Ah, yes, the wonderful time of the year right before Thanksgiving break has come where all packers across the nation are sending their boxes to the drop off locations that will soon be sent to processing then to the hands of a blessed child. This time of year is always a fun and happy one so I hope you all had a great time dropping off your shoe boxes. I dropped off my boxes at Bayside Church again this year and at times of dropping off your boxes, we need to remember that although the volunteers might be a bit dismissive, this does not deter from the main focus of the ministry: to get those boxes to children in unfortunate circumstances.
These children out there are going to be so thankful that you took the time, energy and who knows how much money into putting their box together. Truly, this is an amazing ministry and your work is being recognized.
This year, I surpassed my OCC goal of 50 boxes and ended up with 159 boxes. This is one of the most exciting moments for my OCC career as I have never packed up these many boxes before.
2014 - 9 boxes
2015 - 20 boxes
Packing these shoe boxes has been a great experience on both my heart and my connection with the Lord. With every box, I can feel God telling me to include certain items that each child might like or really need. These shoe boxes might not look like a lot but each one represents a child that is going to be exposed to the gospel and might be saved. That is something that any packer or Christian can really hope for.
I don't know the child that any of these boxes are going to nor do I know what their life is like but God does. God knows their struggles, their problems, their position in faith and He knows that with every box there is a specific child for each one. This year, especially with everything going on, I am so grateful that the Lord inspired Franklin Graham to create this ministry so that Christians all over the world can come together and make a child's day with a box filled with goodies, hygiene products and extra school supplies. I love this ministry.
DROP OFF:
The drop off happened right after I got out of my SFG at school. I had to wait for the flat bed as many people had brought large amounts of boxes too. I had arrived at about 12:00 and didn't get out of there until 1:00. This is my first cart of shoe boxes and my goodness, it was hard to decide if I should drop off the plastic or the cardboard boxes first. It was also so heavy that a member of the staff had to come out and help direct me to the drop off building.
The team was a bit different compared to the team last year as they didn't really show much enthusiasm for the boxes I was dropping off like they did last year. They looked rather frustrated that I was bringing in so many boxes. I understand that they need to put them into larger boxes and send them to the processing area but it was a bit discouraging the way that they were treating me like an unwanted customer. Nonetheless, I ended up cheering on other people that were bringing in shoe boxes in place of the volunteer workers. I remember the way I was treated last year and the year before that but today I didn't feel like we were part of a ministry but part of some business and that is something I hope you guys didn't experience when you were/are dropping off your boxes.
I might not have had the best experience at Bayside but I will say that it is the reminder that I am doing this not for the volunteers or the likes on Facebook/Instagram but I am doing this so children that are less fortunate than I can have a Christmas and maybe come to know Jesus through it.
Shoe Box Gender Breakdown:
BOYS:
10-14: 59 Boxes
5-9: 3 Boxes
2-4: 34 Boxes
GIRLS:
10-14: 37 Boxes
5-9: 4 Boxes
2-4: 22 Boxes
2016 has been an amazing year for us at Shoe Box Loving and we hope to spread more cheer and excitement for the cause next year as well. We are blessed and thankful that we have come across so many resources for our shoe boxes and that next year will be prosperous as well.
God Bless and Happy Packing!
