In my dream, I was playing Clue (remember that childhood board game?).
Three strangers and I were moving our game pieces through the mysterious mansion trying to figure out who done it. Could it be Miss Scarlet in the parlor with a candlestick?
Suddenly, a player exclaimed, “I’ve got it! It’s Mr. Carbunkle!”
The other two opponents and I ogled each other in bewilderment. We shook our heads. There was no such character in this game. I incredulously queried the obvious, “Who is Mr. Carbunkle?”
My words hung in the air as I jerked upright in bed. I must have spoken the question aloud. And suddenly I knew I’d hit the jackpot, as surely as if I had just provided the winning answer in the final round of Jeopardy!
You see, I’d been praying for weeks about how to use my writing tithe … 10 percent of my earnings for magazine articles I’d had recently published. It wasn’t all that much; just enough to bless someone in their celebration of Christ’s birth with affirmation that Papa God cares about their needs. But … who?
I hadn’t a clue. Could this be my answer?
Hmm. Come to think of it, I actually knew a Mr. Carbunkle from church — a quiet, unassuming man who’d been out of work for over a year. I hadn’t really given him much thought — or prayer — lately. Although he never complained, his family must be struggling, especially with the holidays approaching.
So Mr. Carbunkle it was.
You know, there are lots of Mr. Carbunkles who would be blessed by a love gift from you this Christmas. Doesn’t have to be money; it could be help with yard work, home repairs, a loaf of banana bread or, best of all, a gift of your time — thirty minutes for a lonely soul who needs to feel a warm hug from Papa God.
Who’s your Mr. Carbunkle? Don’t have a clue? I know Someone who does. Just ask Him.
“The way you treat others is the way you will be treated.” — Luke 6:38 CEV.
