{"id":10256,"date":"2023-11-28T14:35:31","date_gmt":"2023-11-28T19:35:31","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/mullinsumc.org\/?p=10256"},"modified":"2023-11-29T20:27:48","modified_gmt":"2023-11-30T01:27:48","slug":"blessing-bags","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/mullinsumc.org\/?p=10256","title":{"rendered":"Blessing Bags"},"content":{"rendered":"\n
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It was recently suggested that I write something concerning my thoughts on giving out Blessing Bags.  I agreed\u2026 but only reluctantly.  I am afraid that what I have to say will not inspire feelings akin to those aroused from a Norman Rockwell painting or a Hallmark Movie.  I am afraid that the pragmatist in me tends to stifle the Pollyanna of my youth.  <\/p>\n\n\n\n

I keep these bags in my car and I give them out as the opportunity arises.  I just see it as the right thing to do.  Most times there isn\u2019t much interaction because I am in my car with impatient traffic behind me.  Often these bags are handed over a rolled down window or I have to perform a sketchy traffic signal dash and handoff\u2026 upsetting other drivers behind me no doubt.  I do have a few regulars, but mostly I just give them away when the opportunity arises.  So when I was asked to write something regarding the \u201cwhy\u201d,  I had to\u2026 again reluctantly\u2026 step back and mull things over a bit.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Frankly, when I see the recipients of these bags, I wonder how much good they can possibly do. For whatever reason, most of those receiving these bags are either mentally or physically addled in some way.  I find myself sometimes asking what happened.  I also ask myself why they should be there and I should be here.  Was it just dumb luck?  Were they born with genetically unfortunate chromosomes?  Have they suffered some mind scrambling trauma?  Are their faculties misfiring due to some sort of chemical abuse?  Maybe they are just cross-threaded with society.  Those on this side of the \u201cRainbow Bridge\u201d will probably never know for sure.  What we do know is that they are fellow children of God and they seemingly need help. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

But again, how much good can one of these bags do?  I have asked myself this question over this past week.  Having had a bit of time for this question to percolate, the miracle of the \u201cloaves and fishes\u201d seems to have floated to the surface.  In fact, now that I think about it, it is more than a bit humbling.  Simply put, who am I to say what God can do with one of these bags? <\/p>\n\n\n\n

Do I believe that one of these bags can feed 5000?  Sure, absolutely!  Do I believe it is probable that it will be like a magician pulling rabbits out of hats?  Not really.   Having said that, what if the simple act of giving this bag not only gives a bit of food or clothing but it also gives a bit of hope.  Maybe some simple hope will inspire optimism.  Maybe this optimism will inspire confidence.  Maybe the confidence will inspire that person to fulfill Gods will for something greater than any of us can imagine.  Who am I to say what God can do with one of these blessing bags?  Really, who am I to try to limit what God can do with these humble contents?<\/p>\n\n\n\n

As I ruminated a bit more I remembered something else.  I once heard someone speculate that the feeding of the crowd from the few fish and loaves was a different kind of miracle.  The miracle was that Jesus inspired others in the crowd to also share the food they brought.  In the same way, the entire crowd was fed.  Having walked among humans on this silly planet for a number of years I can honestly say that inspiring an entire crowd of humans to be generous might be an even bigger miracle than divinely replicated fish and bread!<\/p>\n\n\n\n

So maybe\u2026 just maybe\u2026 the recipient of the blessing bag takes out one or two items and shares the rest.  Maybe they want the crackers but don\u2019t need the gloves.  Maybe the next person needs the socks and the next person needs the toothpaste.   Maybe the contents are shared among many people.  Maybe, in turn, those people share what little else they have with others who do the same.  Maybe each act of sharing brings a bit of hope to each recipient.  A little hope can go a long way.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

So maybe I am not generous or brave enough to give all I have.  It is highly unlikely that I will ever invite a street person home and provide for their needs.  I struggle with this as I have been greatly blessed in this life for sure.  However, despite my own selfish limitations\u2026despite my own faults\u2026 still\u2026 as I give out these bags\u2026 I have hope.  God can make good even with broken people like me.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Anonymous<\/p>\n<\/blockquote>\n<\/blockquote>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[12],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-10256","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","hentry","category-voices-from-the-pews"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/mullinsumc.org\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/10256","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/mullinsumc.org\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/mullinsumc.org\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/mullinsumc.org\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/users\/1"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/mullinsumc.org\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fcomments&post=10256"}],"version-history":[{"count":3,"href":"https:\/\/mullinsumc.org\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/10256\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":10422,"href":"https:\/\/mullinsumc.org\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/10256\/revisions\/10422"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/mullinsumc.org\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fmedia&parent=10256"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/mullinsumc.org\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fcategories&post=10256"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/mullinsumc.org\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Ftags&post=10256"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}