The Musical Nutcracker - The One Year Daily Acts of Kindness Devotional

The Musical Nutcracker

Give, and you will receive. Your gift will return to you in full—pressed down, shaken together to make room for more, running over, and poured into your lap. The amount you give will determine the amount you get back.

Luke 6:38

Whisking into the craft store with my kids in tow, I was surprised—but not shocked—to see Christmas decor filling the shelves and spilling out into the center-aisle endcaps. Halloween hadn’t even passed and already retailers were stocking merchandise geared toward the Christmas season.

After I completed my mission, my son asked to stop by the nutcrackers. Sighing internally, I agreed and watched as the kids happily race-walked over to the massive display of nutcrackers of every size, shape, and style. Upon catching up, I noticed that they were cradling a musical drummer-boy nutcracker and whispering excitedly to one another about how much their beloved music teacher would love such a gift.

They turned to me, and their plea slipped out: “Can we please buy this for Ms. Kruse’s Christmas present?” This request was followed by the logic that, because Ms. Kruse loves nutcrackers and loves music, this musical nutcracker would be the perfect gift for her.

While I secretly wondered whether their music teacher really loves nutcrackers so much, I recognized that my children were doing exactly what my husband and I try to instill in them—thinking thoughtfully and generously of someone else and then turning those thoughts into tangible actions.

As silly as it felt leaving the store with a musical nutcracker when it was not even close to Christmas, I was reminded that I need to recognize when God is working through my kids and encourage that rather than shut it down. Aaron and I want our kids to be generous, and that means we actively fan the flames of generous, abundant giving when we see the desire in them. We have witnessed, time and again, that generous, faithful giving returns to us in ways that are immeasurably more than what we first gave away, and we want to keep teaching this to our kids. We cannot outgive God, and he always returns our gifts in full.

—Julie

— Today’s Act of Kindness —

Look for ways to fan the flames of generosity in a child’s life.