Naughty or Nice?

This Christmas was especially special for me! (And thank goodness it had nothing to do with whether I had been naughty or nice!)

Sydney is now three and there just aren't words fit to describe her anticipation of the presents under the tree!

And watching Sydney open gifts brings a joy to my heart unmatched by much else! Being a parent is so different than being a child...at least at Christmas time that is!  I no longer wait with anticipation at what I might receive but I wait (on the edge of my seat no less) to witness first hand the squeals of delight each gift brings.

So I got to thinkin' (scary I know...lots of thinkin' goin' around!)  I'm so glad that we don't really give gifts based on whether our children are naughty or nice.

How would that work exactly?  What scale would I use to determine if Sydney's behavior warranted the entire Fun Factory Tub of Playdough (with over 20 different colors) or just the simple container(with only 4 colors)?  How could I decide if she had said enough please and thank-yous over the year to earn  the princess dress up clothes she so desperately wanted?

The answer is simple....I can't. And I don't want to. That would be absurd!

There is no scale upon which I can use to determine whether or not my daughter deserves her gifts.  I give her the gifts because I love her and I enjoy any opportunity to pour out blessings on her.  So whether or not she was naughty or nice....that's not the point. Gifts are something we freely give to each other...with  no strings attached and no pre-requisites to meet 

 Once again, I was reminded just how much I resemble my Father in heaven.   Once again I was reminded how uniquely I was created in his image.  And once again I was reminded that I wascreated to reflect his glory (without even trying I might add!). 

2,000 years ago, God sent me a gift.  A gift I never deserved yet a gift he freely gave.  Oh it cost him something to give it all right!  But he gave it to me with no strings attached.  He gave it to me because he loves me.  And he gave the same to you as well.

The gift was his his son.  A King, born in a stable.  A King born to reign as Lord.  A King come to save us from ourselves!

So from now on, I will no longer view Christmas as an over-commercialized holiday. I will no longer worry that our lavish and undeserved tradition of excessive gift-giving will over-shadow the true meaning of Christmas. 

God is a lavish gift-giver.  He gives not based on whether we are naughty or nice but based on his love and his grace for us.   If I  can simply reflect HIS glory by giving gifts to my daughter...bring it on sister!  Let the gift giving continue!  For ever and ever Amen!