"Each of us approaches Christmas challenges with our own tempo and beat. We tackle the project as individuals, and the results reflect our personal preferences. The one thing we all hope, is that our choices convey caring to our loved ones." Kathy Spampinato

When I purchase a gift for someone, regardless of the occasion, I want to bring joy to their heart. I want the gift to be a wonderful surprise that shows that I care for them. It should demonstrate that I've thought about them individually, and tried to understand what they need or appreciate. Sometimes I'm not able to get it just right, but I try to picture what the person likes. I try to imagine it as something they would pick for themselves. Will it appeal to their tastes more than mine? Will it be something I will find them wearing or using often, or something that will end up in the give-away pile a month down the road? This is especially hard to do for teenagers for sure: thus the ever present gift cards. They get the job done, but cannot convey the same thoughtfulness, time invested, or heartfelt desire to bless the person. However, they are just the thing for the person you do not know well, or the hard to please person on your list.

The best kind of gift giving is personal! It is not the quick stop at the Drug Store, picking up something fast, and adding the gift bag to put the present in, on the way to the car. Don't get me wrong. There are definitely moments when the Drug Store is the perfect solution to the moment's need. Not all gifts are equal. Somehow the gift for your best friend has to convey more depth of feeling than the white elephant gift for work. When you write the accompanying card do you sit thoughtfully and choose careful words to convey how much you care, like my husband does, or do you quickly scribble a note and your name -to the card that you hope shares your heart? That is more my speed.

Gift giving at Christmas brings some challenges, stress, and lots of activity. There are those who diligently prepare months in advance, and start wrapping at Thanksgiving, and others who do not even start until December 20th rolls around. Each of us approaches Christmas challenges with our own tempo and beat. You might be a very relaxed and casual shopper or a person who wrings their hands over how to find the perfect toy, or how to get everything on your list to somehow line up with your budget. Christmas shopping can be accomplished online from the comfort of your home, piece by piece over months as you go about your life, or during the all-day marathon at the mall. We each tackle the project as individuals, and the results reflect our personal preferences. The one thing we all hope, is that our choices convey caring to our loved ones.

The Christmas Season is a time of celebration. We remember the birth of Jesus, God's gift to the world. I think it needs to inspire more giving and loving in us! Our hearts must "prepare Him room". Let's take a look at this idea! We give, because God has given to us. Even the story of Santa Claus developed because of the legend of how God's gift of love inspired St. Nicholas to give in very practical ways, to those around him.

John 3:16 ESV states it well. "For God so loved the world, that he gave his only Son, that whoever believes in him should not perish but have eternal life." The Father so loved the world and the people in it, that He was inspired to reconnect us to Himself. We were unable to fill that gap and make that way, so He provided Himself as the sacrifice.

It began with Jesus' birth in Bethlehem. That declared the love of God in action. That love changed the world, and the course of mankind's journey for all eternity. Will the Spirit of Christmas fill your heart this year and inspire acts of love, kindness, and giving? Let's stir up a heart of gratitude that will compel us to be grateful to others and be honest about how they have positively influenced us. May our response to God's love inspire us to share concern and loving words with our friends. May we take the time to share our hearts, and not just the presents under the tree. May that spirit of giving inspire the giving of forgiveness and the abandonment of bitterness where necessary. Joy to the world! The Lord is come. Let earth receive her King.

Ephesians 4:32 "Be kind to one another, tenderhearted, forgiving one another, as God in Christ forgave you."

God has continued to give us blessings, that all stem from that first Christmas gift of His Son. The more I learn of the character of God and understand how much He desires to have relationship with me, the more I understand the depth and the number of the gifts He provides. Here are a few Bible verses to share what I mean.

John 3:17 "For God did not send his Son into the world to condemn the world, but in order that the world might be saved through him." Jesus is the savior!

Lamentations 3:22-23 "The steadfast love of the Lord never ceases; his mercies never come to an end; they are new every morning; great is your faithfulness." That love of God is not just for Christmas: it is there every morning. His mercy gives us love and blessing even when we do not deserve it. We have not earned it, and we cannot sustain it, but God's love is there, available to us.

James 1:17 "Every good and every perfect gift is from above, coming down from the Father of lights, with whom there is no variation or shadow due to change." You can count on it always.

Romans 8:1, 15, 26-27   "There is therefore now no condemnation for those who are in Christ Jesus. For you did not receive the spirit of slavery to fall back into fear, but you have received the Spirit of adoption as sons... Likewise the Spirit helps us in our weakness. For we do not know what to pray for as we ought, but the Spirit himself intercedes for us with groanings too deep for words. And we know that for those who love God all things work together for good, for those who are called according to his purpose."

Let's let the Spirit of God find room in our hearts this Christmas, and may it overflow to those we greet.