Tis the Season

It has been almost a year and a half now that my friend, Lori, and I have been "business partners." It really is interesting to think of ourselves in that manner, because while she may be more so than I, we really aren't business people. We are primarily in the business of wearing aprons and drinking wine while we create things our grandmothers would have created.

All that said, I think we are really, truly in the business of serving the Lord. We just do it in the the form of stitching, canning, and crafting. Last year at this time, we were blessed with an abundance of sales of our goods and we really wanted to do something special with the money we'd earned. Our good intentions quickly turned into an impasse about where to donate our money, and we just dropped the topic. In hindsight, we now know that it was the work of the Lord that led to that impasse, as we were both led to read a book called The Christmas Jars and found our money being rolled up in the middle of a change jar to be shared with a family truly in need.

Over the course of the past year, we have been blessed with many opportunities to provide in ways that we've felt God has called us to. We've been able to donate to victims of the earthquake in Haiti, provide weekend nutrition for a family for a year, donate to a local scholarship, help pay medical bills, and provide Christmas for a family in need. We've also learned that waiting for the Lord is imperative. There have been times when one or the other of us has had a "donation idea;" however, God has always provided the other with the discernment needed to make the right decision.

I feel very blessed to not only have a friend who loves to be "old' as much as I do, but who truly has a desire to serve the Lord. A friend who is willing to roll up her shirt-sleeves and make things happen, even if her fingers bleed in the process. So as we frantically try to fill all of the orders that this holiday brings, our waning spirits are renewed with the thought of smiling faces on Christmas and the understanding that God has plans for us far greater than we can ever imagine!