Follow Up On The Christmas Store

We hosted our (6th Annual?) Christmas Store this past Saturday. It was a great day! We spent ALL of Friday sorting, pricing, and setting up the store. When Saturday morning arrived, we were ready! We had a great staff this year of Sunshine staff, volunteers, and friends. One of my favorite parts of the store this year was serving together all day. Forty-some families were able to come and shop at the store. I was outside during the store hours, greeting people as they came in and helping them load their cars if needed. That gave me the opportunity to ask people "how it went." Everyone seemed to have had a great time at the store, and for that we praise the Lord. We really wanted the love of Christ to be displayed and felt by all who came through our doors, and by God's grace I think this happened! Here are some answers to some frequently asked questions...

What did you do with the proceeds from the store?We gift-ed the proceeds to five families whom are in need of a little financial assistance this year. Pete, our youth pastor, delivered the gifts yesterday.

Did you have leftover gifts, and what do you do with them?We invited additional families to come in and shop Monday through Wednesday. In addition, we will use leftover gifts in our "Sunshine Stores" for the children in our after-school programs. In all of our youth programs: AWANA, Club 2-5-2, Horizons, and ASM - we have a mini-economy set up. Our students earn Sunshine bucks through attendance, good behavior, saying memory verses, academic progress, etc. Then every couple of months we set up a store where they have an opportunity to spend their Sunshine Bucks. This not only serves as a great incentive for the kids, it also allows us to teach financial literacy in an experiential way!

I want to thank everyone who donated to our store this year and everyone who served at our store this year! You are appreciated! I hope everyone has a Christ-filled Christmas!