Cyndi's Two Cents

The greatest of gifts

Commentary.

In these final days before Christmas many are scrambling to finish their shopping. I know people who have their Christmas shopping done before the 4^th of July. One friend has a “Christmas closet” to store gifts purchased throughout the year.  (That would never work for me because I’d want to give the gift as soon as I saw the person for which it was purchased!)

Planning and preparing, fretting and stewing trying to find the right gift for friends, parents, children, and co-workers is a joy for some and a dreaded task for others.

In a small farmhouse, an old man sat alone at his kitchen table, dreaming of the gifts he would like to give his family for Christmas.  A new bicycle for the youngest great-grandson.  A new car for the great-granddaughter who is the spitting image of her great grandma at 16.  A new tractor from the local dealership would be a great gift for one grandson, and a new bass boat for the other.  For his son and daughter-in-law, a much-deserved vacation to a beautiful Caribbean Island he’d seen on a television program. 

The old man had many friends and dreamed of showering them with expensive gifts as well.  His heart was big, but the man did not have very much money.  He barely had enough money to pay the propane and electric bill and the feed bill at the local co-op was past due.

As he sat alone at the kitchen table, he envisioned the gifts that he would really like to give. A smile that brought a twinkle to the fading blue eyes came across his face as he dreamed of the surprise and joy his family and friends would express when they received such wondrous things.

In the stillness of the night in that tiny kitchen, the man thought, “I am a happy man and yet I do not have a lot of money or material possessions.”

There are gifts of greater value than the things money could buy.

In the still of the night, he considered these things and thought about what Christmas really means to him. 

The old man reached across the table and picked up his tattered Bible, worn from years of use.  He read scriptures from Matthew, Mark, Luke and John.  He choked back tears of joy as he read passages from Psalms, Proverbs, and Corinthians.  In the still of the night, laying the Bible aside, the old man pulled a pen from his pocket and began to write the shopping list for those gifts that truly mean the most:

Faith; patience; a sense of humor; joy; laughter; hope; trust; integrity; self-discipline; courage; compassion; humility; friendship; music; loyalty; imagination; and finally, love.

No amount of money can buy the most valuable gifts.

When you open your Christmas package to find a new shirt, pair of pliers, smart phone or jewelry, you will be grateful for the gift.  However, these material gifts are not only “things,” but serve as reminders that we matter to someone.  Someone loves us enough to put thought and care into selecting “just the right” gift.