WHAT ARE YOU GIVING FOR CHRISTMAS?
There are just a few shopping days left. Do you still need a few gifts? Here are some Biblical gift suggestions for your special people.
- TO YOUR FRIENDS – Give a Christ-like relationship. Friendship is based on relationships. Take the initiative to form a solid Christ-like relationship. Proverbs 18:24 says, “There are friends who destroy each other, but a real friend sticks closer than a brother.”
A little third-grade boy saw his best friend undergo chemotherapy for cancer. His friend lost his hair. To show his friendship, this little boy went and had all of his hair shaved off his head so his little buddy would not be the only boy at school without hair. That’s a friend!
- TO YOUR EMPLOYEES – Give a Christian environment. People spend a lot of time at work. Offer your employees the kind of environment to which they look forward to coming to work every day.
Paul wrote, “Be humble, thinking of others as better than yourself. Don’t think only about your own affairs, but be interested in others too and what they are doing.” Phillippians 2:3,4
- TO YOUR CUSTOMERS – Give second-mile service. Jesus said, “If a soldier demands that you carry his bag for a mile, carry it two miles.” I believe that the world today is looking to support people who offer service. I remember when I used to carry my car to a “service station.” You don’t have those anymore. Now it’s just a gas station where you pump your own gas. Give a gift of going the second-mile beyond what a customer would ever expect.
- TO YOUR ENEMIES – Give sincere forgiveness. People will do you wrong. It’s easy to look for an opportunity for revenge. Giving forgiveness far outweighs getting revenge! Jesus said, “If you forgive them who sin against you, your heavenly Father will forgive you.” Matthew 6:14
When two mountain goats meet on the side of a mountain and the path is not wide enough for them to pass, one goat will kneel and allow the other goat to step over him. This way, both of them are safe. What if we people could act as good as goats?
- TO YOUR FAMILY – Give a Christian example. I think the one thing kids need most is an example at home. Kids are looking for somebody after whom they can pattern their lives. Too many of them are picking people from television, sports, or social media.
Lynn and I were at a large African-American church in Atlanta. The pastor called to the front a father and his 10-year-old son who were competing in a “look-alike” contest in New York. From the dais I could clearly see that the little boy looked exactly like his father, from each part of his clothing, to his hair, to his smile, to the way he walked. Every kid needs a Godly example to be like.
- TO YOUR GOD – Give Him YOU! God doesn’t want sacrifices, or money, or promises, or pretty words. He wants you! You are His most desired gift. Christina Rossetti writes:
What can I give Him, poor as I am? If I were a shepherd, I would bring a lamb.
If I were a Wise Man, I would do my part. What can I give Him, I’ll give Him my heart.
You can’t buy these gifts at a store, but no one will want to swap them the day after Christmas!!
