Every Gift
Ephesians 4:7 But unto every one of us is given grace according to the measure of the gift of Christ.
:8 Wherefore he saith, When he ascended up on high, he led captivity captive, and gave gifts unto men.
They had put in their requests, written the ‘Santa’ letters (actually sent to a rich great uncle who had asked for them) and were waiting with great anticipation and much impatience for that coming morning when they could finally unwrap and expose the treasures they hoped to receive. The number one thing on both of their lists was actually the same thing. It was the latest and greatest toy- just what all the tv ads had shown to be the ‘must have’ for this year.
On that morning, far earlier than they would normally sleep in on a non-school morning, they rose up and started making sure everyone else in the house was also getting in position so that the legal opening of the presents could begin. After waiting for a few younger siblings and cousins to open presents, their moment finally came and both boys quickly went for the package that surely would be that specially requested present. Both presents were soon free of their concealment, but both were not acknowledged with the same degree of elation- not in the least. While one of them did receive that dreamed of toy, the other, to his ill-concealed disappointment, found within that same-sized box just an old book- something for which he had never felt a single desire. It wasn’t even on his list at all. While he didn’t want to disrespect those who had given the gift, he did get a bit overwhelmed by the pain of disappointment and, in the course of cleaning up, actually stepped on it and eventually lost the book in the shuffle.
It was a few years later, and the boys who had become young men were home on college break. They were helping Mom and Dad clear out much of the accumulated stuff from the attic and garage for a garage sale and Goodwill donations. It was fun opening up boxes and finding many of their old treasures. Memories were revived of related experiences and stories were told, some of which were new discoveries for the others of personal feelings and perceptions. The ‘dream’ toy was eventually found and it was interesting to note how quickly it had gone from this incredibly expensive essential to just another of the occupants of storage boxes. Then, while going through some books, the old lost book of disappointment was found by their father. Since it hadn’t really even been opened on that day it was a present long ago, nothing of it’s contents had been discovered, including the note on the inside cover. After looking through it for a little while himself, the father handed it to the son to whom it had originally been given along with a suggestion that he check it out. Thumbing through several dog-eared pages with hand written notes in the margins, the son finally came back to the inside cover and read the note that had been written to him there by his since deceased great-uncle. He had been addressed by name, and then a wish was expressed that the young boy would find this book to bring as much fulfillment and wealth to his life as it had to the uncle’s. After several years in a life that had met with failure after failure, he had taken and applied the truths in this book, eventually acquiring a great deal of wealth as a result.
It’s easy to get caught up in the disappointment that rises from observing desired gifts going to others, and step on and totally lose and forget the gift we’ve been given. While there may be a ‘buz’ going on at the moment for that ‘big deal’ present, the ability to live a life fulfilled by much more than a soon to be forgotten fad is there all along, though possibly lost and forgotten. To discover it and begin living in the reality of its full potential is to find the wealth of a lifetime. It’s just a matter of taking whatever gift we’ve been given and letting it grow to its completed design.
