Have somebody in your family that honestly doesn't need another sweater?
This Sunday I'm going to challenge people to consider a new kinda Christmas. Especially as it relates to gift giving.

So I'll let the cat out of the bag. WorldVision has a fantastic Christmas gift catalog. I'll be giving one to everyone who comes on Sunday, but you can find it online too.

http://donate.worldvision.org/OA_HTML/xxwv2ibeCCtpSctDspRte.jsp?section=10389

It's an awesome program and allows me to purchase something, for someone truly in need, in honor of someone I love. They get a cool postcard with a picture and info about how the gift will change someone's life. So this Christmas, consider trying this on a person or two. Or consider going 50/50 on a few people. Half of what you would spend on them still goes to them, but half goes to a family in need. Just try it. I dare you. I have a feeling it will be fantastic.

My father-in-law began asking us to do kind things in his honor a few years ago. Now, every Christmas we anticipate him reading a letter that we wrote to him that describes what we've done. There are always a few tears, but it's great.

One last thought. I don't get buying Christmas cards. I love cards that have letters and pictures. But just a card with a signature holds very little value to me. I appreciate the thought, but let's admit it - that's all it is. Just one thought.