There’s a church around the corner from our GCI headquarters that hosts food trucks on Wednesday nights. For those of you who don’t live in Los Angeles, you might not know what a food truck is. Let me show you a picture.

They’re basically mobile kitchens that specialize in comfort foods like grilled cheese sandwiches, tacos, and pizza. They’ve even become so well known that Zagat started rating them. But last summer, there was a truck driving around Minneapolis that won’t be getting a Zagat rating anytime soon. And not because it can’t pass the health code inspection.

Instead, this Minneapolis truck didn’t sell food – it accepted donations. They call it a “Reverse Food Truck” and their mission is simple: collect $50,000 dollars worth of food by the end of the year that can be distributed to the homeless community in the city. When I heard about this, I thought: “What a great idea!”

You see, through our union with Christ, we receive every good blessing that our Father in Heaven has prepared for us. And it is by this union that we are sanctified and made mature as believers. As we recognize what God has given to us, freely through his mercy and grace, we’re able to pass on what we have received to others. Christ encouraged this type of generosity during his parable of the Sheep and the Goats in the Gospel of Matthew. He praises those who fed the hungry, clothed the naked and visited those in prison, saying: “Truly I tell you, whatever you did for one of the least of these brothers and sisters of mine, you did it for me” (Matt. 25:40).

This holiday season, I’d like to encourage you to get out into your community and look for opportunities to see how you can bear witness to the generosity of our Triune God who recognizes our deepest needs and has given so freely to us.

I’m Joseph Tkach, Speaking of LIFE.