God's gifts to us
Here we are again, another Christmas Day over and done with and once more we are left wondering if it was worth all the preparation and worry. Well, for me parts of it were. Despite being ill, I thoroughly enjoyed the carol service last Sunday evening. Those of you not there missed a treat. It was one of Bob M’s wackiest ideas yet (and he has had some weird ones) but this really worked and seemed to find favour with the entire congregation, even those dubious about it on hearing the title. Fancy calling it “Off my trolley”!
The idea was that if God had a supermarket it would always be open, always fully stocked, there would be no loss leaders, no tills and everything would be free. The shelves would be stacked with such things as Salvation, Peace and Joy. We then we went on to look at the goods we actually buy. Church members took an item from the trolley (found on a dump, not stolen from Sainsbury’s, I should make clear) and spoke of how it reminded them of one of the gifts of God. We had the staples bread and wine to remind us of the Eucharist; an old atlas and modern satnav showed how we have always been and always will be guided in the right direction; an umbrella represented God’s protection over us; chocolate in the form of Toblerone, to be shared with those we love, made us think of the Trinity; frozen peas reminded us that Jesus was the Prince of Peace (the worst pun in history); all the children present were given gifts to unwrap and the joy on their faces when they saw their toys reminded us that Jesus brought joy to the world and finally we had an inflatable swimming float to remind us that God threw the whole world a lifebelt when He sent His Son for our salvation.
So we realised that, although we keep saying Christmas has become too mercenary and over commercialised, it really is about gifts after all. Not those we give but the great ones we receive from God, if we are willing to accept them. These culminate in the gift of eternal life, gained through the death of His dear Son. There are many Bible verses that can be and were used to illustrate the gifts but I think one verse of a poem read at the service says it all. A small boy out with his mother rattling a collection tin in the snow at yuletide asks her why they are doing this and her reply includes the following:
The meaning of Christmas, you see my dear son,
is not about presents or just having fun
but the gift of a father - his own precious Son
so the world would be saved when his work was all done.
(A Christmas Lesson, Tom Krause)
This year I decided my family had quite enough “things” and, as I had no idea what fashion and modern culture dictated “in” gifts, I gave Oxfam “Unwrapped Presents” instead, sending money for pigs, chickens, seeds, water filters and medical aid, in family names. I felt good about doing this but then got a guilt complex and went out and bought small gifts too, so that everyone had something tangible to open on Christmas Day. These small gifts were received in the same way as the major ones of previous years and I realised that it is truly the giving not the gift that counts.
Soon it will be Epiphany when we recall the Wise Men bringing Gold, Frankincense and Myrrh to the baby Jesus. As I have said before, not the most practical of gifts for a peripatetic, teenage mother with a newborn baby. Disposable nappies or toiletries would have been more useful but Mary kept the treasures and pondered on them. She realised that it was not the gifts themselves that mattered but the fact that such elevated people had recognised her son, He who was Himself the most important gift of all.
For God so loved the world that He gave His one and only Son, that whoever believes in Him shall not perish but have eternal life. (John 3:16)
