Now that I have been a parent for over 18 years, I can’t tell you how much respect I have gained for my mom who had to buy presents for six kids for over 50 some years. She had and still has a knack for getting her kids what they really needed, wanted and then the wow. When I was younger, she had a really good system: She first of all had us believing the Santa myth for quite some time (I still hear him on Christmas eve up on the roof), because his existence gave her the foolproof excuse to carry out the rest of her scheming. Next, she then give us the Sears catalog and told us to look through it and pick out what we really wanted -- but it had to be something that would fit into Santa’s bag and sleigh. So don’t pick motorized go-carts, mopeds or large boa constrictor snakes. We then wrote a letter to Santa detailing the page of the item, color and cost, and then we would give our letter to our mom to mail. I can remember one year as I was looking through the Sears catalog, I found a cool Bobby Brady t-shirt, you know the groovy striped kind, and I found one I liked that was maroon and gold striped. I followed my mom’s instructions to the “t”, wrote down the page, color and number and gave the letter to her to mail. Sure enough, come Christmas morning there was a rectangular box that I knew was my shirt directly sent from Santa. I think I wore that shirt almost every day for a whole year - - but what I still can’t figure out is how Santa’s handwriting on the label looked almost identical to my mom’s?
Did you know God in eternity past, just like my mom for Christmas, plotted, schemed and figured out how to find the perfect gift just for you and me? God is smart, and he knew exactly what we needed, wanted and what would wow us. Galatians 4:4 gives us insight on his shopping list: "But when the set time had fully come, God sent his Son, born of a woman, born under the law, to redeem those under the law, that we might receive adoption to sonship." He knew exactly what we needed, to be set free from sin; to no longer be under the curse of the law. So God sent us his Son. God gave us the perfect gift in the form of human baby. That baby who became a man was perfect: He fulfilled the whole will and counsel of God perfectly. That baby who became a man was spotless and sinless. That baby who became a man died for you! He gave us what we needed: payment for sin. He gave us what we wanted: to be set free from the heavy weight of the law. He also gave us the wow: Jesus is King and he promised us eternal life through faith in him. This gift has been sent, the question is, "What will you do with him?" So as you are shopping today, making your list and checking it twice, remember...God already went shopping for you!
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