Zero Degrees

Each of you should give what you have decided in your heart to give, not reluctantly or under compulsion, for God loves a cheerful giver.

—2 Corinthians 9:7

It’s literally zero degrees in Chicago today. It’s scary weather, where gas freezes in tanks and where a failing furnace quickly becomes an emergency situation. All over Chicago there are people who can’t feed their families, so they’re going to work anyway. They’re bundling up their kids in whatever they have, and it’s probably not enough.

The chill I feel today reminds me that the needs in our communities aren’t theoretical or abstract: we’re talking about mothers and babies, empty bellies, painfully cold fingers and toes, coughs that don’t quit.

Part of our purpose here on earth is to use everything God has given us—our days, our talents, our finances, our dreams, our homes, our very selves—with great wisdom and passion, to heal and help.

So I’m boxing up canned goods and dropping them off at a nearby food pantry, tucking a check with the cans. Local needs, local solutions, from mother to mother. As I drive, I’m praying for moms just like me, in this town, and I’m praying that what God has given our family can help another family, too.