SMALL ACTS OF KINDNESS: Cheap Little Gifts

by Shirley Crowder

After her death, I sorted through things in the apartment I shared with my mom and found bags and baskets and boxes of little gifts she had gathered to give as gifts. Wherever she went, she had a little something to give to those with whom she came in contact—whether she knew them or not.

It’s probably good at this point to tell you that these gifts were usually cheap plastic little gifts that were really not worth even the quarter or two she spent on them. She kept them in her purse, in her car, in a basket for easy access at home.

Sometimes when she would shop, she would just pick up gifts that she thought were cute or she liked. Very often she would pick up something and say, “Oh, (name) would love this.” Or maybe, “This reminds me of (name).”

In my younger years I would think it was silly for her to waste her money on those cheap little gifts that nobody wanted. In time, I learned just how wrong I was.

We would go visit people who would have their “Jeannie treasures” (as one friend called them) placed all over their home. Time after time I witnessed a very sad or depressed person brighten up when mom gave them their little gift. Time after time, the recipient would “Ooh!” and “Ah!” about the gift and act as though mom had given them a rare treasure.

After mom’s death, just over ten years ago, person after person would tell me they still had “Jeannie’s treasure” and describe it to me or send me a picture of it.

What in the world could have made those cheap worthless gifts morph into rare treasures?

It was the gift-giver who made those cheap worthless gifts rare treasures. The recipients knew that mom loved them and wanted to brighten their day. They also knew that mom loved Jesus because she would talk with them about Jesus. If it was a stranger, she would share the gospel with the person.

Recently, I was telling a friend about mom’s cheap little gifts, and my friend said, “Oh, I love random acts of kindness.”

I had to explain that mom giving these gifts was by no stretch of the imagination a random act of kindness. Everywhere she went she was thinking about her friends and the things that would brighten up their lives. She always wanted those little gifts to be a part of her sharing the love of Jesus with everyone. In her kindness toward others, mom reflected the kindness, mercy, and grace of God.

In Titus 3:4-6 (ESV) we learn about the Kindness and love of God our Savior:

But when the goodness and loving kindness of God our Savior appeared,
he saved us, not because of works done by us in righteousness,
but according to his own mercy, by the washing of regeneration and renewal of the Holy Spirit,
whom he poured out on us richly through Jesus Christ our Savior,
so that being justified by his grace we might become heirs according to the hope of eternal life.

The motivation for mom giving those gifts was, first and foremost, that Jesus Christ was her Savior and Lord. As this passage tells us, our salvation has nothing to do with anything we’ve done, it is solely and purely because of God’s grace, which is an expression of His kindness.

Mom understood that,

Therefore, as God’s chosen people, holy and dearly loved,
clothe yourselves with compassion, kindness, humility, gentleness and patience.
Bear with each other and forgive one another if any of you has a grievance against someone.
Forgive as the Lord forgave you.
And over all these virtues put on love, which binds them all together in perfect unity (Colossians 3:12-14 NIV).

Kay Arthur said, “So many times we say that we can’t serve God because we aren’t whatever is needed. We’re not talented enough or smart enough or whatever. But if you are in covenant with Jesus Christ, He is responsible for covering your weaknesses, for being your strength. He will give you His abilities for your disabilities!”

Mom would say, “Anyone can be kind and love others!”

Here are some things you can do today:

Thank God for His kindness in your life.
Ask the Lord to show you where you need to make improvements on being kind to others and ask Him to enable you to be kind in those areas.
Write down a plan for being kind to those with whom you come in contact.

Click to Tweet: Mom always wanted those little gifts to be a part of her sharing the Love of Jesus with everyone. In her kindness toward others, mom reflected the kindness, mercy, and grace of God. #SmallGifts #GodsLove

Image by Holger Grybsch from Pixabay

Shirley Crowder was born in a mission guest house under the shade of a mango tree in Nigeria, West Africa, where her parents served as missionaries. She is passionate about disciple-making, which is conducted in and through a myriad of ministry opportunities that include biblical counseling, teaching Bible studies, writing, and music. She is a biblical counselor and co-host of “Think on These Things,” a Birmingham, Alabama, radio/TV program for women. Shirley is commissioned by and serves on the national advisory team for The Addiction Connection.

Her latest published devotional is: Glimpses of God: a summer devotional for women. It is the second in a four-book series. Glimpses of God: a winter devotional for women is available. The spring and autumn devotionals will be published in 2021.