Monday, December 25, 2023
“God’s Gift Box”
I can’t believe that it’s finally here. It seems like it’s been forever since the last time we arrived at Christmas. Does it feel any different this year? This past year brought lots of wrapped Boxes to our doorsteps, didn’t it? When we opened them, some of the Boxes contained great joy while others revealed terrible sorrows. Other Boxes were filled with big decisions and emotions, some of them significant enough to encompass the entire year.
Did you receive a wrapped Gift Box today? God’s Gift Box (containing Hope, Peace, Joy, and Love) provides all people an opportunity to receive a special Gift that never expires and is always under full warranty. It doesn’t need batteries and it doesn’t need much maintenance. However, it is a Gift that we must decide to receive, that is, assuming that we want it.
It’s rather difficult for me (as a pastor) to reconcile why some people don’t want to receive God’s Gift to them. I understand the perception of nonbelievers and I understand the pain and anger that some folks have with God. However, even if my worst enemy was trying to give me an eternal, non-expiring, full-warranty gift, I think I’d at least open it and try to make it somehow work for me. I know that everyone isn’t going to try it. Some folks don’t want to believe. Even though it’s kind of my job to convince them, I must recognize that I can’t always help. They must make their own decision to receive God’s gift.
You and I must also make that decision. We need this Christmas to be different than last, but not because last Christmas wasn’t great. Instead, we need to be stronger than last year. We need to be growing. We need to be learning and we need to be giving God’s Gift Box to others. But, of course, you’re correct. Most people don’t know how to receive God’s Gift Box. Instead of finding a great gift, they believe they will receive walls, restrictions, and unrealistic commitments. We can help change that.
Our task is to try and better understand God’s gift of Christmas so that we can demonstrate to others what a great gift God has given each of us. God wants everyone to experience the Hope, Peace, Joy, and Love that only the LORD can provide. We are supposed to do our best, not because we must, but because we choose to.
I hope and pray that you choose to receive God’s Gift Box this year. Probably, you’re already in. You are likely safe. But a big part of God’s gift to us is also the joy and wonder that we experience when we help others to receive it, too.
Have a very great Christmas. Choose to receive God’s gift. Make it work for you and help it work for others. There’s no better way to show God that we’re thankful. God gave us a Merry Christmas. We can give God a Merry Christmas, too.
“The shepherds went quickly and found Mary and Joseph, and the baby lying in the manger. When they saw this, they reported what they had been told about this child. Everyone who heard it was amazed at what the shepherds told them.” (Luke 2:16-19, CEB).