Greed is a part of our culture. Everything is "all about me","what is fair for me". It is so easy to fall into that sin. It is easy to look at what people 'have' and judge them based on what they give.... or don't give.
This Christmas has been hard for us. Kevin hasn't worked in 6 weeks.... and counting. Although we save up for times like this, we don't have an endless supply of money and it does run out. We have to start choosing what to spend our money on. What is more important....food on the table or a present under the tree? For us the decision is black and white (food on the table.)
Fortunately we had purchased all of our gifts before Kevin stopped working.
This is the first Christmas that we made the decision not to exchange gifts with my siblings. I sent out an email to let everyone know that we wouldn't be able to do that this year. I knew they would understand, and they did. When my family had our Christmas, there weren't a ton of presents under the tree and that was OK.
A gift was given to me from my brother Paul and his wife Nadia. It came all packaged up in a big huge box. Once I opened it, there was a smaller package, and then another, and then another. By the time I unwrapped all the packages I was laughing. Then I opened the last gift and was shocked by their thoughtfulness. It was a membership to Costco. I know that might sound funny, but it was perfect. It was the kind of gift I wouldn't have even asked for. Prior to receiving the membership, anytime I needed bread baking supplies (like flour, yeast, sugar) I would have to meet Nadia at Costco or call a friend of mine to find out if I could go with her. It was perfect.
My brother and his wife gave all of us siblings something unique and special. All I had for them was a loaf of homemade cinnamon bread. It is a humbling place to be. They gave me so much, but all I had for them was bread. But they didn't feel that way...they gave without asking for anything in return.
Paul and Nadia are some of the most giving people we know. God has blessed them because of this. They freely give money to Nadia's sister in Russia to help support her family. They freely give money to Nadia's other sister in New York to help support her. They brought Nadia's mother here from Russia and they support her. They don't specify where the money goes, they don't asked to be repaid. They just give...
This Christmas they are down in Florida, they flew Nadia's sister and her daughter (whom they have never met) in from Russia. Paul and Nadia rented a place in Florida and both of Nadia's sisters (& families) and Nadia's Mom are enjoying a much needed vacation.
Most of us would look at that and think, "that is nice of them, they have the money to do all that." We don't.. They have that money because they go without so many other things that we all take for granted. How many of us would be willing to go down to one vehicle? There was a time when a two vehicle family was unheard of, now it's unheard of to only have one car.
After our family's Christmas party, I was reflecting on what had happened. How they gave to all of us and I just gave them bread. A few days later, Nadia calls me and tells me that they had some friends over for dinner and she served my bread along with their meal. She told me how good it was and how the other couple loved it so much and she thanked me for giving them the bread. I was again humbled by her thankfulness of the gift I had given them. "It was JUST bread"...I wanted to say...they gave me a gift worth so much more!! But to them, it wasn't about the money that was spent. It was about the thought behind it. They didn't care that I didn't buy anything from a store, they saw the time and effort it takes to make bread and they appreciated that gift.
That is what I want my children to learn. I don't want them to grow up greedy, expecting to get something if they give something. A gift is a gift, no strings attached. So how do I teach that? I have reflected on that this past week as well. Again, looking at Paul and Nadia. They give more than money and gifts to people. Paul gives his time as well. Paul is always just a phone call away when I am having issues with my computer. He has come over many times until late at night, trying to figure out my latest computer problem. He doesn't get mad or frustrated when I call, he gives me his time willingly. They give their time to help many other people as well.
We have other people in our life that are equally as giving. Both sets of parents have gone above and beyond in giving of their time and resources over the years. We are very blessed to have them in our lives as well. We also have some very good friends that would give us the shirts off their back if we asked them too. One friend even said to us last night, when talking about how difficult life is getting without Kevin working, "well, you don't have to worry about food, we would feed you." And we know she would.
So this Christmas has been really eye opening for us in many different ways. With all that we have been going through, God has really awakened us to some important life lessons. Ones that we hope to teach our children. It is better to give, than to receive.... If you expect a gift for your gift, you are better off not giving.... Sometimes all you have to give is bread and that will be more than enough for the ones you love.
Blessings!!
I was interested in what the dictionary said the definition of a gift was. The sad thing is, most people have no clue how to give a true gift...
–noun
| 1. | something given voluntarily without payment in return, as to show favor toward someone, honor an occasion, or make a gesture of assistance; present. |
| 2. | the act of giving. |
| 3. | something bestowed or acquired without any particular effort by the recipient or without its being earned: Those extra points he got in the game were a total gift. |
| 4. | a special ability or capacity; natural endowment; talent: the gift of saying the right thing at the right time. |
