Gifts

I hate shopping...Ask my Dad...he knows that to get me to a store, he must do one of the following:

a.  only go to one store
b.  feed me afterward
c.  feed me between stores

Yes, I know it sounds ridiculous.  For some reason, Christmas shopping isn't quite as bothersome to me.  Maybe it's because I've found the joy of online shopping.  But, I think it's a little deeper than that.  I like the anticipation of seeing a loved one's face when he or she opens the gift I took time to think about before purchasing.  I love that we know each other well enough to know what to get each other.  There is meaning in gift giving.

You know the three wise men, right?  Apparently they arrived when Jesus was a few years old....but they had journeyed to see this baby, this promised one.  Have you ever thought about their gifts?  They were lavish gifts, fit for a King...that was expected at that time...bring your best.  But I wonder, did they feel kind of foolish when they presented their gifts to a small child?  Did they have thoughts of "What is he going to use this for?  Is he going to chew on it?"  

Maybe that's the point...God surprised them.  God is still surprising us with how he comes, how he is at work, the people that he shows up in...And God accepts us and our gifts for what they are.  Gifts are gifts...God just wants us to come.