Dec 16, 2020 Giving gifts

By Andrea Griggs

Do you enjoy choosing gifts to give others? Finding the perfect item is not one of my strengths. But one time I got it right, and it felt amazing.

Each Christmas I am reminded of my attempts to surprise my father. He had an incredible ability to guess what was in each present before he opened it. As a teenager, I would try various tricks to disguise the contents. I don’t know how, but Dad could always figure it out. He would pick up the box and say, This feels like a book with something soft wrapped around it. And, he was correct! Or, he would guess that the gift was a new robe that was wrapped around a brick. Right again!

Then, when I was 20, I finally found something he couldn’t guess. I wrapped it up in the plain rectangular box it came in with nothing else to change the shape or weight. Dad had no idea what it was. I was so excited to finally surprise him! My gift to my father that year was an N-scale electric model train set. I was astonished by how thrilled he was to receive it and that made me feel amazing.

The next time I came home from college to visit, Dad asked me to help him build some platforms in the basement. He had ordered more track and created a plan that incorporated some of his favorite real-life switches, crossings, and loops. We had a great time constructing the railways and soldering the track. Each time we could work together on the layout and scenery, it made me incredibly happy to see that my gift had given so much joy to my father.

At that time, I was not yet a parent, but it brought me new understanding for the words of Jesus in Matthew 7:11, If you…know how to give good gifts to your children, how much more will your Father in heaven give good gifts to those who ask Him!

Now that I am a parent, that verse is even more meaningful. I recognize the happiness I feel when I do something for my children, and it gives me a glimpse of God’s love for us.

We can keep this good feeling going by following Jesus’ advice in the next verse. Matthew 7:12 says, So in everything, do to others what you would have them do to you.

I invite you to look around and recognize some of the good gifts God has provided to you. Then, take the next step and do something for someone else that would make you happy if it were done for you. It doesn’t have to be a gift. It can be a kind word or letting another car into your traffic lane or a note of gratitude. It takes some practice, and even some courage, but the rewards are worth the effort.

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