Good Gifts

My An Arkie's Faith column from the December 21, 2022, issue of The Polk County Pulse.

As I sit at the computer this evening writing, the lights on the Christmas tree are sparkling in the window, and Christmas music is playing. We have just returned home after a day of Christmas shopping. During the Christmas season, we focus on giving good gifts. We spend a lot of money and time finding the right gifts for people who are essential in our lives. Did you have any great gift ideas this year? Was there a gift that you are particularly excited to give? Sometimes we fail in our gift-giving. Have you had any gift-giving disasters?

One Christmas, when my son was a young boy, we nearly ruined his Christmas with one of his gifts. One of his jobs was sweeping the kitchen floor. That Christmas, we bought a stick vacuum cleaner and thought it would be funny to give it to him as a gift. The vacuum, wrapped in beautiful paper, was the biggest present under the tree. When my son saw that the biggest present had his name on it, he was excited. His imagination went wild. What could that present be? His whole Christmas revolved around the biggest present gift under the tree and speculating what it could be.

When Christmas morning arrived, all he could think about was that present. When he opened it, he was so disappointed that the rest of his Christmas presents couldn't make up for the vacuum cleaner fiasco. His disappointment was so apparent that I felt terrible.

Have you ever been disappointed by a gift? Has someone been disappointed by the gift you gave them? What about great gifts? What is the best gift you have ever received? What made it so special? Was it the value of the present? Was it the person who gave it to you?

What is the best gift you have ever received? As I think about this question, I find it hard to narrow down one particular gift as the best. But many years ago, I received an exceptional gift that is still precious to me even though it is not valuable. Let me tell you the story.

In February 2004, my family and I went on a mission trip to San Pedro, Belize, to help build a church. While we were there, we made lots of friends. The following year we made plans to go back to San Pedro.

Our return trip to Belize was terrific. We met with friends we had made the year before and made many new friends while we were there. Often, friends would stop by our room with gifts such as fresh coconut water, papaya, or some small trinket. On our last day in San Pedro, there was a steady stream of visitors to our room. Many of them brought a small gift. They wanted to tell us goodbye.

We received one gift that was very special to me. My wife made a unique friendship with a little two-year-old boy who spoke only Spanish. Whenever he would see her, his face would light up. He didn't understand English, but he understood the language of love. The day we were leaving, he and his four-year-old sister came to our door with a gift. They gave us a well-worn 1935 Walking Liberty half-dollar. I have no idea how this little family had come into possession of this coin or why they gave it to me. Even though the coin's monetary value is only a few dollars, it is one of the most precious gifts I have ever received.

The people I met in San Pedro taught me an essential spiritual lesson. They had such a desire to do something for us. Even though they had only meager possessions, they wanted to please us. Our newfound friends needed to see us before we left and bring us a gift.

I saw a great object lesson in the way they treated me. It showed me how I should relate to God. I should come to God and say, "I don't have much, but I want to give you something." "God, let me know what I can do to please you." "God, I want to be with you."

God is the very best gift giver. His love is an extravagant gift to us. God promises us a gift more incredible than we can imagine or ask for. 2 Corinthians 9:15 (VOICE) describes Jesus this way; "Praise God for this incredible, unbelievable, indescribable gift!" With the gift of Jesus and all the other large and small ways we are blessed in this life, God wants to instill in us reciprocal generosity. All we are, all we have, is a gift from God. He is our Provider, Sustainer, Creator, and Good Father. Gift-giving allows us to keep the circle of generosity flowing to people God has placed in our lives.  

Gentle Reader, I know you have given good gifts at Christmastime. Jesus knows that too. In Matthew 7:7-11 (VOICE), Jesus said "just ask and it will be given to you; seek after it and you will find. Continue to knock and the door will be opened for you. All who ask receive. Those who seek, find what they seek. And he who knocks, will have the door opened. Think of it this way: if your son asked you for bread, would you give him a stone? Of course not—you would give him a loaf of bread. If your son asked for a fish, would you give him a snake? No, to be sure, you would give him a fish—the best fish you could find. So if you, who are sinful, know how to give your children good gifts, how much more so does your Father in heaven, who is perfect, know how to give great gifts to His children!"

God is the ultimate giver of good gifts. No matter how fantastic the best gift you open this Christmas is, it can't compare to the gift of Jesus that we celebrate at Christmas. In Romans 6:23 (KJV), the Bible tells us, "The wages of sin is death, but the gift of God is eternal life through Christ Jesus our Lord." God has given you the best gift ever; how will you reciprocate? Who could you bless this Christmastime with your time or attention, with a gift, large or small? Find a way to be a gift to someone today.