Like the wise men who opened their treasury and presented to Jesus gifts of gold, frankincense, and myrrh, we present to our loved ones things to eat and wear and enjoy. Though we make an effort to follow the pattern of gift-giving, sometimes our program becomes an exchange – gift given for gift expected.
Never did the Savior give in expectation. I know of no case in His life in which there was an exchange. He was always the giver, seldom the recipient. His gifts were of such a nature that the recipient could hardly exchange or return the value.
His gifts were rare ones: eyes to the blind, ears to the deaf, and legs to the lame; cleanliness to the unclean, wholeness to the infirm, and breath to the lifeless. His gifts were opportunity to the downtrodden, freedom to the oppressed, light in the darkness, forgiveness to the repentant, hope to the despairing.
His friends gave Him shelter, food, and love. He gave them of Himself, His love, His service, His life. The wise men brought Him gold and frankincense. He gave them and their fellow mortals resurrection, salvation, and eternal life.
We should strive to give as He gave. To give of oneself is a holy gift…the most wondrous gift of all is the selfless gift given to us by our Savior. We can do nothing more to show our love for Him than to give of ourselves in a silent, quiet, loving way. This, the gift of self, is the highest gift of all.
I hope that you all have a very Merry Christmas...don't forget to show everyone you love how much you care about them! =)
6 comments:
I hope you also have a safe and wonderful holiday.
Merry Christmas to you! I appreciate you sharing these thoughts!
Merry Christmas! I hope you had a wonderful holiday!
That's a really great quote, I hadn't heard. I hope you guys had a great Christmas!
Oh Anna that was totally beautiful. A wonderful thought around this time. I sure am glad to know you. YOU and Rick have been wonderful gift givers of YOURSELVES to both Scott and me!!! You have been there when NO ONE else understands! You will NEVER know how you giving of yourself has carried me through the past 5 years of living in your backyard...YOU WILL NEVER KNOW! Thank you for giving of yourself to me! I am soooo much the better person for it! i love you!!!
A very beautiful quote! (To answer your question: My positive thing for today is that I did not have to drive home by myself in the snow. I am grateful that Gary was driving. - I added one more thing to my resolution: something I am grateful for every day.)
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