The wise men brought three gifts: gold, frankincense, and myrrh.
This Christmas, try adding three gifts to your list. Yes, I know your Christmas gift list is
already overly long, that you have neither time nor money for extra gifts. But these will cost
you little in time, and less in money, and they will capture for you the true Christmas spirit
so often lost in the rush and flurry of the season.
First gift: to a stranger.
This might be a note to the bus company, mentioning that bus driver who is unfailingly pleasant
and courteous, even under the most trying conditions. Send a Christmas card to the waitress who
is so cheerful and quick to serve you. Write a letter to the author whose book, story, or poem
you have enjoyed recently. Drop a note to the department store whose windows entice you, with a
word of praise for the work of the window dresser. You can think of many more. Choose at least
one.
Second gift: to someone you find it hard to like, or someone you feel does
not like you very much.
It might be your cross old great-aunt, or a sharp-tongued cousin;
perhaps it is a business associate who annoys you, or an irritable neighbor. Send a small, inexpensive,
but thoughtful gift to one in this group. It might be no more than a clipping or an article about
some hobby for the neighbor; a magazine you know she would enjoy for the cranky relative. Remember,
it is easy to give to those we love, but God's love includes the whole world.
Third
gift: to someone in trouble.
Think of those enduring a cheerless old age, who would be so
grateful for an unexpected caller. There are many in hospitals who have no one to visit them, to
read to them, to talk to them. And consider those in prisons; yes, we are told we should visit them,
too. An hour spent with one of these lonely and half-forgotten persons will do so much for them,
and more for you.
This Christmas, give these three gifts. You will be repaid a thousand-fold.
