Dedicated to Being a Blessing
You will be enriched in every way so that you can be generous on every occasion, and through us your generosity will result in thanksgiving to God. II Corinthians 9.11
As my church begins our outreach ministry of providing book bags and school supplies to children in need for September, this story caught my eye:
In 1987, a 74-year-old rickshaw puller by the name of Bai Fangli came back to his hometown in China planning to retire from his backbreaking job. There, he saw children working in the fields, because they were too poor to afford school fees. Bai went back to work as a rickshaw puller, taking a modest accommodation next to the railway station. He waited for clients 24 hours a day, ate simple food and wore discarded second-hand clothes he found. He gave all of his hard-earned earnings to support children who could not afford an education.
In 2001, he drove his rickshaw to Tianjin YaoHua Middle School, to deliver his last installment of money. Nearly 90 years old, he told the students that he couldn't work anymore. All of the students and teachers were moved to tears. In 18 years Bai had given 350,000 yuan ($48,859.48 US dollars) to provide an education for 300 children.
Imagine what you and I can do with the resources God has entrusted to us to bring about blessings in this world!
Good and gracious God, inspire us by the power of the Holy Spirit to be generous with all of our resources, and even our very lives, to be a blessing to those in need. In Jesus’ name, Amen.