Diving Into Gifts Galore

As Christians, we know we are God's children, but it is almost impossible to grasp the tremendous blessing and privilege associated with being a child of God. To imagine being the son or daughter of the world's wealthiest, wisest, most generous and loving father is to draw a useful, but pitifully inadequate comparison. Our Heavenly Father is no less than the creator of all things, His love for us is immeasurable, and His wisdom is unsearchable. And though it pleases Him to lavish us with His love, He cannot be manipulated, cajoled, or fooled, and His love is not marred by such human weaknesses as pride, fear, guilt, or self-doubt.

Though nothing we can ever possess or aspire to could make us worthy of such love, He chooses to shower us with a multitude of "good and perfect gifts:" His son, our salvation, our faith, our acceptance into His family, His word, His spirit, all of history and creation, our lives, our experiences, our relationships, our talents and skills, our very selves. All things flow through Him, and since He is present in every moment, He also delights in surprising us with unexpected tokens of His affection as we go about our daily routines. Whether they are wrapped in a brief encounter or a few words, these tiny treasures bear witness to the fact that God knows us, loves us, and takes a personal interest in our lives.

And yet, as children of a loving, gracious Father who is rich in mercy and able to do "immeasurably more than all we ask or imagine," we often fail to recognize the abundance of blessings we receive or are reluctant to bring our requests before our Father. So often, we either display an attitude of entitlement, or we pout in disbelief (either because we did not receive what we thought we should, or because we convince ourselves that our desires are either too big or too small to trouble our Father with). As one who stands guilty of both transgressions, I have to recognize that the former demonstrates a lack of thankfulness, and the latter reveals a wavering faith in God's compassion, power, plan, and wisdom.

One of the purposes of this little writing project is to challenge both presumption and doubt by being more aware of the gifts that flow from our Father and sharing my thoughts on a particular blessing in my life every few weeks. Ultimately, however, the greatest gift is God Himself, and though we can never fully comprehend His majesty, the good and perfect gifts we receive from Him offer us a glimpse of who He is and who we are in Him. If we choose to ignore, deny, belittle, doubt, or take these gifts for granted, we miss the opportunity to gain a deeper understanding of God and to dwell nearer to Him. I don't want to miss it.