Christmas Gifts

 

When I was a child, Christmas always seemed so far away. But each year the nearness of Christmas was signaled by the arrival of the Sears and Roebuck Christmas catalog. I anxiously awaited its arrival and wore it out looking at all the incredible toys that it contained. I would lie on the floor in front of the fake Christmas fireplace that we put up in the living room and looked through that catalog almost every day. The lights of the Christmas tree would reflect off the pages as a little boy dreamed of how great it would be on Christmas morning. And Christmas morning never disappointed! There are 4 presents that stand out from my childhood years. A GI Joe that talked when you pulled his dog tags. A Red Ryder BB Gun. I did not shoot my eye out. A puppy that I named Angel. A helicopter that landed on a Styrofoam ship.  Those 4 gifts brought me a lot of joy. There is nothing wrong with that. But I no longer have any of those gifts. GI Joe eventually broke. I outgrew the BB gun. Angel died. The helicopter eventually crashed and wouldn’t work anymore. But there is a Christmas gift that endures. God gave His one-of-a-kind Son. He is the greatest gift ever! Salvation through His name if a gift that endures! I received the gift of Jesus when I was a teenager. Jesus is a gift that changed my life. Today, I echo the words of the apostle Paul, “Thanks be to God for His indescribable gift.” (2 Cor. 9:15)

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