Gifts
Christmas comes and so do the presents. The aftershave or perfume, the slippers, the socks and the chocolates. And once the shops re-open after Christmas we’re in the queue to change the aftershave, the perfume, the slippers and the socks (I think it’s safe to say the chocolates won’t go back). We receive gifts and we find they are the wrong size, the wrong colour or the wrong smell. Or you might have been really lucky and received a really romantic gift such as a sauce pan!
But should gifts always be what we want? – or should they be what we need? Sometimes we are disappointed with what we receive. As a child I received a schoolbag. I wanted a schoolbag but what I received was a second-hand schoolbag. It wasn’t new but it was well made and sturdy – and I was disappointed. I had wanted my Christmas present to be new. However, it gave me many years of valuable service at primary school. It wasn’t what I wanted but it was what I needed. The gifts we receive have the power to surprise us and we often fail to value them correctly when we receive them.
So as we look at Christmas, what do we expect? What we want or what we need? Or do we even fail to see what the real gifts are? The great gift of Christmas is Jesus. It is for us that He was born. It is in Him that we find our joy. Jesus is the perfect gift for which there is no substitute. Jesus is handed down to us from generation to generation and when accepted can transform our lives – and His love for us is never second-hand.
David Bradshaw
December 2008