Canes

Two stories touched my heart this Christmas. Both were connected and both were examples of how people can go beyond to make radical generosity a way of life.

One of the collections we had at Christmastime was a project called "Christmas Canes." We collected aluminum, collapsible walking canes to be given to the people we serve in Honduras, many of whom use brooms or tree branches when they have trouble walking around.

A young girl heard about this project to collect Christmas canes and was inspired to help. So when she went to visit Santa Claus this Christmas, can you guessed what she asked for? You guessed it. She asked Santa for an aluminum cane. The girl did end up getting a cane, which she joyfully donated to our drive.

This story was shared during one of our Christmas Eve services. After the service, a man came up to me. He was using a cane to walk. When he got to me, he paused and held up his cane. "Can you use this?" he asked. Before I could really answer, he handed the cane to me and hobbled off.

I love stories like this, especially at Christmas, because they reflect the radical generosity of our God who has given us so much, including his one and only Son. May we all be inspired this year to go beyond by making radical generosity a way of life. Happy New Year!