Due to some sickness around church, and the fact that no other families are prepared to host church, there is just going to be no church today! That means this will be a nice, relaxing sort of day. Perfect for working on Christmas presents. Only the last two presents I must make are for Dad and Daniel, and they will be home. So nix that idea! Last night we decorated our tree finally! It seems so strange to put it up only 6 days from Christmas, but I'm really glad we still have one! Okay! It has been a long time since I've done a post of any substance, so I thought I'd do one that was a bit deeper than "Ho-hum, I hate chia pets!" ;)
So saying.... Merry Christmas! (And yes, I meant Merry Christmas. Not Happy Holidays or Season's Greetings!) when I put all the Christmas presents I had made for people under the tree, I was so excited, thinking about when each person opened the one I had made especially for them. I think homemade presents are the best kind, because since you spend even hours making the gift for someone, you are thinking about them the whole time. And since you must work for the present, there is a whole process of thinking what this person delights in, what they like doing, etc. Anyhow, I was getting excited over several (I love when gifts turn out!) and then a thought crossed mind, that I am sure was God speaking to me, "This is how God must have felt sending us his son Jesus1" Can't you imagine Him smiling happily each time a person stopped to admire His handiwork? Don't you think He was thrilled when a person realized who this baby really was? This tiny child was the way that God had planned before time to save us all. Can you imagine the excitement that must have been God's as he watched Jesus's life unfold? He knew the whole time that this was His present to all of the world, and He was so joyful at the thought of the wonder we would be filled with when we hear of such a plan!
But you know, have you ever given somebody a gift that you can tell they didn't like? Or they didn't even bother to open the card that you carefully watercolored yourself? Such disappointment the Lord must have felt when His children threw his Gift in the dust, stepped on Him, spit on Him, and complained that God had "forgotten them on their birthday and didn't care enough about them to give them a gift." Here was a beautiful Savior for the world living in their midst, telling them God's plan, yet all we could do was pitch a fit because this Gift was not wrapped in shiny paper with a big silver bow. No. God's gift to us on that Christmas morning, and for all time was wrapped in swaddling clothes and lying in a manger. Not under a Christmas tree. Let's please try to remember in the excitement of giving to others, the pleasure it must give God when we praise Him for His gift. Because I'm telling you straight up. If you don't recognize that Jesus was the ultimate gift that anyone could ever give, than your priorities are askew! Merry Christmas!
-Rachel
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