A Gift to Jesus

If you belong to Jesus, have you thought of what gift you might give Him this year? Some people don't even think in those terms. You have those that only think about what THEY want for Christmas. You have others who spend all their time buying and preparing gifts for family and friends without hardly a thought of themselves or even a thought of Jesus. And then there are those who think about what they can give their Lord on this, His birthday. If you are a Christian, then I invite you to examine your heart and your life before your holy God. There is at least one thing that He wants from you in your walk with Him, in your life before your Master and King. Could it be that He is longing for your time? Have you been rushing in and out of His presence, or perhaps not making any time for Him at all? Is Jesus an afterthought? Are you spending 99% of your time baking and shopping and decorating, and then giving your Savior the leftovers of that minute or two that is not given for everything else? Are you running around until you are at the point of exhaustion, then climbing into bed without even reading a single verse in your bible, or without falling on your knees or getting on your face in prayer and praise to your God?

What about giving Him your thoughts? How is your thought life, by the way? Do you spend a lot of time thinking about things that the Lord has not given you yet? I'll give you an example: Do you spend all your time thinking about that boyfriend you want, or that godly husband you long for, instead of thinking about the reality of your heavenly Husband? If God has not yet blessed you with someone special, maybe He is waiting for you to give HIM the time, thoughts, and devotion He deserves. If you spend very little time thinking about Jesus now, maybe He knows that if He blessed you with a partner, you would be likely to forget Jesus all-together, or seldom spend time with Him. Try spending more time thinking on the loveliness of your King and see if your intimacy with Him doesn't grow. Give Him that gift. What about sin that pops into your head unexpectedly? Do you expel it immediately or do you allow your mind to linger there for a little while? Jesus knows all of your thoughts and it is very easy to quench and grieve the Holy Spirit! Does your mind stay so preoccupied in the everyday troubles of life that you don't make any room in your brain to think on Him? Do you let life's stresses keep your thoughts gloomy or depressed? Do you spend so much time worrying about how to make ends meet or how to get everything done on your "to do list" that you don't leave room in your head to think about all the ways in which your God has been gracious to you? Do you make it a point to take time to think about all of His blessings and forgot not all His benefits? (Psalm 103:1-4) Do you take a few minutes out of your busy day just to reflect on His gracious answers to your prayers? Or maybe think about how His mighty right arm delivered you out of trouble? Your time is precious. How much of it are you giving to your Lord?

Maybe He wants you to give Him your gift of a thankful heart this year. Maybe life has been full of trial and tribulation, and you are forgetting how to be thankful for whatever it is He allows in your life. There are those who feels as if they are entitled to a bed of roses and a life of ease. When the storms roll in, some people have a hard time trying to find things to be thankful for, then offering a prayer of thanksgiving to their God. You know, sometimes God may delay giving you relief from your grief and pain until you thank Him in the midst of it! And He doesn't want us to only thank Him for the "big" things, He wants us to thank Him for ALL things! (1 Thess.5:18) He loves when His children smile up to Him, even through their tears, and praise His holy, worthy Name! When is the last time you thanked Him for saving you, even if salvation came 20 years ago? How about thanking Him for saving your child, spouse, family member, or someone you have been praying for for many years?

Do you read your bible? The bible is 66 love letters straight from God to you. It's a gift, a precious gift. Everything you need to live a godly life before your Lord is in the bible. It is your instruction manual. It contains your marching orders. It is your source of comfort in times of heartache and trouble. Why not tell Jesus that you will give Him a gift this year. Why not dedicate time out of each day to give to your Lord in reading the bible and meditating on what you have read. Spend time allowing Him to speak to you through what you read that day. Start out giving him 30 minutes a day, and see if He doesn't grow it from there. Tell Jesus you love Him enough to give Him that time every single day and watch how He blesses it.
Here's a big gift, one that is so hard for people to give. Give your Master your right to yourself! Oh how often I try to take back my right to myself after time and time again I confess to give my all to my King. If you are a child of God, you have no rights. Jesus owns you. He paid such an immeasurable price to purchase you and redeem your life! Yet it is so easy to grumble against the Lord for what He allows in our lives. We think we deserve better when in fact, all we really deserve is hell. We don't like the way someone talks to us or how they treat us because we think we deserve better. But the bible tells us that Jesus was treated more unfairly than anyone who ever lived, without opening His mouth. (Isaiah 52:7) He is our example. And although we sometimes fail, we can ask Him for His grace to be salt and light in this dark world. There are times when someone takes advantage of us and we get upset because we think we were "done wrong". This is not a spirit like the Lord's Spirit. We should joyously take the mistreatment of others, all the while exhibiting the love of Christ, so that He will be magnified and glorified.
We sometimes think we should have the right to choose our service to the Lord or how and where we want to be, and the job we want to do. This year, give Jesus your entire life, no matter what He chooses, and serve Him with all joy. Give Him your willingness to be nothing, so that He will be seen as Everything in your life, to the glory of God the Father!
Maybe what Jesus wants from you is something totally different than what I have mentioned. Ask Him what He would like from you, and then do it, give it to your King. Honor His worthy Name by giving Him whatever He wants from you. If you do, YOU will get a blessing in your heart of a closer relationship with your heavenly Husband. He is the giver of all good things.