By Pastor Naomi Mitchell
For Carter County Times
When you receive a birthday party invitation the first thing you look for is the name of the person being honored. Maybe you start thinking of certain family or friends who may come to the party. You can just picture a party room being all decorated with bright banners and balloons. In the middle of the table will be a grand birthday cake decorated with a special theme. There’ll be games and lots of conversation. You are excited for this special birthday party to honor this person. There will be lots of gifts at the party. You start thinking about the present you will buy.
You attend the party bringing your gift. You look around the grandly decorated room. There’s lots of people there, some you know and some you don’t know. The party is in full swing with people mingling and having a great time. After a while you notice someone is missing, and that is the guest of honor. But no one seems to notice. Everyone is having a great time. Then they all begin to exchange their gifts with each other. You can’t believe what you are witnessing. After a while folks begin to leave the party taking the gift they received. They hadn’t even noticed that the guest of honor wasn’t present. You felt so sad.
I know I have never attended a birthday party like this, and I would say you haven’t either. How sad if something like this really happened. It would be the talk of the town. But you know, it really has happened to a special someone, and it continues to happen on His birthday each year.
God sent the world a gift and that special gift was Jesus, His only begotten Son. This gift that goes on and on is so often overlooked for material gifts that are soon forgotten and no longer wanted, and no longer satisfying. In this special Gift called Jesus are many gifts that benefit each one of us. The only commitment for these gifts to manifest in our life is to follow Jesus as our Lord and Savior. The Gift of Jesus is found in Isaiah 9:6, “For unto us a child is born, unto us a Son is given, and the government shall be upon his shoulder: and His name shall be called Wonderful, Counsellor, The mighty God, the everlasting Father, The Prince of Peace.” The Gift of Salvation is found in Ephesians 2:8-9, “For it is by grace you have been saved, through faith – not by works, so that no one can boast.”
There are other gifts, such as the Gift of Peace (John 14:27). The Gift of Forgiveness and the Holy Spirit (Acts 2:38). The Gift of Spiritual Gifts (1 Corinthians 12:4-5). The Gift of Eternal Life (John 3:16) and (Revelation 22:17). What wonderful gifts that will last forever in our lives. They will never wear out.
So, no matter what you find under your Christmas tree this year, God offers you and me gifts more lasting, more sustaining, more fulfilling than any gift we could purchase ourselves or receive from others. Every one of God’s gifts to us – for you – is wrapped in love. Let us not overlook any of God’s Gifts! God was motivated by love when He gave His best gift at Christmas: Jesus! Receive this wonderful gift. Receiving the gift of Jesus goes on and on, a gift that never grows old and wears out.
Then, why do we give gifts? We give gifts because we are motivated by God’s love. Celebrate His birthday this year by giving love to others. In fact, let’s learn to celebrate Christmas every day. Jesus is the reason for all seasons! Amen.
Comments/Prayer requests: Pastornaomi4god@gmail.com. FB: JoyfulHoPrayer. JOYFUL House of Prayer, 2519 Quicksand Road, (P.O. Box 856), Jackson KY. Services: Sunday 10am and Thursdays 6:30pm. Radio Broadcast: WJSN 97.3 FM & WEKG 81.0 AM Sundays 1-2pm. (Reprint 12.18.24)
