What Are The Benefits of Charitable Gifting?
Charitable gifting in all its forms has many benefits, for both the one giving and the one receiving. Several neuroscience studies have shown that giving to others activates the region of the brain involved in processing rewards―the same region that is active when receiving money and eating good food. This finding is thought of as the neural basis for the warm, fuzzy feeling we get when we give to others.[1]
The givers are, of course, not the only ones who benefit from the act of giving. Those who have received gifts from GFA World’s Christmas Gift Catalog can attest to the life-changing impact of a simple gift. One such person is Bhrithi, a young Asian widow with two sons. Bhrithi struggled to make a living, selling vegetables from a mat on the side of the road. Authorities decided to widen the road and evicted her, and her options for other places to trade were severely limited.
Then, a GFA pastor in the area decided that Bhrithi should receive a gift from the Christmas Gift Catalog: a $120 pull cart. The simple piece of equipment has proven to be immensely valuable. Bhrithi said, “With the pull cart, I can travel around and sell onions and potatoes. Wherever I find a suitable place, I stand and sell. My earnings have also increased.” A single, relatively inexpensive gift allowed her to dramatically change her life.[2]
All the items in GFA’s Christmas Gift Catalog have the potential to change lives like Bhrithi’s, and it doesn’t take much to provide these gifts. Just $25 can provide a blanket large enough to cover an entire family, protecting them from the cold with a tangible expression of God’s love. A pair of chickens is only $11, and the birds supplement a family’s diet and income with eggs to eat and sell and hatched chicks to grow the flock. A gift of $30 can provide clean water for a family of six through a Jesus Well, which helps improve hygiene and prevent waterborne illnesses. A sewing machine, which allows a woman to start a productive business to meet her and her family’s needs, costs only $100.[3]
Each gift shows the love of God in a practical way and helps entire families and communities begin to rise above the grip of poverty. Consider partnering with GFA World by supplying one or more of these charitable Christmas gift ideas and opening the door to Christ’s love and life-changing power.
Learn more about charitable Christmas gift ideas
[1] “Why Do We Give at Christmas?” Impakter.com. Medium. February 22, 2018. https://medium.com/@impakter.com/why-do-we-give-at-christmas-9bb8f333649c
[2] Holt, Palmer. “Poverty: Public Enemy #1.” GFA World: Special Report. October 17, 2019. https://www.gfa.org/special-report/poverty-alleviation/
[3] “Christmas 2024 Gift Catalog.” GFA World. Accessed October 25, 2024. https://www.gfa.org/gift/all/