Packing Shoeboxes

Do you know about Operation Christmas child? They give shoeboxes to children around the world who basically have nothing. In those shoeboxes are simple items that we take for granted like toothbrushes and soap. They also have school supplies and toys or other fun things. Whatever someone feels led to put into the shoebox. These are items that we take for granted but to these children they are needed treasures. I love that meeting this simple need opens the door for such a greater impact in a child's life. They get an eternal treasure also, the love of Jesus. And that is the greatest gift anyone can receive.

The junior high group packed shoeboxes for Operation Christmas Child a few weeks ago and I dropped them off at our collection site yesterday.  I am so amazed at how many boxes our tiny group was able to fill. I challenged them to bring in items all throughout the month of October for the boxes and then we put everything together to fill as many boxes as we could. I was really thinking we would be able to fill somewhere around five boxes and I was so amazed and blessed that we had enough items to fill 18 boxes!

That is 18 young people whose lives will be touched by receiving a little box filled with simple items like pencils, pens, toothbrushes and a pair of socks plus fun things like stuffed animals, yo-yos, puzzles, and so much more. (It is crazy how much is able to fit in a shoebox.) We actually put an umbrella and a rain poncho in each of ours also. We used the little plastic shoebox sized containers because those can be really useful to whomever receives them. I registered the boxes online so that we could track where they would end up and we know that they will bless a child in another part of the world. It is such an easy way to be able to touch the life of someone you would never be able to have any impact on otherwise.

There is still time if you want to impact a child’s life through a shoebox. Just go to the Operation Christmas Child  to find all the details. Collections for this year go through the 19th of November. But then there will always be next year if you miss the deadline.

We will be praying for the children that are going to receive those boxes and for their families. I cannot wait to see where our boxes will end up. I know that God will use each box in a mighty way.