Yesterday I finished a novel by Glenn Beck, The Christmas Sweater. A quick read about a young man named Eddie. I'd like to share a scene with you, if you don't mind.
It's Christmas morning. And Eddie and his mother are celebrating Christmas, alone. Eddie had dreamed about getting a red Huffy bike with a black banana seat, he'd searched the house for it but couldn't find a bike or even a receipt. He expected that his mom, knowing that he snooped, had come up with a master plan to surprise him with the bike. When it was time to open presents, he stared at the the box in front of him, imagining that there was a note inside that would read 'go outside, your present is there'. But when he opened the box, it was a sweater. A hand knitted, ugly sweater. The disappointment was all over his face. He didn't cry, but he wanted to. Eventually, he fled to his room and shut the door. He peered out the window to see the little girl across the street joyfully riding her new shiney bike in circles in her driveway. Great, everyone has a bike except him. The sweater, was tossed haphazardly on the floor by his dresser.
His mother, wanting to check on him, came into his room and immediately saw the sweater rolled up into a ball on the floor. She said 'Son, is that the gift I gave you?'. Oouch.
I'll stop here with the story. It wasn't until I read Glenn Beck's personal chapter at the end of the book that I realized I'd missed the golden nugget in this story. 'Son, is that the gift I gave you?' The holy spirit said to me 'My child, what have you done with the gift that I gave you?'. Wow, what have I done with the gifts that God has given me. What have you done with the gifts that God has given you? Have we tossed them aside because we didn't think they were good enough? Have we stuck them up on the top shelf of our closet to use another day? Are they buried under the clutter in our lives? Or do we use our gifts to serve Him.
Today, I'm remembering not only the abilites God has given me but the gift of my salvation. What am I doing with this most precious gift?
Merry Christmas and thank you for stopping by so I could share my thoughts with you.
It's Christmas morning. And Eddie and his mother are celebrating Christmas, alone. Eddie had dreamed about getting a red Huffy bike with a black banana seat, he'd searched the house for it but couldn't find a bike or even a receipt. He expected that his mom, knowing that he snooped, had come up with a master plan to surprise him with the bike. When it was time to open presents, he stared at the the box in front of him, imagining that there was a note inside that would read 'go outside, your present is there'. But when he opened the box, it was a sweater. A hand knitted, ugly sweater. The disappointment was all over his face. He didn't cry, but he wanted to. Eventually, he fled to his room and shut the door. He peered out the window to see the little girl across the street joyfully riding her new shiney bike in circles in her driveway. Great, everyone has a bike except him. The sweater, was tossed haphazardly on the floor by his dresser.
His mother, wanting to check on him, came into his room and immediately saw the sweater rolled up into a ball on the floor. She said 'Son, is that the gift I gave you?'. Oouch.
I'll stop here with the story. It wasn't until I read Glenn Beck's personal chapter at the end of the book that I realized I'd missed the golden nugget in this story. 'Son, is that the gift I gave you?' The holy spirit said to me 'My child, what have you done with the gift that I gave you?'. Wow, what have I done with the gifts that God has given me. What have you done with the gifts that God has given you? Have we tossed them aside because we didn't think they were good enough? Have we stuck them up on the top shelf of our closet to use another day? Are they buried under the clutter in our lives? Or do we use our gifts to serve Him.
Today, I'm remembering not only the abilites God has given me but the gift of my salvation. What am I doing with this most precious gift?
Merry Christmas and thank you for stopping by so I could share my thoughts with you.
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