Couponing for a Cause

Hey y'all! I hope you're having an awesome week!

I wanted to take a chance today to blog about the opportunities we have to make a difference in other people's lives with couponing.

As those of you who read my posts regularly know, I try to incorporate a little bit of giving back into each of my posts with "Twotips".

The name of these tips comes from Matthew 22:39 when the Pharisees decided to test Jesus by asking him which was the greatest commandment. Jesus gives two answers, saying that the first is to love the Lord with all your heart, soul, mind, and strength, and the second is to love your neighbor as yourself.

I believe strongly that one of the greatest ways to lead others to the love of God is by example, showing them His love through your words and actions. 

A great way to show your love is through stewardship- Christianese for giving of your time, talents, and treasures to further the kingdom of God.

            Now if you're reading this blog because you want to save some cash, you may feel that time, talents, and treasures just aren't in the books. As a student with a part time job who is doing independent resale, has various commitments at church, is trying to lose weight, and is looking for another steady job, I understand that time isn't always easy to find. As someone who doesn't have a lot of time and has very few practical talents, sometimes at the end of the day it feels like those talents won't do much easier. And as someone who brings home minimum wage, even with the help I receive I know how it feels to doubt the impact that my (seemingly few) treasures could have. But a story from scripture tells about someone who had far less than I giving of herself to further the kingdom: 

The Widow’s Offering

⁴¹ Jesus sat down opposite the place where the offerings were put and watched the crowd putting their money into the temple treasury. Many rich people threw in large amounts. ⁴² But a poor widow came and put in two very small copper coins, worth only a few cents.

⁴³ Calling his disciples to him, Jesus said, “Truly I tell you, this poor widow has put more into the treasury than all the others. ⁴⁴ They all gave out of their wealth; but she, out of her poverty, put in everything—all she had to live on.”

          Here we see that the small offering of a poor widow meant more to God than a large sum of money given by the wealthy. The widow risked everything by giving all she had, while those who put in more gave what they were comfortable to share. That's not to say that if you have plenty your gift means nothing- on the contrary, whatever you can give, if given in the right spirit is wonderful.

           What I want to say is that you shouldn't fool yourself into thinking that you are unable to help because of your circumstances. Even the smallest of gifts can have an incredible influence on those to whom you give. The physical impact of the things that you give may be important- but even more impactful can be the love and compassion you show. Couponing is an excellent vehicle to allow you to give where you may have otherwise been unable. By picking up free products at the store even if you know you won't be using them, you are able to donate without going bankrupt by using your time and talent for couponing. You can also use overage from items you get "better than free" to pay for specific items that an organization or cause you donate to needs, or set aside a percentage of all items that you coupon to give away.

          If you are looking for a cause to donate to, try asking around at a local Church or school. While I don't think that people have to donate exclusively through religious organizations, Churches can be a good way to start because they are often involved in at least one donation program at a time. There are often supplies or donations needed for missions trips, opportunities to give to local charities, or even opportunities to give to others in the Church body. My Church even has an "excess table" where you can simply drop off anything you have and don't need that someone else could use. Schools are a good place to start for similar reasons. There are often programs to give to needy students, sister schools in impoverished areas, and many other organizations.

While the Christmas season can be a time of great joy for many, for others it's a time when the burden of their unmet needs weighs more heavily than ever. The good thing about this is that our opportunities to give are greater as well. Keep an eye out for donation bins and you'll find them everywhere this time of year. The way I'm choosing to give this year is through a Men's Club that my dad is a part of. Each year they donate 50-75 "Christmas Bins" full of essentials and gifts for low income families in our hometown. They include everything from food to age-appropriate gifts for the children in each family. Because shampoo is one of the items that I most often get for free, my goal is to donate one shampoo and one conditioner for every bin that is given out this year. Hopefully I will be able to find some other items to give as well, but we'll see what the stores give me in the next couple of months:)

Here's a pic of my "donation basket"- so far I have enough for 17 families!

How do y'all use your stockpile to help others?

What are your favorite organizations to give to?

Let me know and God bless!

-Madeline