Gift Giving

When it is your kids birthday and you throw a party for your kid, do the invited guests bring presents for your kids?

When it is your birthday and someone hosts a party for you, do the guests bring you presents?

When you are invited to a birthday party d you usually bring the person of honor a gift?

Most people (at least in our culture) would agree that buying a gift for the birthday celebrant is the preferred option. So i find myself wondering why do we celebrate Jesus' birthday by buying ourselves gifts? I understand historically, we Christians have co-opted a long standing, pre-Christian holiday practice. It goes back to the time when people celebrated that days are getting less dark and the sun was coming up earlier and setting later. There are probably lots of social and psychological, even economic and political reasons for our current practice.

Even so, my guess is Jesus would prefer that those who identify as His followers spend a significant part of their gift giving budget on the poor and needy. [Like when He said "if you have a dinner invite the poor and needy who cannot pay you back."] I am not against gifts, love to give them, love to get them. There is something wonderful about blessings loved ones with presents. However, there is something equally wonderful about blessing the poorer and needier among us, too.

So keep Jesus in mind at Christmas. Keep in mind the ones He loves, the poor and lowly. It will enhance your Christmas celebration--and if it doesn't that is probably fine, it will enhance the celebration of someone who otherwise might have nothing to celebrate.