Service

Ten Ideas for “Giving Up” Your Holidays

by Andy Wood on November 18, 2008

in Life Currency

We’re giving up Christmas this year.  Thanksgiving, too.  And if I have my way, New Year’s day will follow suit.

It all started with a meeting by our Creative Team at the church.  The conversation was about what to do this holiday season.  What’s on people’s minds?  What are they thinking/planning for the holidays, especially Christmas?

As the conversation flowed, it followed themes such as people who were giving in to discouragement, fear, and despair because of the e-word.  Also, one couple talked about giving out to charity instead of buying family a bunch of stuff they didn’t particularly want or need.

We talked about how Christmas has become jacked up because of the demands and expectations we place on it – how it’s supposed to magically solve all our problems or bring some sort of enchantment to our otherwise unhappy lives.

We talked about the pressure to make Christmas tricked up – raising the materialistic bar year in and year out.  We’ve been keeping up with the Joneses, only to discover that we are the Joneses.

We talked about how, biblically, God one-upped Zecharias, the father of John the Baptist.  God always seems to be able to out-give, out-serve, out-surprise the greatest acts of our service or obedience.

And we talked about the ultimate Gift – offered up by God to a world too busy to care.

So, our theme for Christmas is, Give It Up!  Before you give in or give out, give up!  That’s exactly what God did with His Son.  Now He awaits your response.

But why wait for Christmas Day?  Why not start now, in the Thanksgiving season, to offer up our lives, first to God, then to others?  For many of us, this will be an opportunity, albeit unwelcome, to really discover that it’s not about the toys and trinkets as much as it is about the love, the joy, the life, and the service we offer up.  So in that spirit, I thought I’d share ten ways you can give to others in life-affirming ways for little or no money.  I would encourage you to do some or all of these things, regardless of your financial status. [click to continue…]

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Red Shoes and More

by Andy Wood on May 26, 2008

in Life Currency, Love, LV Stories, Words

Red ShoesLouise has had a rare kind of kidney cancer for the last 10-11 months.  She believes in prayer, and has a lot of people praying for her.  Add your own prayers to the list on her behalf.  She believes that with God’s help, she can beat it.

She receives chemotherapy treatments, and recently had an idea for a way to brighten her day while she was taking them:  Red shoes.

“I just thought the would make me feel better to look down at my red shoes,” she explained.

So she called Zappos to place her order.  She was greeted with their “usual greeting that is so comforting.”  She skipped the company’s joke of the day, and soon was greeted with a customer service rep.  “Gracious” was the word she used to describe this individual who helped her with her order.  “We talked a little, and I explained why I wanted these shoes.  She, as all of your employees, [went] out of her way to please customers.  That was that.”

The next day, to her surprise, Louise received a beautiful arrangement of red tulips, in a bright red vase and a beautiful red ribbon.  She couldn’t imagine who sent them.  She opened the card and began to cry.  The card read,

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How’s THIS for a Tip?

by Andy Wood on February 20, 2008

in Consumers, Gamblers, Hoarders, LV Alter-egos, LV Stories

MarvinThen there’s Marvin Burchall.

Two years ago, Marvin is on the job in his native Burmuda, waiting tables at a resort. And from his perspective, that’s all he was doing. His job.

Lynn Bak saw it a bit differently. She saw an outgoing, approachable young man whose impeccable service and attention to detail revealed a professionalism way beyond his 23 years.

Lynn Bak is paid to know these kinds of things. She coordinates the School of International Education in Bermuda for Endicott College, whose main campus is in metropolitan Boston. She travels to the Elbow Beach Bermuda resort every three weeks or so. And a couple of years ago, she got to know Marvin.  You won’t believe what happened next.

[click to continue…]

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Somebody Else’s Hassle May Be Your Opportunity

by Andy Wood on January 23, 2008

in LV Stories

TireMy wife’s car had a flat tire today. There was no question what to do. We called Flores Tire. I’d like to tell you why.

When babies are born, God gives them a voice and lungs to sound the alarm when they have a need. The only word they know is “Whaaaaa,” but it works pretty well.

When babies go to college, only the vocabulary changes. [click to continue…]

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