5 places to give it forward on this #GivingTuesday

Preemptive Love // Guys, my heart breaks for Aleppo. The thought of mamas carrying their children's dreams and everything they have in a single backpack as they search for a safe place to lay their heads at night, people being killed in the streets, and babies washing up on the beach -- and I think why me? Why have I been chosen for this skin, this land? Why will my babies grow up in a place where, by and large, peace and prosperity still reign? For the price we pay for our skinny jeans, a family could be fed for a month. Priorities. 

A21 // In 2016, there are still an estimated 45 million people enslaved. Slavery isn't just something happening overseas -- it is in our backyard.  And we cannot afford to be silent. We cannot put off our calling to proclaim freedom until tomorrow.

The Compassion Collective // This organization donates 100% of all money that comes in to help unaccompanied or orphaned refugee children as well as homeless children in America. In 2015, they raised over a million dollars in less than 48 hours through $25 donations. Every last penny counts.

To Write Love on Her Arms // According to ASFP, 55% of people know someone who is thinking about, has attempted, or has died by suicide. As a teenager who struggled with depression and a twentysomething that struggles with depression and anxiety, this organization has been a safe haven for me and so many others for more than a decade.

The World Needs More Love Letters // Save someone's life at the cost of a postage stamp? Yes, please! Handwriting these letters has been so rewarding, and as someone who has felt the sting of loneliness and hopelessness, to know that I can encourage someone going through a rough patch simply by saying "me, too," and "you're not alone" has truly been one of the greatest gifts.

You can also give back by purchasing this year's Christmas gifts from charitable organizations like FashionABLE, The Giving Keys, Toms, and Noonday.

We cannot claim to make room for Jesus without also making room for those that he brings with him: the battered and busted up, the hungry, the tired, the dirty, the child, the person right in front of us. 

It is more blessed to give than to receive. 

Let there be peace on earth, and let it begin with us.