We all know the story of long ago, How our Savior was born in a lowly stable. His Heavenly Father owned it all but he chose for his son to come to Earth in lowliness and humility
This was all to fullfill the prophecy of God's plan of Salvation. Our lord had no bed except for a straw filled Manger . He was the word of God in the flesh. He was and is still today the bread of life so perhaps it was fitting that he was placed in a manger. Through him life is given, nourished and sustained
Our lord had no warm blankets or outfits to wear when he was born but was wrapped in swaddling clothes, which was used to dry off the baby lambs when they were born. Jesus was the Lamb of God who came to take away the sins of the world.
We think if only we could just go back in time to that night what gifts we would bring to him, things maybe he could use to keep him warm or make him happy but of Course we cannot do that. However Jesus said in his word that when we do "Unto the least" we have done it unto him and today we have a wonderful Opportunity to give unto the Lord by giving to other poor and needy children throughout the world in a project called Operation Christmas Child.
Operation Christmas Child is A project of Samaritan's purse, headed by Franklin Graham. The project consists of taking an empty shoe box and filling it with things like, T shirts, socks, pencils, coloring books, small gifts and toys for needy children in poverty situations and war torn countries. Some are Orphans, some are homeless, some are dying with serious diseases, Some have lost Parents due to war or illness.Some are refugees but all are precious in the sight of almighty God.
I would like to share with you as best I can how our family got involved with this project and how Much God has blessed us for it. We saw an add in a local paper advertising Operation Christmas child and my son Caleb was about two at the time. It was a "Kids helping kids " project and I wanted to get my son involved. We packed one boot box full that year. Again the following year we packed another shoe box. They year after our second son Joshua had been born so we packed two boxes, one for each child and we continued to do this each year.
Then a couple of years ago we received our first response back from a Child in Belarus. It was a thirteen year old girl and her younger sibling had received one of the boys boxes we had sent. This girl knew no English but had borrowed an English dictionary and word by word, translated a letter to thank us for the box because she said it had made her brother so very happy. I don't know how many hours she must have worked on that letter. I was so touched. Her family was very poor, her mother a widow with three children.
We corresponded with the family back and forth and were able to minister to them. We lost touch about a year ago and I fear for what may have happened.The mother had been ill. Sometimes they could not afford envelopes to write back or postage. I still pray for them.
Inspired by these events last year we tried to do more. We held a benefit yard sale and was able to raise enough money to fill 23 boxes as a family. With help from our church and my son's second grade class we turned in 49 boxes last year. My seven year old son Caleb said since our yard sale did so well that we should continue to do one each year and so that is what we decided we would do.
IN 2004 we Had a benefit yard sale in the spring and one again in fall. We raised over 500 dollars for the project. My son Caleb, now 9 years old had set a goal for our family alone to try and fill 100 shoe boxes! No one thought we would do it. We are a one income family of four. My husband works in a factory job. We are not rich by Earthly standards but we were willing to do this Knowing our God who owns the cattle on a thousand hills could supply.
Family members saved shoe boxes. I promised the Lord if he would give me the boxes I would try to see they were filled. I had a total of 115 empty shoeboxes donated and God filled every single one! That's right but that's not all! After we filled our 115 Caleb wanted his third grade class to get involved. There is 22 Students in his class and they have brought items each week for the boxes. His class ended up with 24 boxes! My sister in law's scout group dropped off two boxes and were expected to have 8 more. Some members of our church did a box. We turned in a total of 162 boxes in 2004
God provides! He supplies! I followed the impression to ask our dentist office if they would be willing to donate some toothbrushes for our project.It didn't just so happen that they had received a shipment of 50 toothbrushes that had arrived with the wrong dentists name on them. The distributer wouldnt take them back and the office couldn't give them out and had kept them wondering somehow if they could get them overseas to a needy country! See how God works! My son's dentist recently donated 108 childrens toothbrushes as well. Local banks donated pencils. Family, friends and church members saved shoe boxes and donated yard sale items for our sales. God provided!
After our first sale We had a shoe box wrap and fill event. Family friends and girl scouts arrived to help wrap and fill boxes with items that had been purchased with our yard sale money. 36 Boxes were wrapped and filled that day! What a help that was to me! Also they brought their own wrapping paper and donated the extra rolls to me for this project. God supplies!
We hope this will inspire you to do a box of your own this year. Each child along with the shoe boxes are given literature in their own language telling the story of that long ago night in Bethlehem and how they have someone who loves them very much and cares for them. That someone is Jesus. Introducing a Christmas child to the very first Christmas Child. What a mission! It is one close to God's own heart my friends or he would not have blessed it so.
Below are some photo's of our boxes. We wanted to create this page to share with neighbors, family and friends who have helped in some way with this project. To show those who might have stopped at one of our benefit sales what was accomplished by their generosity. We hope also that those who visit will be encouraged to do a box of their own or get their church, group or organization involved in doing boxes.
All brochures and information are free. Visit the official website at www.samaritanspurse.org and click on the operation Christmas child link.
National Collection week is always the week before Thanksgiving. Check the website for a drop off location near you. Simply submit your zip code in the appropriate box and it will bring up a list of a drop off locations in your area.
The drop off location for the Knoxville area is at the Expo center on Clinton Hwy.
If You read this page after the collection week deadline you may mail your shoeboxes all year around to Samaritan's purse Operation Christmas child. 801 Bamboo Road .P.O Box 3000 Boone, NC. 28607
also remember , it is never too early to get started on next years boxes!
Update! 2004 November 30th. I am happy to report that combined we turned in a total of 162 boxes at the collection center on Clinton Hwy This year as well we were priveledged with the free time to volunteer at the expo center every morning to help with collections. I must tell you it was a wonderful week!.I met some wonderful Christian people, Christian family, Brothers and sisters I had not known before. All were sacrificing their time, taking time off work just to make this happen
Also I was very touched at those who brought in their shoeboxes. One little boy was eagerly offloading boxes from his Mom's SUV when he told us he wanted to be a cowboy when he grew up, but not just any kind of cowboy but a missionary cowboy! Then there was a little woman who was not able to wrap her boxes so she had spray painted them and decorated the tops with things she had cut out, she was so happy to bring her boxes in herself!
There was also the elderly lady that brought in 60 shoe boxes and her only income was social security! She brought 50 last year I was told! And the last day I was there a young blind girl brought her boxes in and we let her pack the boxes into the carton herself
Indeed, the Lord loves a cheerful giver and I certainly met some of those ! Anyone can do this project. If you have the desire...Your God will provide a way!
2005 update! This year we had three fundraiser yard sales and our church participation was way up. We also collected from 13 classes at our sons elementary school. We were able to get another church involved in doing the project for the very first time and we collected a total of 317 shoe boxes in 2005! However, that is not all ! We have received 9 letters back from children who received one of our shoe boxes in 2004! We had letters from four countries: Burkina Faso and Namibia in Africa.Madagascar and Grenada! We are corresponding with these children and trying to minister to them and their families. God also blessed us with responsibility as East Tn Area prayer team coordinator for the project. I was very honored to do this for the team. Our collections were expected to be down this year due to other relief efforts and collections going on but God came through right on time and we ended up ...only down 1000 from last year! Not bad! What a wonderful God we serve! We will try to include some pictures of some of the children that received our boxes from 2004 soon! Please check back! God bless you!
2006 Update : This year as a family we completed and sent 148 shoe boxes and collected a total of 389.We presented the project to 20 classes this year at our son's elelmentary school and collected 225 boxes there! We were also blessed to help get others involved and with the shoe boxes they brought in the total was 455. God blessed! Our prayer team goal had been 32,000 and God gave that with one box over making 32,001 from the East Tn region! We recieved many more letters back this year from Children and filled our second scrap book! Our prayer team goal for 2007 is 37,000 shoe boxes.
2007 update:We filled 109 boxes as a family.Our Church at Union filled an additional 127. We collected 240 from our son's elelementary school and presented the project to 25 classes there this year. East Tn collected a total of 32,375 shoeboxes this year. Ken and I were priveledged to be able to volunteer for one day at the processing center in Charlotte,NC. It was a wonderful experience!
2008 Update: Wow what a year and what a God we serve! In a time when the economy was down all over the nation, many prayers were answered and shoebox totals were up all over the nation. This year was a year of opportunity for our entire team! My year started in January when I received a call to speak at a church who wanted to do OCC for the first time. In February our area manager,Jim went to Peru to distribute shoebox gifts for the first time! In April we had a Franklin Graham festival came to Knoxville. It was wonderful and of course we were able to help work an OCC booth there at the festival since OCC is one of Franklin's projects through Samaritans Purse. We made many contacts there as well. In August one of our Tennessee youth's was able to go to Ecuador on a youth Distribution. We all had many wonderful speaking opportunities. I was able to speak at two bible school Association Clinics as well as The associational annual meetings and worked booths at several Fall festivals . Our family did several yard sales and we filled 127 boxes as a family .Our church filled 247 shoeboxes! My Son's Elementary filled 230 shoeboxes this year and we presented to 26 out of 30 classes there ! The church I spoke at in January of last year ended up with 62 boxes. A church I spoke at in the fall filled 26 . One of The Associations packed a total of 483 shoeboxes .511 from Union County. Which came to nearly 1500 shoeboxes but that isn't all. Our goal was 35,000 from East Tn but God blessed us with 36,123! Our God is an awesome God! He continues to bless me as I work in this ministry.
I call this one "Cluttered closets for Christ"
One of our shoe boxes 2004
My two boys amid their fortress of shoeboxes 2004.
Mary Damron and I at the Charlotte Processing Center in 2007.Mary is the National Spokesperson for Operation Christmas Child.
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