MATTHEW 5:5

Blessed are the meek, for they shall inherit the earth.

- Matthew 5:5

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IV and I rang the Salvation Army kettle bell at Walmart on Saturday for two hours in the evening.

Yes, I am the bravest woman alive to do that with a four year old. 

You all know how much I despise Walmart. But I love Hal Rochkind and Rotary Club and they needed bell ringers and we had time.

The experience truly changed me. I was absolutely astounded. 

The people who gave? Not the people in Range Rovers or carrying fancy purses, looking completely put together. Not to cast stones in an entirely different direction but what we noticed was amazing.

Those with seemingly very little gave the most. 

They stopped and put their bags down...emptied their pockets of change or crinkled dollars. They smiled and handed their donation to my "helper" who folded the dollars carefully and deposited their change into the red kettle.

They almost always told me that they wished it was more.

But it was all that they had.

Jesus' words echoed in my soul - and I watched as IV delighted in wishing people a Merry Christmas, oblivious to how people dressed, how much or how little was in their carts. He didn't see the worn shoes, the children in hand me down clothes, or the silly teenagers who stopped in the street and ran over to give him their donation. They were all the same to him, all equal. People willing to give.

It finally made sense. It truly isn't how much or how little you have - but that you choose to GIVE. Give whatever you can, whenever you can, to whomever needs it.

That, my friends, is the difference.