Our wind chill temperatures here in Erie, PA today are subzero so it was a good day to stay inside. I'm glad the after-Christmas sales are pretty much over.
I did spend a good deal of time over the past two weeks running around to stores trying to find some good deals for our Operation Christmas Child shoe boxes.
Sadly, there just didn't seem to be much available in our stores this year. I found the bowls pictured above and these cups in packs of four for .49. Not really a great deal as I've been used to paying .24 for a 4-pack before. But it was the best I could find.
I was able to get 1,064 cups and bowls whereas year before last I got close to 4,000 for half the price of the ones I bought this year.
I found some boys' underwear for .15 to .20 a pair and got about 150 pairs and before Christmas I got about 120 Hello Kitty items at Michaels. I also found a few dozen cups at Hobby Lobby but nothing really cheap and not many items at all.
I know God will provide for our packing party this year, because He always does, and I'm comforted by the baseball caps and water bottles we bought at the end of 2014 for a head start on this year.
I've been trying to do some cleaning and have been sorting through lots of old OCC files and notes. God grew our packing party and also our area team shoe box totals remarkably from 2007 to 2013. But 2014 seemed like a plateau for the packing party and we actually took a pretty good step back in the area team shoe box total.
Where do we go from here? It's a lot of work just to maintain these huge numbers God has brought us to, but I don't want to just maintain. I want to see God do new things in our area.
I'm doing a lot of praying right now that God will give our team a new united vision for 2015 and clear goals. If you're reading right now will you just say a quick prayer for that. I believe God uses all of our prayers to move His work in the world and when we agree together, there's great power.
So...let's make a deal and keep praying for each other.
Wow!! That's some amazing #s. I feel such a strong pull to do more boxes for oldest children!! I am starting to shop year round and learning to pack them sooner. God bless NW PA!
ReplyDeleteBlessings on you, Denise--especially for having a heart for the older children who often have fewer boxes designated for them. Shopping year-round is sure the way to go. I know God has good things for you in 2015.
DeleteHello fellow GIK'er! I found your wonderful blog on simplyshoeboxes.com and have enjoyed reading about your experience in the new PC. I live in Boone and this was my first year working at the PC as a GIK Coordinator. I absolutely LOVED it! I worked second shift because I homeschool and that worked out great for our schedule. Today was actually our last processing day (we technically finished up prior to Christmas but worked two days last week and today to process what came to us from the other PCs). I have a sick little one and couldn't go today and was so sad to miss out on one more day of blessing but I know I was right where I needed to be. I look forward to following your blog and being inspired by your awesome shoeboxes! By the way, I love Randy Riddle and his family! :)
ReplyDeleteWow, Karen! How neat to hear from you! I loved doing GIK, though it was challenging. I wish our processing could have gone on longer. Are you on Facebook? Would love to stay connected.
DeleteI just sent you a Facebook request and would love to stay connected as well!
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ReplyDeleteYou are such an inspiration! I too get discouraged as I see plateaus in our area. We have been used to fantastic success in our are for the last 10 years. This was the first year we didn't see a big increase in a long time. I knew it had to come eventually. It doesn't mean that God isn't blessing our efforts. He is. I'm sure that even with the plateau, your area is still one of the best producing in the country. And your packing party is still one of -- if not THE -- largest in the country. I will pray you find good deals. I am disappointed this year also in the lack of sales. I think stores are getting better at determining inventory and consequently have less left over after Christmas. I remember the days when I could load up cart after cart of Christmas items or school supplies at 90% off at Target. Ah, those were the days!!
ReplyDeleteMy husband likens it to a business model. There are those who love to start the business and see it grow and implement new ideas and have a vision for bigger and better. That would be you (and me). Then there are those who maintain the business once it is established - and they LIKE the structure of maintance. I find it hard to be content in the maintenance mode, however. You mentioned that you do too. We must look for ways to keep the ministry in our area fresh and innovative -- even if the numbers don't continue to grow at astronomical rates. The easy fruit has been picked in our area. Yours too probably. Now is the time to seek after the hard to reach fruit. And I must not forget that God could once again provide double digit increases. And if He doesn't, I must know that He is still blessing the efforts and delights in EVERY gift we give to his little ones.
Blessings on you again, my friend, for your godly perspective. I know God has good things for our areas, our country, and our world for 2015. We will not lose heart!
DeleteHi Kathy. You are such an inspiration to me. I check your blog daily and wish you could post daily:) I'm the OCC Project Leader at my church; 2014 was our 4th packing party and first community-wide packing party. We packed 700 boxes!! I hope we can do 1,000 for 2015. I'm having my third boy in mid-April (I have a 6yo and 2yo) and had to step down as Community Relations Coordinator. I struggle with wanting to do more to pack more boxes yet knowing it's not my season in life right now to be able to do All that I want. Please pray for me to find balance and peace about what I can do right now. I will pray for you and your team. You are amazing, and what you do encourage me so much.
ReplyDeleteThank you for encouraging me today, and I am stopping now to pray for you. Mothering is a huge responsibility and has to take priority over OCC. I am glad my children were grown by the time the program started because I know I would have had a hard time keeping balance. Blessings on you as you go through this pregnancy and participate with God in His miracle of creation.
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