Have you ever thought about making a sacrifice?  What does that entail for you?  How do you define sacrifice?

Sacrifice means to give up something of value in order to help someone or for something.  It can be defined many ways.  To me sacrifice is my giving up a part of myself and learning to give to others in return.  I have been blessed with so much in this life and there are those who will never have what I have.  Do I feel guilty about this?  Yes, I do.  I feel guilty that so many have nothing while I have plenty and then some to go around.

Now do not get me wrong.  I am not rich in the normal definition of the word, but compared to many third world nations, I am very rich because I have a roof over my head and food on my table.  I have a car to get around and money to pay my bills.

Thinking about all that I have made me want to address my situation and try to make someone else’s life just a little better.  I needed to make a sacrifice in order to do this.  What can I live without?  I tend to spend a lot of money on eating out.  It is not a trait I am proud of, rather I am ashamed at the amount of money I have spent over the years on eating out.  I was determined to feed the flesh and I was oblivious to how hungry my soul was.

Over the years I have spottily donated to several causes and that made me think even harder about this sacrifice.  I love to help out when I can, but being human and having weaknesses, sometimes my selfish “wants” win out.  I decided it was time to leave my comfort zone and settle into new territory.  The terrain is rough and hilly.  In fact it has many ups and downs, but if I stay focused on what is more important I can navigate around the treacherous terrain with my soul intact.

Over the years I have spoken about my desire to take action and help those in need.  I have given some support, but I need to do so much more.  I need to really experience the embodiment of helping my brothers and sisters out.  So where do I begin and how do I keep it going?

As I have mentioned I have pondered this for quite some time.  I have prayed on it and I have been convicted in my heart to do something.  I was very good at talking about what I needed to do, but I failed in the “acting on it” department.  I set my expectations too high.  At first, I said I will donate a lot of money, but I did not have a lot of money.  I stressed out about this thinking where will I get this money and because of that I got the message all wrong.

Give what you can, but give from your heart is the correct message.  It is not about the amount you give, but about the spirit in which you give.  I think of the widow who gave all she had because she wanted to help someone.  That is the example to strive for, basically put one needs to work with what they have.  Yes, it would be fantastic for me to give large donations, but at this particular time in my life, I do not have a lot of money.  I do, however, have a huge heart and an eagerness to give what I can at this point in time.  It may be small, but it is all I have to give.  I give it because I want to serve, I want to assist, and I want to feel the joy of knowing I was there for someone.

I do not advertise this to people because it is something I share with my Lord.  He knows my heart.  He knows my finances.  He knows how much I enjoy any opportunity to help.  That is where you need to begin.  You need to decide for yourself why you are doing this.  Is it to let others know that you give donations?  Is it with a full heart?  Who are you trying to please:  yourself or someone else?  Or are you doing this because you were called to do so and if so, you understand the joy that bursts in your heart each time you answer this call?  I hope for everyone it is the latter example.

Once you decide this is something you want to do, then you must commit fully and sacrifice something of yourself in order to do this.  It could be money, it could be time, and it could be talent.  Whatever it is, be willing to make this sacrifice and then just wait for the opportunities to arise.  Trust me they will appear and you will feel thankful that you are a blessing to someone in need.

Right now the victims in the Philippines need our help.  There will always be a victim of disaster or of circumstance.  Many people are struggling to make ends meet or are desperately in need of food to survive.  Children are suffering all over this world and the homeless community sadly is continuing to grow.  There will always be a need that we can meet.

I am not trying to preach, but rather asking everyone to look within themselves and see if you can help make a difference in someone’s life for a good cause.  Sacrifice is hard, but so worth it if we can reach out and make life better for someone else.  Do unto others as you would have done for you…isn’t that golden rule’s advice worth heeding?