12 Days of Christmas 2016 - Day 5: Gifts
Wow, can you believe it? Only one more week till Christmas! That
also means one week to get presents for the family. (Heh heh…no, I still haven’t
bought any presents yet. It’s been a
busy month.) Do you like shopping for presents? I love shopping, so gift
shopping is one of my favorite things about Christmas. I usually end up cooing
at something I’d like to get, though, so sometimes it takes a little longer
than expected. Giving gifts helps us remember to think of others. In fact,
Christmas is all about giving gifts. When Christ came to earth, many gifts were
given to us. The gift of salvation. The gift of prayer. The gift of a personal relationship
with God. James 1:17 (NIV) says,
Every good and perfect gift is from above, coming down from the father of the heavenly lights, who does not change like shifting shadows.
See, leave it to the ultimate Giver of life to be the source of all good things. Is there someone's gift you always look forward to opening? For me, it's my parents' presents for me each year. Naturally, they know exactly what to get me. Last year, they gave me a camera, which I loved. Multiply that by more than a hundred, and that's how great of a Giver God is to us. He's given us so much. A beautiful world to live in. Love. The choice of salvation. The chance to have the best relationship ever with Him. Eternal life by simply believing in Him.
Don't forget the most amazing gift of all - Jesus. He didn't arrive with pretty packaging or ribbons. Instead, He arrived in the humblest of circumstances; in a manger with stinky animals. Sometimes the best gifts of all aren't always black and white. You know the phrase, "blessing in disguise?" Well, Jesus truly was a blessing in disguise. The Jews thought the Promised One would be real easy to distinguish, maybe even a king. Instead, they completely missed it. Friends, don't overlook something just because it looks bad on the outside. I know I've done it before with Christmas gifts sometimes. A couple of times the packaging looked bent, wrinkled, and baggy. But on the inside was a lovely gift. So it was with Jesus. On the outside, He wasn't necessarily handsome, but on the inside, He was God.
This Christmas, when you open those gifts from under the tree, think of the Giver. Think of the Giver and the amazing gift He gave us - the whole reason for Christmas.
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