When I still believed Love Languages were a god-given thing, I thought my languages were gifts and time. I needed them like I needed air or a fish needs water. I was convinced if someone gave me a gift but didn’t spend time with me or spent time but didn’t bring a gift, they only liked me and not very much. If someone never gave me a gift, I was sure they hated me and wished me dead.
Yes, I was, more than likely, crazy. And rabid.
Now my thoughts are much different. Now I realize my greatest desire was not things, but to be seen, to be noticed, to be thought of, to be known, to be accepted, to be loved. That is all, all of us truly desire. We want people to think about us, and to tell us, “Hey I thought of you!” That’s what gifts do. Gifts say, “Hey! I saw this and immediately you came to my mind. You were thought of and you are seen.”
Have you ever stopped to ponder the reality of the gifts of God to us? I mean really stop to ponder anew ALL that He has given us. It isn’t something I have spent much time thinking about, and that pains me more than a little to confess.
He created the world for us to enjoy. He gave us taste buds to taste food He created for us to enjoy. He gave us ears to hear the laughter and “I loves yous” of those closest to us. He gave us ears also to hear shouts of “Danger!” He gave us a sense of smell all so we could experience the scent of life after a summer rain, the rose, pine trees, and freshly roasted coffee.
He gave us eyes to see the colorful world He made. We can see each other because of His gift. He could very easily have made all of the world black and white, or just grey, but He didn’t. He threw in reds, yellows, greens, blue, oranges, and purples.
All of this and it wasn’t enough for us. We still wanted more. We wanted knowledge that was too much for our finite minds to understand and use. But we sold our souls to the devil to get it.
And that still wasn’t enough. We’re all still wanting more. Our hearts are longing for more and more and more. So we fill our storage sheds with more and we still feel empty. We’re still searching for that that one thing that will finally satisfy our longing, our wanting hearts.
The greatest gift this world was ever given was Jesus. He was the single greatest gift ever given. He was not held in reserve if we needed Him. He was always our planned gift. The plan of God for the world always included Jesus, His Son, our greatest gift.
When we give gifts, the dearer the relationship the dearer the gift. We don’t shop at Dollar Tree for gifts for our spouse, children, parents, and close friends typically. We are willing to break the bank for those closest to our hearts.
When God gave us Jesus, He gave us what He held most dear. He gave Himself. He gave all of Himself. To pay for our sins of discontentment and ingratitude. To pay for our sin of always wanting more, more, more, more. And never being satisfied.
Thou hast made us for Thyself, O Lord, and our heart is restless until it finds its rest in Thee.
Augustine
This Christmas, could we be, could we choose to be content with just Him? Just His life? Could we say, “Jesus, You are the greatest gift. You are enough for me.”
The Lord is my Shepherd, I shall not want.
Psalm 23:1
The Word became flesh and dwelt among us, and we beheld His glory, glory as of the only begotten from the Father, full of grace and truth.
John 1:14
For God so loved the world, that He gave…
John 3:16
virginiagarrett.com 