April 2, 2010
Taking the Time to Make a Difference
Giving a gift, giving it away
BY PAUL R. LEINGANG
(Listen to Paul read this column | Weekly podcast)
What’s the best gift you have ever given? What is the most valuable thing you ever gave away?
Those questions came to mind late in Lent, prompted by several things I read.
I remember giving away some money to a man who told me his daughter needed an expensive prescription. Along with the money I gave him my trust that he would use it for the right thing.
I remember giving a ride to a hitchhiker. But all along the way, I wondered if I had given away my personal safety.
I also remember questioning my wife about her wish to give away something that I thought was still perfectly good. She questioned me why I would want to wait to give somebody something that was no longer any good.
In the February 2010 issue of Columban Mission, published by the Missionary Society of St. Columban, Father Sean Dwan writes about greed and gratitude. He includes an account of a potlatch — the ceremonial feasts held by some of the indigenous peoples of the American northwest.
For some, a potlatch was a time of competition among tribal leaders, a competition in gift-giving. The more one gave away, the more prestige one gained.
One chief not only fed several hundred people for the two week ceremony, but also distributed 18,000 blankets, 700 bracelets, one dozen canoes, some sewing machines, outboard motors, pots and pans, clothing and sacks of flour.
“What a way to vanquish one’s competitiors and even out the playing field!” Father Dwan concluded.
It is curious to note that both the United States and Canada made the potlatch illegal for a while because it was considered contrary to civilized values.
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Susan Vogt, on her website, www.susanvogt.net, describes her Lenten practice of giving away something every day.
She explained that she held the belief that “simplifying one’s life can make it happier, more satisfying, and save a lot of time looking for things” while at the same time, she acknowledged being a pack-rat.
“My approach to simplifying my life up to this point has usually taken the form of organizing my stuff better so that I don’t see clutter and can find things more easily. This is good, but there is a limit to how much organizing can accomplish. Eventually the closets are packed too tight and my spiritual side calls me to a deeper level than just organizing.”
So she started giving things away. Shoes one day, board games another, VCR tapes, wrapping paper and candles, sports equipment, curtains and so on.
You’ll have to go to her website to read the entries in her blog for the fun of it and for the challenge, too.
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As Easter approached, I realized the simple, central truth of our faith — that God has given us one truly unmatchable gift. Jesus who became one of us so that we could become one with God.
It was not an easy gift, but for us, Jesus emptied himself (Philippians 2) without regard for his personal safety, with the trust that we would receive it well.
It’s time now to celebrate the Resurrection and the ultimate difference God made in human history. We can do our best to share with our children and our neighbors the gift of faith we have received.
Jesus said that when we do something for the least among us, we are doing something for him.
Even though we can’t outdo God, we can give the living Jesus among us the gift of some blankets and shoes and food and other items that will make a difference today and forever.
Comments are welcome at office@cfm.org or the Christian Family Movement, P.O. Box 925, Evansvsille, IN 47706-0925