We have a problem that is deeply rooted in our world today. When it comes to the holidays, people tend to forget that it's the season of giving, 1the season of receiving. We tend to be more 2 about what we'll receive on Christmas morning as opposed to looking at the holidays as 3 to help out those who don't have it as good as we do.
So, how can we 4 the culture around the holidays and make sure that people are emphasizing the opportunity to 5 as much as they are looking forward to opening up their stockings? During this holiday season, many people receive countless 6 from organizations seeking gifts to help them fulfill their mission: helping the old, providing food for the poor, 7for the homeless, care for 8 animals and more.
Giving 9 is the right thing to do, though many of us are 10 by the task. Whether or not we have much money to 11, it isn't always easy to 12what we have worked so hard for, especially when we have set 13 goals—saving for retirement, a vacation or a rainy day.
Even with so many reasons to be unwilling, the advantages of giving outweigh them all. When we give to those in need, either 14to persons or through 15 , we make a positive 16 to the lives of others and to our own.
As we are reminded, giving ensures that we are not17 by material things, but free through the abundance of18 . That we have all things is not because we have a good 19of money in the bank, not because we have skill and intelligence with which to 20bread, but because we are fortunate enough. May we be good at giving from what we have received from our fortune.
