AN ATTITUDE OF GRATITUDE
The Blessing Box was created in 1953 by the women who founded Christian Women’s Fellowship. Jessie Trout, who was CWF’s co-founder and first Executive Secretary, developed the idea as an over-and-above way to help fund the broader mission of the Church. The idea was to make a monetary deposit into the blessing box anytime one found themselves in a space of gratitude for something God had done for them or a loved one. Since then, Blessing Boxes have been kept in the homes and offices of women across the Church as a way for them to express their gratitude for everyday blessings by giving to others. In 2013, the Blessing Bag was introduced as part of this practice and was used interchangeably with the original box. For almost 70 years, the women of the Christian Church (Disciples of Christ) have been able to pay their attitude of gratitude forward for the blessings they have received. In this way, they perpetuate the spirit of blessing others while simultaneously acknowledging their blessings.
Every day is a blessing and our blessing boxes (or cans or boxes) have been a long-standing tradition in the Christian Church through the work and faithfulness of Disciple Women. In fact, not only does it support our work, but one-half of our offerings support the work of all our ministries in the Christian Church Disciples of Christ. With gifts from our women’s circles, DWM can help support programming and operations that aim to help women live out their call via leadership development, spiritual formation/renewal, and advocacy.
Some of the areas that are supported by Blessing Box contributions include:
- Leadership training for Regional and Constituency representatives
- Just Women Bible Study
- Women’s participation with ecumenical entities such as Bread for the World, Church Women United, UCC/DOC partnership,
Faith Trust Institute and USA World Day of Prayer - Participation and leadership by IDWM officers and Executive Staff at
DWM functions around the country - Constituency groups in the development of women-specific ministry and leadership education
- New Church Starts by developing women’s ministries
- Development of resource materials and Disciples Women’s presence in social advocacy issues is concerned
This list is not exhaustive and represents just a few ways Disciples Women’s Ministries puts Blessing Boxes dollars to work.
In addition to cultivating life-long habits of giving thanks and giving out of a spirit of thankfulness, the Blessing Box has generated millions of dollars in mission support. From 2000 to November 2017, Blessing Boxes contributed $3,505,214 toward the Church’s mission, with $993,730 supporting women’s ministries. Since 2007, 50 percent of the donations have gone directly to the ministries carried out by the women of our Church through the International Disciples Women’s Ministries. Your giving significantly impacts the Church’s mission at home and abroad.