I want to start off this post just by saying how absolutely blown away I am by all of those who have donated to my fund so far. The generosity I have received from so many has been inspiring, sacrificial, and unbelievably kind. The one thing that originally held me back from applying to the Race was fundraising because the number $19,200 seemed daunting at the least. Your willingness to contribute even if only a small bit has kept me believing that God is bigger than my fears and that He will always finish what He has started. Thank you from the bottom of my heart. Truly.
With that being said, I am still looking for monthly partners. Here is what I still need:
1 person to donate $100/month until I reach my goal
10 people to donate $50/month
25 people to donate $25/month
50 people to donate $10/month
I am also starting a new fundraiser on my social media accounts, so if you don’t follow me there, here they are:
Facebook: Allison Crasi
Instagram: allisoncrasi
Twitter: @AllisonCrasi
Snapchat: allison.crasi
And finally, if you haven’t subscribed to this blog page, please do so!! At the top of the page there is an orange “Subscribe for Updates” button, and you will be notified by email whenever I post a new blog.
And now for a little encouragement…
Thanksgiving is the one day of the year that everyone thinks of and voices at least one thing they’re grateful for. This is a great initiative, but it’s short-lived. Only one day of the year? We are given air to breathe and a beating heart every day of the year, yet we only voice aloud those thanks once?
Don’t get me wrong, I’m sure there are plenty of people who take part in prayer, daily gratitude journals, or dinner table go-arounds at the end of the day, but if I had to guess, those people would be the minority.
You see, here in the United States, we take SO MUCH for granted. Including me. And I thought, before June of this year, that I was a grateful person. I prayed before meals to thank God for nutritious food to fill my belly, filled out a gratitude journal each day for a year, and never forgot a thank-you when someone did something for me. However, I very much took the basic necessities for granted.
Clean water.
Clean air.
Electricity.
Floors.
Walls.
Two arms.
Two legs.
Life in general.
When I traveled to San Salvador this past summer, I experienced culture shock. Big time. I can’t fill up my water bottle out of the kitchen sink? I can’t pick up an apple off of the counter and eat it? I have to fill up the toilet tank each time I want to pee? I can’t pet the dogs on the street because they carry disease? Little things that I do every day in the States aren’t so little in third-world countries. The fact that I was allowed to throw toilet paper in the airport toilet once I returned to the States was a BIG deal, and I forgot the first few times because I was used to throwing it in the trash can the entire week prior due to poor plumbing.
Before going on that mission trip, I expected there to be poverty. I expected to see people without homes living on the streets with their families. I was told there wouldn’t be clean drinking water. I heard many families went without food for days. What I didn’t know was how I would react. I figured I would be heartbroken. I felt I would want to help as much as I could, but that I would be ready at the end of the week to return to my warm bed and clean water.
Boy, was I wrong.
What I didn’t expect was that I would grow attached to these people. The emotions they felt, I felt. I hurt for them. I wanted to give my entire being to make everything better. I wanted each child to have a bed, and I wanted to build it myself. I wanted each family to have three meals a day, and I wanted to be the one to buy and make each of them. I wanted to do it all. I couldn’t stand to see the hurt and poverty and not be able to solve it.
When I returned home, I felt sick. How in the world did people find it okay to spend $5 a day on Starbucks coffee and not bat an eye when they heard about the starving children around the world? How did people think it was okay to leave the lights on in their house or take a 15 minute hot shower without thinking twice about it? How could people live day in and day out doing these things without even thanking God for giving them these blessings? It made me feel queasy on the inside. I felt guilty. And I was this close to trading my tiny apartment for a box on the street. I didn’t need anything of this world to be happy. Jesus provides everything I need.
That is why I tell you not to worry about everyday life – whether have enough food and drink, or enough clothes to wear. Isn’t life more than food, and your body more than clothing? Look at the birds. They don’t plant or harvest or store food in barns, for your heavenly Father feeds them. And aren’t you far more valuable to him than they are? Can all your worries add a single moment to your life?
Matthew 6:25-27
After reflecting on this past Black Friday/Cyber Monday weekend and heading into the holiday season, this verse came to mind. Our society feeds off of the idea that we need more and better to be happy. More clothes. More toys. A better iPhone. A bigger house. It’s always something. And yet somehow, it never satisfies. No matter how many more pairs of shoes we buy, it never seems to be enough. And *newsflash*, it never will be.
The only One that will ever be enough is Jesus.
Let me say it one more time, but this time let me shout it from the rooftops:
JESUS IS THE ONLY ONE THAT WILL EVER BE ENOUGH.
Now if only every person in this world knew that, maybe we’d be less selfish and more selfless, less negative and more positive, less depressed and more joyful.
Back to those wonderful people I met in San Salvador. Did they have material things? Basic necessities? Most of them, no. But did they have joy, positivity, and selflessness? 100%. That goes to show that these earthly things mean nothing. Jesus gives us everything we could ever truly want or need in this life.
Everything on this earth will be gone in a matter of time. Whether Jesus comes back tomorrow or 500 years from now, at some point all that we know will be gone. Forever. The only things left will be Jesus, His kingdom, and His people in Heaven. So I invite you first and foremost, if you haven’t already, to accept Jesus’ free gift of salvation. IT’S FREE PEOPLE. If there’s a free gift ANYWHERE, I’m taking it (us Americans seem to be pretty good at that, yet there are still so many who haven’t accepted this one).
If you declare with your mouth, “Jesus is Lord,” and believe in your heart that God raised him from the dead, you will be saved.
Romans 10:9
It’s as easy as that. You can come to him broken, bound in sin, guilt, shame, hurt, whatever. His arms are wide open. He’s sitting outside of the closed door between you two patiently waiting. Open the door. It is the best choice you will make in your life. I can promise you that.
Next, I invite you into a lifestyle of gratitude. Nothing we have in this life is ours. Each of our many blessings is a gift from God. The air we breathe. The ability to breathe that air into our lungs. The job we despise. The friend that’s always there. All of it. Whether we view it as good or bad, they are ALL gifts. Blessings from our Lord Most High. Thank Him daily for all of them.
Everything in the world is about to be wrapped up, so take nothing for granted. Stay wide-awake in prayer. Most of all, love each other as if your life depended on it. Love makes up for practically anything. Be quick to give a meal to the hungry, a bed to the homeless – cheerfully. Be generous with the different things God gave you, passing them around so all get in on it.
1 Peter 4: 7-10
Finally, I invite you to give back. Serve others. We have been blessed abundantly by God, so we have the duty, in turn, to bless others around us. During this holiday season, I challenge you to choose one non-profit organization to either donate to or volunteer with. Learn about their mission and support them with your time, talent, and/or treasure. Not only will you bless them, but they will bless you in return. Choose gratitude in this season. We have so much to be grateful for.
If after reading this, you would like to choose Adventures in Missions to support, you can donate financially through my blog page. I will be partnering with them on The World Race in which I will be on mission to spread the gospel of Jesus Christ with 11 nations over the course of 11 months. I would greatly appreciate your support and partnership during this journey.
Please feel free to reach out to me with any questions or concerns.
Much love,
Allison
