Cheerful giving comes from love

 

There are many ways to give, though we usually only hear about money. Of course, money is needed to pay for expenses. But consider:

• Those who are there to be willingly used for their time, talent, and enthusiasm are also givers. 
• Those who donate blood or platelets are givers. 
• Those who make food or repair teddy bears for refugee children are givers.
• Those who take people to medical appointments and stay to hold their hand are givers. 
• Those who clean out their closets and donate "fat clothes" or "skinny clothes" are givers.
• Those who are kind and uplifting are givers. 
• Those who enable others to give are themselves participants in giving.
• Those who make chicken soup for a sick friend are givers.
• Those who volunteer their professional or organizational skills are givers. 
• And yes, money counts. But it's not love. Doing and Being are Love.

They are CHEERFUL givers — no  one is pressuring them, because it's the state of their hearts.

Governor Katie Hobbs,
Christy K Robinson

Recently, I was helping at a Thanksgiving meal cooked and served to indigent seniors. People had donated money toward groceries, and some had brought whole roasted turkeys or hams, and huge pans of mashed potatoes or dressing or vegetables. One man brought large pies from the Costco bakery where he works. All brought their gifts of hospitality and service to others. And into our midst walked the Arizona's governor, Katie Hobbs, without a press team or video cameras or even letting our team know she'd be coming to help. She was dressed in a black shirt and khaki slacks, with her hair up in a ponytail, there to help serve the food, and to talk with the people who came to enjoy a delicious feast. Gov. Hobbs has a Master of Social Work degree and worked in that field for years before she served in the state legislature, as Secretary of State, and then Governor. She's a cheerful giver! 

Why does God love a cheerful giver? Because God is Love, he is compassionate and merciful, and gives and forgives (Exodus 34:6). When we do similar acts (the Golden Rule), we show that we are his children and we look like our Abba. Yes, God loves all people, when they're naughty and when they're nice. But I believe that we can give him joy, and we can expand his heart when we make him proud. 

It's a circle. God loves us, and we make others feel loved, which turns our faces back to the source of love. But it's not a closed circle. Givers are all about inviting you to share your presence and your love in the circle.

******* 

Christy K Robinson is author of these books (click the colored title):  

We Shall Be Changed (2010)

Mary Dyer Illuminated Vol. 1 (2013)  

Mary Dyer: For Such a Time as This Vol. 2 (2014)

The Dyers of London, Boston, & Newport Vol. 3 (2014)  

Effigy Hunter (2015)  

Anne Marbury Hutchinson: American Founding Mother (2018)

And of these sites:  

Discovering Love  (inspiration and service)

Rooting for Ancestors  (history and genealogy)

William and Mary Barrett Dyer (17th century culture and history of England and New England)

Editornado [ed•i•tohr•NAY•doh] (Words. Communications. Book reviews. Cartoons.)

Best thing since sliced bread

 © 2023 Christy K Robinson

1. 🤣 Yes, it's a meme. Yes, I have a sense of humor. But...

2. We all have "those" kind of people trying to steal our joy. I'm not saying to sever the relationship, but shaking the dust from your sandals and stepping back a bit is one way to live more healthfully in every way. Enjoy your accomplishment! And... 

3. If we're the sardonic (grimly mocking or cynical) person who makes that sort of comment, just biting our tongues allows us to celebrate and uplift others -- and leave the moment happy, before we say something toxic, even if unintentionally. There's so much dysfunction and disease and horror in this world already. Let's buck that trend and step up!

******* 

Christy K Robinson is author of these books (click the colored title):  

We Shall Be Changed (2010)

Mary Dyer Illuminated Vol. 1 (2013)  

Mary Dyer: For Such a Time as This Vol. 2 (2014)

The Dyers of London, Boston, & Newport Vol. 3 (2014)  

Effigy Hunter (2015)  

Anne Marbury Hutchinson: American Founding Mother (2018)

And of these sites:  

Discovering Love  (inspiration and service)

Rooting for Ancestors  (history and genealogy)

William and Mary Barrett Dyer (17th century culture and history of England and New England)

Editornado [ed•i•tohr•NAY•doh] (Words. Communications. Book reviews. Cartoons.)

Wisdom from the early 17th century —

 and how it relates to helping others in the 21^st century

© 2023 by Christy K Robinson

 

Twelve generations ago, there was an English minister who was educated at Cambridge University, which is to say that he graduated from an institution with a Church of England (Anglican) faculty, about 60 years after the split with Catholicism. 

 

But John Robinson began to preach a Separatist message, similar to what the Puritan sect taught, that the Anglicans hadn’t purified the church enough of its rituals, liturgy, pomp, and “distracting” music and art in churches. Separatists and Puritans wanted highly educated clergy, not social appointments of unqualified priests and bishops.

Robinson (my direct ancestor) associated with other Separatists during the early years of his ministry, and by 1608 was one of the leaders of people who called themselves Pilgrims. The Mayflower Pilgrims. He and the Pilgrims moved first to Amsterdam, then Leiden, and in 1621, scores of them took ship for “Virginia,” but ended up at Massachusetts Bay. John Robinson and his wife Bridget had intended to join the Pilgrims, but between shepherding the remainder of the English flock in Leiden, and then John’s death at age 49, it was left to his children to emigrate to New England. 

Below is a paragraph I’ve copied from one of John Robinson’s numerous tracts, booklets, and correspondence, collected into three dense volumes. For those who weren’t raised on King James’ English dialect, I’ll give you a simplified, American-English version first. 

John Robinson’s ninth great-granddaughter translates: 
God has made humans to be in community with others and has allowed us to form families and organizations (religious, political, or community, whether for-profit or nonprofit) where we can unite for the betterment of ourselves and others. But no one is so devoid of abilities or finances that you have nothing with which to help others, or to be helped by others. Like limbs of the body, or the head of the body, we can’t say, “I have no need of a foot or hand or head—I can do this on my own.” If you have health and strength and abilities, and need nothing from others, the more need others have of you and what you possess in abundance. 

 

John Robinson originally wrote: 

‘God hath made man a sociable creature; and hath not only ordained several societies, in which persons are to unite themselves for their mutual welfare; but withal so dispensed his blessings, as that no man is so barren, but hath something wherewith to profit others: nor any so furnished, but that he stands need of others to supply his wants. "The head cannot say to the foot," much less the foot to the head, "I have no need of thee." And the less need thou, by reason of thine abundance of bodily or spiritual endowments, hast of others, the more need they have of thee and thy plenty.’  

 

How does Robinson’s advice look in the 21^st century? We can all find ways to be of service to others.

☑️ Collect new clothes and food for your church or community to distribute
☑️ Cooking and baking for a homeless shelter or refugee center
☑️ Some can donate blood or platelets to save lives or improve quality of life for cancer, dialysis, or surgical patients
☑️ Volunteer at your child’s school, to help teachers or read aloud
☑️ Donate money to your church’s benevolence fund, to help with dental or medical bills, rent, utilities, or groceries
☑️ Help a food bank with distribution (filling bags and boxes, taking the groceries to the waiting cars, etc.) 
☑️ Drive people to appointments for chemotherapy or surgery

☑️ Play a musical instrument at a senior center
☑️ Volunteer at a hospital or children’s hospital (this may require a little training, but probably not certification)
☑️ If you know a friend who volunteers, ask if you can come along to observe or help 

☑️ Quilt, knit, or crochet an item to be auctioned for charity

☑️ Clean the beach, rescue animals, recycle, or plant trees for a lovelier environment

 

For 40 years, I’ve been a volunteer in some of the roles listed above. For a good portion of that time, I was a state leader for an organization that had a different purpose, but which participated in volunteering as a social activity where we could serve others but also become closer friends. Even our school-age children helped. I saw people who had been sad or depressed about their own circumstances turn into enthusiastic, fulfilled helpers because they stopped gazing at their own navels and started looking into the eyes of fellow human beings. I saw kindergarten-age children learn foreign words for food so they could serve refugees at the buffet line. I saw bored retirees take on projects that gave them new hope and a new social life. I saw a friend in a power wheelchair become a valued member of a kitchen team that supplied three community feeding programs. 

Personally, I think that what God gave me as an unearned gift, I can share with others, be it donating my healthy blood, baking humble corn muffins 16 dozen at a time, or cutting vegetables and buttering bread for a charity that has religious beliefs quite different from my own. When someone is hurting, I can listen. I’ve witnessed miracles that cannot be explained. I’ve seen little children grow up to be kind, compassionate young adults. 

 

And you can do all these things and more!

**************** 

Articles I've written about John Robinson: 

https://rootingforancestors.blogspot.com/2021/06/mayflower401.html 

https://rootingforancestors.blogspot.com/2020/10/a-benefactor-of-world-ancestor-of.html 

https://rootingforancestors.blogspot.com/2015/09/onthisday-16-september-strangers-and.html 

https://rootingforancestors.blogspot.com/2013/06/pilgrim-pastors-signature-on-seditious.html 

*************** 

A few of the 16 dozen 
corn muffins to be 
enjoyed by refugees.

Christy K Robinson is author of these books (click the colored title):  
We Shall Be Changed (2010)

Mary Dyer Illuminated Vol. 1 (2013)  

Mary Dyer: For Such a Time as This Vol. 2 (2014)

The Dyers of London, Boston, & Newport Vol. 3 (2014)  

Effigy Hunter (2015)  

Anne Marbury Hutchinson: American Founding Mother (2018)

And of these sites:  

Discovering Love  (inspiration and service)

Rooting for Ancestors  (history and genealogy)

William and Mary Barrett Dyer (17th century culture and history of England and New England)

Editornado [ed•i•tohr•NAY•doh] (Words. Communications. Book reviews. Cartoons.)

Remembering my mother, 30 years later

© 2023 by Christy K Robinson

On Jan. 4-5, 1993, I spent the entire night in my mom's ICU room, holding her hand and reading the Bible to her as she lay in a coma. My dad had kissed her goodbye and gone home, and my brother was living two hours away, with a young family and a driving route that took him out of town. So it was down to me.

She'd nearly died 10 months before, and recovered. She said she'd heard me reading the Bible to her then, even in her coma, and it was precious to her, so I brought my Bible with me this time and did the same thing.

It was a very intimate time, just mother and daughter at the end of one life before she began another. She saw me take my first breath, and I saw her take her last. I won't describe my thoughts then, but it wasn't the same sort of grief as when my dad died, far away, 19 years later. I still miss my mother, 30 years later, but there's so much of her in me, both in my DNA, and in who I am at my core, that there's been a reconciliation of what was and what is.

There's so much of her in me, both in my DNA, 

and in who I am at my core, 

that there's been a reconciliation 

of what was and what is

Though she still breathed another six hours, I believe her spirit left her a little after 4:00am. Something so profound took place then, that I looked up at her monitors to see if she'd awakened. But nothing had changed physically. Though I continued to hold her hand and watched her take breaths, she was no longer with me. And I was comforted anyway because I knew she was no longer in pain, and was where she wanted to be.

I thought I was alone there, waiting for all signs to cease before I went home and called my dad and brother. But about 7:30, my friend, Dr. Keith Mack, came on duty and learned I was there. He came into the room and wrapped me in his arms. What a dear thing to do. It was no coincidence. God knew what I needed and his timing was flawless.

I remember with love, Judith Anson Robinson, 1937-1993.

******* 

Christy K Robinson is author of these books (click the colored title):  

We Shall Be Changed (2010)

Mary Dyer Illuminated Vol. 1 (2013)  

Mary Dyer: For Such a Time as This Vol. 2 (2014)

The Dyers of London, Boston, & Newport Vol. 3 (2014)  

Effigy Hunter (2015)  

Anne Marbury Hutchinson: American Founding Mother (2018)

And of these sites:  

Discovering Love  (inspiration and service)

Rooting for Ancestors  (history and genealogy)

William and Mary Barrett Dyer (17th century culture and history of England and New England)

Editornado [ed•i•tohr•NAY•doh] (Words. Communications. Book reviews. Cartoons.)