Gift Giver

Thanksgiving! What a wonderful holiday, a day to be thankful for all the wonderful things that our heavenly Father has provided for us and the promises we have that make even our trials things for which to be thankful.

When we stop for a moment or two to think about our lives, past and present, it is true: “Not one of all the good promises the LORD your God gave you has failed. Every promise has been fulfilled” (Joshua 23:14, NIV).

By now, people have been bustling around for some time getting ready for Christmas, buying gifts and hoping they will be the “right” present for the receiver. Our Jesus is a gift giver too. I am not thinking of material things; I am thinking about how lavishly He bestows the gifts of nature upon us: rainbows and waterfalls, flowers and plants whose beauty defies description, and friendships that uplift and comfort us.

He gives us little children whose innocence and enthusiasm fill us with joy and the trials that make us stronger and more able to help those who come to us in need. God is so good! This is the time of year that Hebrews 13:5, 6 talks to us about.

“Keep your lives free from the love of money and be content with what you have, because God has said, ‘Never will I leave you; never will I forsake you.’ So we say with confidence, ‘The Lord is my helper; I will not be afraid. What can mere mortals do to me?’” (NIV). This past week, my granddaughter emailed me pictures of a trip she took to the Smokey Mountains. She was on a hike to Laurel Falls, and the pictures were gorgeous. Nature has a way of showing us the beauty and power of the love that God has for each of us. The greatest show nature has to offer is free.

Doesn’t cost you anything.

We just can’t lose sight of these good things because they are intended for us to experience, share, and draw closer to the God who created them.

Grace A. Keene