Have you been fortunate enough this season to go shopping for a child? Perhaps your own, or a grandchild or nephew/niece, or a needy child in the community... It's the most fun when you know for sure what they need or would really like. Then you buy with confidence, and wrap it with anticipation. You imagine the delight when the paper is ripped off and they realize what you have given. And you know, that for just a moment, they will think you are wonderful, the neatest ever!

I wonder if God experiences something similar about us? Knowing exactly what we need and want, God selects, prepares and sends the perfect gifts to each of us. Sometimes they are wrapped so peculiarly we don't realize they are gifts right away. But when the realization comes that a certain person, or event, or experience is a gift to us, we swell with delight in the Lord. And we know, for at least a moment, that God is the neatest god ever. And we are glad that S/He is our God.