Giving in Financial Hardship
I cannot tell you how many times I have gone to my cupboards to fill a box with food for a family in need. From the day we married, my husband and I have tried to look for opportunities to help others. Food is an easy thing to give, and something we always had plenty of on hand.
There came a time though, when our cupboards were frequently bare. When our only response to the needs of others had to be, "I wish I could do something". When any items offered to others would have mean that our own children did without something they needed.
It was a very hard time for us. We had to be receivers instead of giving. We had to redefine our definition of what we really needed. And we felt guilty, because if we had managed what we had a little better, we may have been in a better position to continue to help others.
We found though, after a time, that we had something else to give. When friends and acquaintances were in deep financial trouble, we could now say, "We've been there, we know how hard it is." We could offer sympathy and understanding that we did not possess before.
And even more valuable - we could offer suggestions for solutions that we did not know about before. We could help someone to know whether the items they had lurking around their house would bring anything at yardsale or on eBay. We knew ways to earn money in the midst of hardship that we had not known before. We knew we could call our creditors and talk to them to buy time. We knew what to do when the car broke down and there was no money to fix it.
We'd all prefer to be in a position to give the easy things. But times in our life when we lack the ability to do that, often prepares us to be able to give something of even greater value. In order to get to that point though, we have to endure hardships that we'd really rather not endure.
Something good does come of it though. And sometimes, the thing you have to give is not the thing that you think you ought to be able to give, but in the end, it can be of much more use to the recipient.
Written by Laura Wheeler
Owner, Firelight Web Studio
http://www.firelightwebstudio.com
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