First Sunday in Advent
Read
Whoever is generous to the poor lends to the Lord,
and he will repay him for his deed.
Proverbs 19:17
Reflect
Her name was Shaundra, and with a single phone call, she would unknowingly change my life.
It was Christmas Eve 2008, and it was my first year working as the parish administrator at St. Jude’s Church in Marietta, Ga. In the early afternoon, I received a call from a young woman who identified herself as Shaundra. She was a single mother with two small children, and her public assistance check had not arrived. She said she was out of money, almost out of food and out of options. Because of the holiday, it would be at least two days until she had anything in her pantry. All she really wanted was to feed her children.
I’d only been at St. Jude’s for four months, but I was already becoming adept at spotting a good “story.” A lot of people are quite skilled at getting things from churches and charities. Many even develop portfolios of documents that they think will prove that their need is real and worth your time and money. In 2009, a man named Joseph came to us with a story about being displaced by a flood, and we ended up helping him with a little money, food and some work we needed done. About 20 other churches in the area also helped Joseph – whose actual name was Marvin – and he was arrested for about $20,000 of fraud.
On that afternoon in December, something in my heart told me that Shaundra was on the level. She wasn’t asking for much, and there was a genuine desperation in her tone. I was knee-deep in details that needed to be handled before heading home, but I promised her that I would do what I could and be there later in the day. I finally got free around 5 p.m. and I pulled the available cash from the parish funds, which I think was maybe $20. That wasn’t going to go far, so I spent some of my own money to make sure I put together a decent assortment of food that would tide them over until the check arrived. I added a couple of toys so that the children would have something to play with.
To have been obedient to the Lord’s calling would have been enough, but the reality of Shaundra’s situation – as well as her reaction to the groceries – was what made this a life-changing experience. I called to let Shaundra know I was on my way, and she was waiting on the sidewalk outside her apartment when I arrived. Her gratitude was instantly apparent, and she offered to help carry the groceries inside. There, I found that she had almost no furniture in her home – just some mattresses in the two bedrooms, plus a couple of plastic chairs and a little table. Her refrigerator was empty aside from a few items. I knew that the Lord had prompted me to help someone who was truly in need and that without my help she and her children would have been hungry on Christmas Day.
As I left, tears began to stream down my face. I cried most of the way home, knowing that it wasn’t Shaundra and her children who had gotten the biggest present that day. No matter what was under the tree with my name on it, my biggest Christmas present was what I received from being able to give. My wife and daughter were inspired enough by the story that we decided to make a surprise return to Shaundra to give her a couple of chairs that we were going to donate to charity. Lizzi even asked if it would be OK to take along some of her stuffed animals and toys to give to the children. Of course, I agreed. (I was actually very proud that my daughter had caught the giving spirit.)
As we enter the Christmas season, our focus will be pulled in a thousand different directions. Travel. Shopping. Cooking. Family. Church. Will there be enough money for everything? And will we get something we want for Christmas? In the midst of all of that (and more) make sure to remember that the whole notion of Christmas started with a gift – the gift of Jesus Christ to a world that needed a Savior. God gave sacrificially to all of us, and the spirit of that gift should be at the heart of the season. Look for ways that the Lord might want to use you to touch the lives of people you encounter each day. You might just find that the gift you’re looking for won’t show up in a stocking or under a tree.
Reflection copyright © 2025 Doug DeBolt.
