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A Revisited Devotional from December 11, 1998
Luke 6:38 – Give, and it shall be given unto you; good measure, pressed down, and shaken together, and running over, shall men give unto your bosom. For with the same measure that you mete withal it shall be measured to you again. (KJV)
Christmas is coming, and as well as signifying and celebrating the birth of Jesus, it is a time of gift giving. We wander the stores for the "right" gift for family, friends, neighbours, and service providers. We want to choose something that will make them happy, something they have wanted, wished for, something that will give them great pleasure. But what gift will we give to God? What will we choose for Him?
What is something that He would want, that He might wish for? What can we give Him that will give Him great pleasure?
Though she may not have coined it, I think it was Dolly Parton who said a long, long time ago, "Our talents are God's gift to us. What we do with those talents is our gift to God." She surely has given her gift to God, and to many, through His gift to her.
This then, is what we may give to Him this Christmas. Whatever our talents, may we use them to their fullest, for Him. May we, through Him, realize and utilize those gifts He has given us; for in so doing, we will give to Him something that will give Him great pleasure.
Prayer: We thank You, Father, for even our most basic gifts: our sight that we may see for others; our hands that we may help; our ears that we may listen when someone needs to be heard; our hearts to open wide and share with others; our mouths to say kind words. May we use them well. In Jesus' name, we pray. Amen.
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Thanks Mary, blessings.
Thank you so much, Mary.
Enjoy this Advent season!
Thank you, Mary. If each of us would do this, what a “wonderful world it would be”.
The inspiration and reminder I needed this morning, Mary. Thanks and blessings to you!
What a delight to read this encouraging devotional from you again today.
Thank you for sharing, Mary. Blessings.
Mary, your devotional from a while ago still rings truth today. I’m glad to read it today. Truth never gets old. Thanks for writing.
Good morning
Love and I stand in agreement with your prayer.
God bless.
Thank you for writing this devotional.
I needed this reminder to do my best.
To remember that I am a gift.
Blessings.
Thanks, Mary, for having written this devotional and, although it was presented many years ago, it is still very meaningful today. Your closing prayer really expresses the many talents the Lord has provided us, and we need be ever willing to use them very faithfully to serve others in our daily life. Our Lord certainly has given us special gifts to be generously shared. Many blessings for this writing.
Good morning, Mary,
Sometimes a devotional just resonates with me and yours today did. I was at a Christmas concert last night and it is Advent so combined I start to appreciate even more what the birth of Jesus means to me and the talents that God has blessed each and every one with. Our talents might be small compared to someone else’s; however they are all important and we combine to make a complete picture. Thanks for sharing your thoughts. Blessings.
I’m always so grateful to be reminded of this principle – to give back to GOD, to use the giftedness that HE has given to us – and not to miss the opportunities HE places in our path each day, to help, serve others.
Thank you for this.