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Gift Exchange |
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by Tom Gilbert — December, 2003
Christmas morning arrives. The kids excitedly bound down the
stairs and dive towards the tree. You and your spouse smile
and put your arms around each other. Gleeful shouts of joy
emerge from the little ones. Later, the adults open presents
and smile, sometimes even sincerely, sometimes not (oh, boy, another tie! Socks?!).
Gift giving can be great. We all enjoy getting presents.
Most of us like to give them too, especially when we know
they are appreciated or highly anticipated. Anybody around
children at Christmas time knows the truth of this.
The gift exchange at the holiday season can be overdone,
of course. There is also the strange way that it becomes
one-sided. As cute as my brother, sister and I were as
kids we were each guilty at times of counting our gift
pile. I see my children do the same.
The Thought that Counts
We’ve often been taught it’s
the thought that counts. It's likely that once again this year
you'll receive a present not exactly to your
liking. Before
you
rush down to the store to exchange it,
please consider a different perspective on the “gift
exchange”.
This exchange starts with our divine and loving Father. Abba
(Daddy) delights in giving us the gifts that are perfectly
matched to our inner desires. They are the fulfillment of
our longing to contribute. And contribute we must. The key
to this gift exchange is that we are bestowed talents meant
to be used beyond our self interests. Wouldn’t it be
fantastic if we could maintain a sense of wonder, gratitude
and excitement over these much more important gifts?
The gifts from the Holy Spirit differ from what you’ll
find in the neighborhood mall or online store. In a sense,
it is a discovery that God awakens us to – the realization
of what our individual talents are. Have you ever experienced
the thrill of finding out you have the talent for something
you just naturally love to do? Maybe it is art or making
music. Perhaps you have a way with words, either as a speaker
or writer. You may even be gifted with that wonderful healing
touch that so many of us need in our hurting world.
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A Real Go-Getter
I imagine the apostle Paul was a real “go-getter” before
Jesus revealed himself on the road to Damascus. Paul was
well schooled in Jewish law and he was out to enforce it
to the point of persecution and murder against the rebel
forces he perceived the early Christian believers to be.
Suddenly, he’s knocked off his high horse and humbled by the realization that he was zealous
for all the wrong reasons. Yet his enormous drive, perseverance and talents
were put to excellent use when he discovered the proper use
of his gifts. Some of these gifts were probably not much
in evidence (i.e. humility), but others, like his ability
to learn and receive wisdom to illuminate his knowledge,
may have been with him all along.
In 1 Corinthians 12 Paul passes along some good insight
into the various gifts God doles out to us through the Spirit.
8To one there is given through the Spirit the message of
wisdom, to another the message of knowledge by means of the
same Spirit, 9to another faith by the same Spirit, to another
gifts of healing by that one Spirit, 10to another miraculous
powers, to another prophecy, to another distinguishing between
spirits, to another speaking in different kinds of tongues,
and to still another the interpretation of tongues.
Gifts of the Holy Spirit enable us to live a holy Christian life. Let’s look more closely
at these gifts:
1. Wisdom - desire for the things of God, and to direct our
whole life and all our actions to His honor and glory
2. Understanding - enable us to know more clearly the mysteries
of faith
3. Counsel - warn us of the deceits of the devil, and of
the dangers to salvation
4. Fortitude - strengthen us to do the will of God in all
things
5. Knowledge - enable us to discover the will of God in all
things
6. Piety - love God as a Father, and obey Him because we
love Him
7. Fear of the Lord - have a dread of sin
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Just What You Were Hoping For
When these gifts are bestowed upon us we
naturally get excited. It’s like Christmas morning and you’ve
found under the tree just what you were hoping for. Somehow we
need to find a way to hold on to that enthusiasm. We also
must find a way to use these gifts each day for the greater
glory of God and for the benefit of others.
The natural tendencies to get our feathers ruffled when dealing
with others in a community must be overcome. That doesn’t
happen with our human instincts for power, money and prestige.
The gifts of the Holy Spirit are a wonderful balm for soothing
bruised and battered egos. These gifts teach us how to work
and live together in peace and harmony. We recognize who the
Great CEO of us all is and that everything we do when these
seven gifts are manifest can accomplish something we can’t
do on our own limited power and understanding.
This Christmas season let’s be open to receiving these
most wonderful gifts from God – gifts that are possible
because of the gift that Jesus promised to send us. The Comforter,
the One who reminds us of all truth and allows us to experience
the special relationship with the Godhead Trinity, is a direct
result of the gift of the Father to us – His only begotten
Son.
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Scripture taken from the Holy Bible,
NEW INTERNATIONAL VERSION®.Copyright © 1973, 1978,
1984 International Bible Society. All rights reserved throughout
the world. Used by permission of International Bible Society.
NEW INTERNATIONAL VERSION® and NIV® are registered trademarks
of International Bible Society. Use of either trademark for
the offering of goods or services requires the prior written
consent of International Bible Society.
Scripture quotations marked (NLT) are taken from the Holy Bible,
New Living Translation, copyright ©1996. Used by permission
of Tyndale House Publishers, Inc., Wheaton, IL 60189, USA. All
rights reserved.
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2 CORINTHIANS 9:7
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Each man should give what he has
decided in his heart to give, not reluctantly or under compulsion,
for God loves a cheerful giver.
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(NIV)
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