An Inexpensive and Thoughtful Gift Idea

I hope your summer, so far, has been an enjoyable one! Ours is flying by yet I feel like we haven’t been terribly crazy-busy so I’m not sure how the time is moving this quick!?

We went on vacation a few weeks ago to Moab, Utah and spent a lot of our time hiking which was amazing and so beautiful.

My girls had 4-H this past week and brought home grand champion and reserve champion ribbons for their dogs. Paige, our oldest daughter, showed her chicken and rabbits and also received grand champion and reserve champion ribbons for them.

The rest of our summer memories will consists of our church campout at the lake this weekend, a youth group trip that I’ll go on as a sponsor, a few days at church camp, and then VBS. School will start mid-August for us and will be here before we know it!!

Today, on the blog, I’m veering away from my usual “life lesson post” and wanted to share an affordable and creative gift-giving idea with you instead…

A few weeks ago I got together with some friends as one of them was soon-to-be moving away. We wanted to celebrate her and wish her the best so we met up for Mexican food and fellowship!

I love gift giving, I’m not great at receiving gifts BUT love giving them. In my effort of being thrifty I wanted to come up with an inexpensive but thoughtful gift for my friend who was moving.

Not really sure how I came up with the idea, guess it was the Holy Spirit’s prompting, but I was lead to the ‘salt and light’ verses and came up with a gift idea that paired up with that piece of scripture.

Biblegateway.com

I bought a garden light for the encouragement that we are to let our light shine, and a package of sunflowers seeds to represent that we are the salt of the earth.

I also threw in a candy bar and pop, just for fun, as a reminder to ‘stay sweet’.

Because the cost was reasonable (under $3 per bag) I ended up giving each of my friends one of these gift bags when we met up for supper to show my appreciation for them.

It’s no secret that the cost of EVERYTHING is going up these days. Groceries, fuel, insurance…all have seen an increase.

It’s frustrating but it’s a part of life right now. God’s word, however, reminds us to not worry—that we need only trust in Him. (Matthew 6:25-34)

Gift giving is something God has put on my heart as a way to encourage others and I’m not about to allow a harsh economy to step in the way of that.

After putting these together I was thinking of other scriptures and gifts that would go well together:

flower seed packets, a watering can, and gloves

“And the Lord will continually guide you, and satisfy your desire in scorched places, and give strength to your bones; and you will be like a watered garden, and like a spring of water whose waters do not fail.” —Isaiah 58:11

a peace lily plant

May the God of hope fill you with all joy and peace as you trust in him, so that you may overflow with hope by the power of the Holy Spirit. —Romans 15:13

a fruit basket

Abide in me, and I in you. As the branch cannot bear fruit by itself, unless it abides in the vine, neither can you, unless you abide in me. I am the vine; you are the branches. Whoever abides in me and I in him, he it is that bears much fruit, for apart from me you can do nothing. —John 15:4-5

If you have any ideas for inexpensive gift-giving and encouragement share them in the comments! Have a blessed weekend!!

Author: alimw2013

About For His Purpose~ My name is Alicia and I'm a thirty-something year old who loves Jesus. Only through God’s amazing grace and mercy I have been redeemed from past regret and shame. Reading His word has allowed me to look past Satan’s forceful lies, to see myself for who Christ says I am in Him. Through writing I have learned why I made the choices I made in my younger years and I now have a better understanding of why I desire to love God like crazy these days. Despite my daily failures, God remains faithful always. I am reassured of His unconditional love for me by every ink-drop spilled out on paper, each committed prayer as I cry out to Him, and deep understanding reflected through reading His word as truth. Yes keeping a blog will make me vulnerable to others’ opinions- there will be some who don’t understand, some who may criticize or judge, but on the other hand if just one piece expressed through my writing grabs someone’s attention and directs them to God, then pouring out my heart in a blog for the world to read is worth it. I choose to glorify Him alone through words streaming across a glowing screen. And it wouldn’t be fair if I didn’t reveal the fact that I’m incredibly quirky; I’m my loving husband’s best friend, my vivacious kids’ craziest cheerleader and spiritual trainer (3 John 1:4). I love anything farmhouse and rustic style. I think cupping a warm coffee mug in the palm of my hands is more satisfying than the contents within. I share a common obsession with my husband for the mountains, but I would (without a doubt) settle for waves crashing against my legs at the Atlantic Ocean just as well, and I almost always have a Yorkie curled up on my lap while writing. *All photos are photographed by forhispurpose.blog and therefore may not be stored or photocopied in any manner.

24 thoughts on “An Inexpensive and Thoughtful Gift Idea”

    1. ❤️I always love giving things that are practical or consumable so people don’t end up with “more stuff” that doesn’t really serve a purpose. Snacks and flowers or even gift cards to restaurants or coffee shops are some of my favorite things to give!

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  5. Great ideas Alicia. I have a friend who always gives small potted plants, different ones according to the person or occasion, very economical and thoughtful too.

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  6. Alicia, a young couple I knew when they were just starting out were aspiring missionaries, so needless to say, they didn’t have a lot of money for gifts. I wasn’t expecting anything from them. But the young lady wrote Scripture verses on slips of paper, rolled them up like little scrolls, tied them with ribbon, and put them in a glass jar with the lid wrapped in a piece of gingham material and tied with the same pink ribbon. I kept it in my kitchen, where every morning I would take one out and read it as a devotional “thought for the day.”

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    1. Ahh I love that idea!! We had a foreign exchange student from Germany that gave us the same type of gift as what you’re describing!! I should get that jar out of the cabinet and use it again!! Scripture is such a meaningful gift.❤️Very sweet reminder!

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  8. Some great ideas, Alicia. I once received an umbrella as a parting gift before moving–signed in Sharpie by the colleagues of my school. Joel 2:23 could be an accompanying verse: “Be glad, people of Zion, rejoice in the LORD your God, for he has given you the autumn rains because he is faithful. He sends you abundant showers, both autumn and spring rains, as before.”

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  12. Lovely ideas! I think you have really ‘hit the nail on the head’ with acknowledging others. It is so beautiful and encouraging when our gifts, cards, or messages remind others of how much they are loved.

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