As I was praying about what to share this morning I remembered something I wrote about a year ago and it was so very appropriate that I had to share it again. Isn’t that the way life is? We never just hear, watch, study and learn from a first time experience. True knowledge comes through repeated application. That’s the way it is with God’s word too. The more we read it and hear it the greater the impact it makes on our lives. So thank you for reading this and letting it have entrance into your thinking and into your heart.
Are you one of those persons who are wrapping challenged? You know the one, the one who asks for everything you buy to be wrapped at the store. You can’t cut the paper straight so the folded ends aren’t square. Sometimes you have to cut the paper twice because the first time it wasn’t big enough to cover the back of the package.
Or maybe you are bow deficient. I love that French ribbon with the wire edges that “should” stand up all pretty and nice. I’ve watched multiple videos on bow tying and mine never look like the example.
I have to confess that last year most of my gifts were given in gift bags. All I had to do was find the right size for the right present. Worked like a charm!
Although it’s really nice to have pretty packages under the tree the more important thing is the heart behind the present than the gift under the wrapping.
Years ago a very special gift was designed. It had been years in the planning. So much thought was given to every detail, it was an intricate, delicate gift. It required special packaging to keep it safe.
But with all the planning and the design of the gift the wrapping was lacking. It was humble, basic and nothing fancy. If the wrapping was any indication of the value of the gift inside, the on-looker would have felt that there was nothing special about this small present. However, the gift giver knew the present cost him everything.
“While Joseph and Mary were in Bethlehem, the time came for her to have the baby. 7 She gave birth to her first son. She wrapped him up well and laid him in a box where cattle are fed. She put him there because the guest room was full. 8 That night, some shepherds were out in the fields near Bethlehem watching their sheep. 9 An angel of the Lord appeared to them, and the glory of the Lord was shining around them. The shepherds were very afraid. 10 The angel said to them, “Don’t be afraid. I have some very good news for you—news that will make everyone happy. 11 Today your Savior was born in David’s town. He is the Messiah, the Lord. 12 This is how you will know him: You will find a baby wrapped in pieces of cloth and lying in a feeding box.” Luke 2:6-12 ERV
So now the question comes. Which present will you choose, the one beautifully wrapped or the one wrapped in hay covered cloth? One may change your life for a moment or a year but the other will change your life for eternity.
Thank you Lord for the gift of eternal life!