Extravagant Giving

Are you good at giving gifts? Some people just have a knack for it. They know how to pick just the right thing that will surprise and please us. When I was a girl, I loved to receive gifts from my aunt because she, as an artist, knew how to wrap them so beautifully. I don’t remember what any of them were, but I remember the wrapping.

I like to give gifts that are unique. Something no one else would think of. When there are gift lists for weddings or showers, I prefer to ignore them and find something that will surprise the receiver. It’s a good thing everyone isn’t like me or people wouldn’t receive the things they really need.

It seems like some people give extravagant gifts in order to get attention or outdo everyone else. That’s not me, because I never had enough money to be “extravagant.” There’s more meaning to an inexpensive, but personal, unique gift that will be cherished for years to come.

I can’t fault anyone for being extravagant, because the perfect example of it is God himself. He is generous beyond our understanding. And all because He loves us. Not because we deserve any of His gifts. You know all of these verses, but it doesn’t hurt to be reminded of them now and again.

John 3:16 (.NKJV) – “For God so loved the world that He gave His only begotten Son, that whoever believes in Him should not perish but have everlasting life.” “For God so [greatly] loved and dearly prized the world, that He [even] gave His [One and] only begotten Son, so that whoever believes and trusts in Him [as Savior] shall not perish, but have eternal life” (Amplified Bible).

Ephesians 2:8-9 (NIV) – “For it is by grace you have been saved, through faith—and this is not from yourselves, it is the gift of God—not by works, so that no one can boast” (NIV).

Luke 11:13 (NKJV) – If you then, being evil, know how to give good gifts to your children, how much more will your heavenly Father give the Holy Spirit to those who ask Him!” 

Romans 6:23  (NKJV) – “For the wages of sin is death, but the gift of God is eternal life in Christ Jesus our Lord.”

James 1:17 (NKJV) – “Every good gift and every perfect gift is from above, and comes down from the Father of lights, with whom there is no variation or shadow of turning.”

And what else can I say in closing but this: “Thanks be to God for His indescribable gift!” (II Corinthians 9:15, NKJV). Isn’t your heart full of gratitude for God’s extravagance toward us?

“The Best Gift” from “Sing Praise”