Christmas day every day

Have you ever watched young children open presents on Christmas? Most of them act in a similar manner whether opening gifts on Christmas or their birthday. Unless they got a great night of sleep or nap and are overflowing with the fruit of the Spirit, namely patience, (at that young age, good luck!) there usually is a lot of whining involved, grabbing the gift out of a sibling or cousin's grasp, and asking where the next gift is. The scene usually unfolds like this: You carefully pick out gifts that your child will be ecstatic about and you purchase them not for your own benefit but purely for them. You spend an hour or so wrapping them, tying on bows, knowing the whole time that it won't be appreciated or probably even noticed by your 2 or 3 yr old. But, nonetheless, you know that he or she loves ripping off the paper. And, it looks pretty to you! The time has come to lavish the gifts on your child. You watch them as they burst into joyful screams, jump up and down in an excitement, and rush over to the pile of gifts. They rip off the paper to find the gift inside and for a split second, a millisecond really, they seem to be very grateful. You are ready to sit back and enjoy watching them play with that toy that you just knew they would love and have fun with. But wait...they actually threw the toy down and are already ripping into the next gift. The paper is off this one before you can even say the word "Wait". This time you hardly get a smile before they are, once again, on to the next gift. And so it continues until you're left with a pile of shredded paper, a pile of toys, and a little one crying and asking for more.

Pretty typical, right? Maybe it doesn't go quite that bad but now imagine you are older, perhaps in your 50's or 60's. Its your daughter or son's birthday again. They are much older now. They have spouses, children, mortgages and jobs. You enjoyed picking out their gifts because you know they don't always have the funds to splurge. You wrapped them up all nice and neat - again, because really its just prettier that way. You have your son sit down while you bring the gifts to him. Unexpectedly though, this grown 30 yr old man starts ripping the paper off and tearing into the gift. Bows and ribbon is flying in the air, boxes are tossed across the room. He sees the first item, throws a cursory "thanks" your way and is off to the next gift while you sit their astonished. You blink, maybe even pinch yourself, to make sure that 28 years really has passed and this is not your 2 yr old again. No, this is your grown child. This continues, again, until you're left with a pile of shredded paper, a pile of gadgets most likely, and a grown man annoyed and asking for more.

Pretty ridiculous, right? Well, the Lord, in his infinite grace and mercy reminded me that we too can act like this. The scene looks a little different and there isn't really wrapping perse but it still plays out the same. The Lord blesses us each day with some repeating, though still amazing, gifts like breath, a new day, a warm bed, food, etc. He also gives us other gifts, that He picks out just for you or me, like a sunny warm day or a fresh cup of coffee or a kiss from a loved one. Sadly though, I find myself all too often throwing up to him a cursory "thanks" and going on to the next gift. I continue to do this, saying thanks less and less and looking more and more for the other gifts. By the end of the day there I am, standing among hundreds (yes, count them and I'm sure there are hundreds) of gifts and asking for more. Pretty ridiculous is right.

Verses to remember: "Every good and perfect gift is from above." James 1:17, "Give thanks in all circumstances, for this is God's will for you in Christ Jesus." Thess 5:18, and "Do not be anxious about anything, but in everything, by prayer and petition, with thanksgiving, present your requests to God. And the peace of God, which transcends all understanding, will guard your hearts and minds in Christ Jesus." Phil 4:6-7.

When we have a truly thankful heart and remember the multitude of gifts God lavishes on us each day, it is pretty hard to be anxious about things. I pray that tomorrow will be different -that my "thanks" will be true and that I will gratefully open up one "gift" at a time. Next time you watch a child open up gifts hopefully it will be a good reminder to check yourself and make sure you aren't still a 3 yrd old living in an adult's life.