“If any of you lacks wisdom, you should ask God, who gives generously to all without finding fault, and it will be given to you.” James 1:5
Christmas time, every year, is the same thing. As the season approaches, I get asked, ‘What do YOU want for Christmas?” My wife, family and friends want to know so they can at least buy me something I want! In turn, I ask the same question of them…for the same reason. Someone came up with a cute answer years ago, “I’d like to have whirled peas!”
The whole gift giving thing at CHRISTmas stems from the when the magi came with gifts of Gold, Frankincense and Myrrh to present to the baby Jesus. Which is a myth in the first place! My Church folks KNOW that there were not 3 kings gathered around the manger because I TELL them the Biblical truth. However many Magi there were.. they came to Jerusalem… to a house… where the CHILD was. It confuses them… just like ‘whirled peas.’
Buying presents for my wife can become a confusing and painful duty. “What if she doesn’t WANT or LIKE it?” That is the fear. But no matter what, she can be sure that BUYING WILL BE DONE! Why? Because I don’t want to feel guilty of not giving her a gift! Since tangible gifts can seem SO much more important than spiritual ones. The Bible tells us they are not!
In the Word of God…GOD is the GIVER. I am the RECEIVER! What He requires ME to give is only what HE has given to ME FIRST! I have nothing worthy of my own to offer anyone. When I recognize that, it kinda make me sad at first because it is offends my pride. But when I realize the truth and yield to it, I can REALLY bless my wife with a gift directly from Heaven.
There is a good hint in what we all SHOULD ask for at Christmas… or ANY time. Wisdom! When Solomon asked for it, he got everything else thrown in as well. Wisdom is the ability to apply God’s truth to any circumstance. And it NEVER goes bad or out of style. But it comes with a disclaimer…Verse 6 says that you’d better be SERIOUS when you ask for it.
God wants to USE us to bless people. We are His tools. And the greatest gifts we can give are gifts from the heart… love, care, consideration, truth, help, WISDOM! They must first come from God’s heart before we can give them to someone else. They must change ME before they can benefit anyone else.
There will NEVER be World Peace until the Prince of Peace, Jesus Christ, literally returns to establish and rule it. Visualizing it will NEVER make it happen. I must remember that before I can GIVE anything of value, I must be willing to RECEIVE it from God…FIRST! Only then can I PRESENT it to people I love… and don’t!
