Gifts

I have been pondering this a bit lately (tis the season, right?). There are a lot of different attitudes about gift giving. For some it is a price tag (i.e. I like this person $50 worth - now lets find something that costs that much), for others it is a representation of something they share with another (a gift that must reflect what the giver is as well as the receiver), for some it is an obligation - I have to give them something because they always get me something, occasionally it is the "I saw it and it made me think of you" gift. And for some people it is a combination of these or other categories that I probably missed.

What has occurred to me is the "Why" to gifts. The "Why do we give gifts?" for? Some will say it is symbolize the giving of the wise men to baby Jesus. I have often thought of that, but while pondering this lately, then why do we do it at Jesus' birth? The wise men did not come for possibly up to two years after that. So back to the "Why" again. We celebrate the crucifixion and resurrection at Easter time, so we are not really celebrating the atonement of Christ (the ultimate gift He gave us). So what are we celebrating? What are the gift to represent? This is when it occurs to me.

We are celebrating the giving of Jesus to us from the Father. It was Heavenly Father's gift to us that was given at the time of Christ's birth. It is through this that we will have the help we need to be forgiven of our sins, overcome death, and become more like the Saviour. So how do the gifts fit in? I think that it is the act of giving when you could have kept it for yourself. It is the taking of something that could possibly help another and giving it to them. This act of giving is one of the forms of love. It is a way to put our love in action. Much like faith is an choice, so is love. We love people when we choose to love them. We make that choice when our actions reflect the choice to show them their well-being, desires, comfort, and feelings are important for us to protect and keep safe.

The beautiful thing about giving gifts to others is that not only is it a way to build a closeness in relationships, but it is also a way to be selfless. It is only by being selfless that we are going to draw ourselves closer to the Lord. It was a common philosophy that people needed to "go find themselves". My thoughts are that we are not out there somewhere to find, but rather we are here ready to be created. We choose what we will be by the choices and actions that we make everyday. When we choose to hold someone's heart gently in our hands, we make the choice to show them how we feel. Whether we realize it or not, our family's hearts we hold in our hands. We need to be careful with the gifts that we give to these important people, not just at Christmas time, but all the time. Do we let them know they are more important to us than our hobbies or interests? Are they more important to us than our laundry or cooking? Are they more important to us than our jobs?

For me, I have found that spending time together is the best gift that I can give to anyone, especially my children. That, done well, is one of the best ways I can build a relationship of love. Doing something the other person enjoys (regardless of whether you enjoy it) is even better.