Rediscovering Christmas – The Best Gift We Can Give

Today the wise men appear on the scene from the east.

They followed his star and came to Bethlehem to worship the baby who was born to be king of the Jews. (Did you ever notice this about the star before?? It wasn’t a star, or the star, but HIS star.)

Read the full account here.

They came to the house where the child was and saw him with his mother, Mary, and they bowed down and worshiped him. They opened their gifts and gave him treasures of gold, frankincense, and myrrh. Matthew 2:11 NCV

We haven’t missed Christmas, have we?

It’s not too late if we’ve gotten caught up–and maybe buried–in the hustle and bustle. We have a handful of days before the birth of the One we celebrate. A handful of days to slow our pace, to listen in the silence, to pause and reflect, and to prepare our hearts.

The verse above strips away the frivolous to reveal the truth of Christmas. Truth that’s still relevant for you and me today. These wise men followed Jesus’ star to the house where Mary and Jesus were, and they bowed down and worshiped the baby. They presented Jesus with costly gifts of gold, frankincense, and myrrh.

Did Jesus need these gifts? Probably not. But, the wise men gave the best they had. Not what they picked up on their journey. Not what they had leftover. But the best.

Friend, what about us? We may not have gold, frankincense, and myrrh, so what could we give Jesus this Christmas? What’s the best gift you and I could bring to Him?

Our lists? Our holiday stress? Probably not.

A present we’ve purchased at some specific store? Maybe He’d like our money? I’m guessing not.

Or maybe a prized possession of ours? Or how about our talents and what we’re good at? Those are good, but not our best.

What is the best gift we can give Jesus this year?

The best we have is ourselves. So, the best gift we can give Him is just that… us.

We can give Him our hearts.

We can give Him our trust.

And, we can give Him our lives… the best gift of all.

Today is the perfect day to take a few moments to bow down like the wise men and worship Jesus. Let’s open the gifts of ourselves and present them to Him.

And, while we’re at it, the best gift we can give to others this Christmas is also ourselves. Let’s promise to be present, physically, spiritually, and mentally to those around us in the coming days. Our lists aren’t as important as the people near us.

Merry Christmas, friend. You truly are a treasured gift… to Jesus, to others, and to me!

Blessings!

Julie

 

 

Linking up with friends Jennifer and Holley. Previous Rediscovering Christmas posts can be found here.