If you have looked upon a child’s face on Christmas morning as he or she waited for the okay to enter the family room and see what “Santa” brought, I dare say, you will witness pure joy and sheer enthusiasm. As a child, I can remember the excitement that would build in the month of December as I got closer and closer to Christmas Day and receiving that one gift that I was so hoping my parents were able to purchase for me.
Just as I anticipated Christmas Day, I anticipated the arrival of my grandparents. My grandpa and my mom would sit at the piano and sing Christmas carols. Her alto voice blended with his tenor created a beautifully warm melodic sound that filled our home. What fun to be with them and to anticipate Christmas and the gifts that were to come.
After lying in bed late into the night Christmas Eve, listening for sleigh bells, we would eventually fall asleep, just to wake very early the next morning. Mom and dad would make us wait until Grandpa had shaved. Yes, shaved! We had to wait until he was ready. To a child, it seemed like an eternity! I do believe he had an ornery streak, to make four kids wait that long before getting to see what “Santa” brought. Once he declared himself shaven and ready for the celebration, we were allowed to run into the room. Many years, I got what I asked for, but then there were some, when I did not.
Looking back, I remember the joy and elation I felt when I got what I had asked for. But, to an even greater degree, I remember the disappointment and sadness of the years when I didn’t receive what I asked for. In the Bible, we see many who asked of God but did not receive, having to wait for Him to give them what they asked for. Job asked for the gift of healing, yet he didn’t immediately receive what he asked for. Sarah wanted the gift of a child, yet for a season, God said no. Then you see those who came to Jesus asking for something specific and receiving immediately what they asked for, such as the man with leprosy. “A man with leprosy came to him and begged him on his knees, “If you are willing, you can make me clean.” Filled with compassion, Jesus reached out his hand and touched the man. “I am willing,” he said, “Be clean! Immediately the leprosy left him and he was cured.”
There was One in the Bible who desired to receive the gift of being exempt from what the Father was asking of him. God chose not to give him that gift, knowing that to do so, would not accomplish what He desired. Jesus cried out, “Oh Father if it be your will, let this cup (the cross) pass from me.” The gift that God wanted to give you and me had to come through the birth and the painful death of His son, Jesus.
If this Christmas, you have asked the Father for a gift and He has chosen not to give it, wait, as Job and Sarah waited, believing that God knows best. If God chooses to give you the gift that you ask of him this Christmas, rejoice as the leper rejoiced, believing that God knows best. This year if you are asking God for the gift of deliverance from difficulty, heartache and pain, he may choose not to give it. At that point, you must determine to believe that He knows what is best and what He desires to accomplish in and through you.
No matter the answer to your asking, weather it is wait, yes or no, you must understand that just as God knew what was best for His Son, he knows what is best for you. “Every good and perfect gift comes down from the Father of Lights.”
This Christmas, celebrate the gifts God has chosen to bring into your life, believing that He knows what is best for you. Celebrate His son’s birth and his death, for through him, God gave to the world the gift of a Savior. As we wait to see Him, may we be filled with pure joy and sheer enthusiasm!
God offers to the world the greatest gift one could ever receive- Jesus- His Son!
Father, I am humbled that You have graciously given me the gifts that are best for me. I am grateful that You have not always given me what I asked for, knowing it would not be best for me. Some of the gifts You have given have come wrapped in very unattractive packages, yet once I received them, I came to see that they were filled with beautiful blessings. Thank you for your Son and for the rich gift of salvation. I am filled with pure joy and sheer enthusiasm at the thought of seeing You and receiving the gift of spending eternity with you!
“And behold you will conceive in your womb and bring forth a So, and shall call His name Jesus.” Luke 1:31
“For God did not appoint us to wrath, but to obtain salvation through our Lord Jesus Christ, who died for us, that whether we wake or sleep, we should live together with Him.” 1 Thessalonians 5:9
dianne