Every fall, the Gideons Auxiliary drops off a little gift basket for me at the church. It usually contains candies, tissues, lotion, some paperback devotionals, and a hand-written card that assures me the group prays for Mark, for me, for our family, and for our congregation. I am always so blessed by that basket, and most especially by that card! Reading kind words that a stranger to me / sister in Christ inked on my behalf feels like a vicarious connection – my hand touching the paper that her hand and her pen touched – and makes me grateful to the marrow of my bones. 

This past week, I received my annual basket and was surprised and delighted by two extra items: hand-knitted potholders. They are bright blue and so well made and someone created them for me. 

My profound pleasure in those simple objects set me thinking: perhaps in part because I have zero aptitude or ability for sewing, knitting, crocheting, etc., some of my most prized possessions are things that friends have sewn, knitted, crocheted, etc. for me. 

The curtains in JoJo’s room, sewn years ago by Mom Vowell. Every time I open or close them, I think of her hands touching the fabric I am touching, and am suffused with the remembered warmth of her precious self. 

The bobble-scarf that my longtime buddy and fellow girl-mom Kate W. crocheted for me. I wear it every winter because it’s doubly cozy – the scarf itself, and the friend of whom it reminds me.

The special quilted bookmark crafted for me by Kate C. (I have several deeply loved Kates in my life!). One of the joys we share is reading; using the bookmark she made me keeps that joy central.

The exquisite little beaded knitted bag that Joan gave me for storing jewelry years ago. The stitches are so fine, and the pattern so delicate and lacy, I marvel at Joan’s labor of love in crafting it for me.

And the teensy potholders crafted on plastic looms by my girls… they are the coasters I use when I am having my quiet time in the morning and when I am writing (I am using one right this minute)… I remember the short, chubby fingers that labored over them and the cherubic-faced pixies who presented them to me with such enthusiasm, and I cannot help but grin – every time!

“Stuff” is not special. But “stuff” that directly reminds me of special people becomes special by association. 

It’s not the thing, really; rather, it’s the person to whom the thing points.

Which brings me back to the Gideons Auxiliary. 

I confess that I was over 30 and a preacher’s wife before I ever heard of the Gideons… so let’s begin by explaining who, exactly, they are: 

The Gideons International is an Association of Christian business and professional men and their wives dedicated to telling people about Jesus through associating together for service, sharing personal testimony, and by providing Bibles and New Testaments across the globe. While we are often recognized for our work with hotels, we also place and distribute Scriptures in strategic locations, so they are available to those who want them, as well as to those who may not yet have discovered the Good News of the Gospel message and hope in Jesus Christ.

If you’ve ever fumbled in the drawer of a desk of a hotel and found a Bible there, you can thank the Gideons. Millions of desk drawers, in millions of hotels, around the globe – because the Gideons want people to have access to Jesus. The Gideons’ mission – to share the gospel with the world – happens mostly through the Gideons’ gracious sharing of objects (Bibles) which point to that gospel.

Isn’t a Bible the ultimate example of a “thing” that is special because of the person to whom it points?

Interestingly, Jesus modelled this dynamic. He made ordinary things special by using them to point to the truth about Himself.

“I am the bread of life,” Jesus said (John 6:35). “I am the light of the world.” (John 8:12) “I am the door for the sheep.” (John 10:7, 9) “I am the true vine.” (John 15:1, 5) 

Using the stuff of agrarian everyday – bread, light, the gates of sheep pens, fruitful vines – Jesus identified Himself as both materially real and spiritually essential. 

But Jesus did more than just talk about “things” – Jesus specifically handled things, demonstrating in physical terms God’s concern for the physical world. 

Jesus broke bread and blessed fish to bring a miracle of multiplication and satisfaction for the hungry multitude. 

Jesus healed by touching – the blind saw, the deaf heard, the mute spoke, the lame leaped for joy, through Jesus’ physical touch.

Our present experience of Jesus directly connects us to miracles accomplished for long ago brethren. We treasure the Bible accounts because they point us to Jesus – the person who is the actual substance of those accounts, the God who is with us, materially, in this moment. 

Very similarly, we treasure the sacraments not for what they are in themselves, but for the connection they provide to Christ. Present in the bread and wine. Present in the water. Christ, present!

Several thoughts – several impulses – catalyzed by the beautiful gift from the Gideons Auxiliary to me and the Gideons’ gifts of Bibles to so many, for so many years: 

• A handwritten card or note is so much more special than a text or email. Who might you bless by writing, today?
• Can you make beautiful things – knitted, crocheted, sewed, etc.? Who needs something tangible to treasure and to feel treasured through? 
• Remember your baptism and be thankful. Wash feet whenever possible. Receive communion elements as material manifestations of the One who gave everything for you to know Him.
• Have you ever been blessed by a Bible in a hotel room? Let the Gideons know… and make a donation, that others might be blessed, too.