The Gift We All Need

Because of the gift of Christmas, we have the hope of eternal life.”

Stephen Mitchell

As my wife and I were recently at the grocery store, getting into the Christmas spirit with all the décor and lights that were out, we were talking about what makes Christmas so magical, so special and so exciting. I came to the conclusion, “Well, it’s got to be the gifts!” Did you think I was going to say something more spiritual?

As a kid growing up, I was all about those presents and the excitement and joy of opening the gifts to see what I got. I was blessed with a childhood of wonderful memories of many Christmas mornings where I received my heart’s desire with the gifts that “Santa” would give me, but I will never forget one year where I thought I missed out and it taught me a lingering lesson about missing out on the best gifts.

One year for Christmas, I was going through a “musician phase,” where I really wanted musical instruments to be a one-man band. On this Christmas morning, I woke my parents up very early, ran down the steps, and couldn’t wait to see if Santa came through. I opened one gift after another, and with each present being unwrapped came another piece for my band. I got a toy guitar and a microphone stand, but I was missing the biggest instrument of the band that I wanted the most: the drum set. I really wanted that drum set, and when I realized I didn’t get it, I started crying.

As an adult now, I really regret what I put my parents through that Christmas morning. They asked me what was wrong, and I said, “Santa didn’t bring me the drum set!” crying crocodile tears. “Oh, sweetheart,” I was told, “Santa dropped off your drum set at your aunt’s house!” Sure enough, when we arrived at my aunt’s house to celebrate Christmas, there was my drum set.

What’s truly sad? I barely ever used that drum set. It sat downstairs for years, unused, and eventually, it got thrown out. I was so upset when I thought I didn’t get what I wanted, then I got it, and then I wasted it. I think back to that Christmas lesson often as an adult, because I believe we all do the same thing in different ways. We pursue things we think we want, only to be dissatisfied with them when we get them, incomplete, still empty and often wasteful.

Sometimes we think we want accolades, wealth or the American dream, and we wonder why we wake up one day having everything we could want but failing to see what we need. And we wonder why we still feel like we are missing something. The reason we have that feeling is because we are still missing something. Or rather, we are missing someone.

Every day is a gift, and throughout every day, we are given many gifts. The daily tragedy is our tendency to do what I did with that drum set: waste those gifts, waste precious time on things that aren’t important, take for granted our loved ones, fail to utilize our potential and even fail to learn the lessons that perhaps we are meant to learn from inconveniences and difficulties we must deal with. And the greatest gift of all that is often unopened, is the gift that Christmas is all about: “For God so loved the world that he gave his only begotten son, so that whoever believes in him shall not perish but have eternal life.” (John 3:16)

Christmas is about love. We feel the love that, as the Grinch said, “makes us all warm and toasty inside,” that love that comes with a gift that is given to us by a family member, loved one or friend. Why do we love getting gifts? Maybe part of why is because we feel loved when we know someone had us on their mind. The Bible tells us God very much has you in his mind and heart. Out of love, God did something: He became one of us, lived among us, and died for us.

Christmas is about giving, because God gave us something. He gave us the most valuable present imaginable: himself. His son died for your sins and mine so that we could be forgiven, healed, whole and free. Think about the most valuable or important gift ever given to you. No matter what it is, Jesus Christ being sent to die and rise again for you is far more valuable.

Finally, Christmas is also about hope. Because of the gift of Christmas, we have the hope of eternal life. We sure could use some hope in this world. Maybe you need some hope in your life right now. Maybe you’re facing what seems like a hopeless diagnosis, a hopeless marital crisis, or a hopeless challenge, or maybe you feel hopeless because Christmas is just a reminder of what you don’t have or who you’ve lost.

I’ll never forget being invited to speak at a psychiatric hospital at Christmastime years ago and seeing how sharing the hope of Christmas transformed the atmosphere there. Because of the gift of Christmas, we have hope. This Christmas, in addition to the many gifts you will find wrapped under the tree that may be things you want but don’t need, be sure to unwrap the greatest gift of all, the gift you do need. You will find him wrapped in swaddling cloths and lying in a manger, ready to live in your heart, forever.

Stephen Mitchell is the senior pastor of Trinity Bible Church in Severna Park. He also is the host of a regular podcast, “Real Christian Talk with Pastor Steve,” available on all podcast platforms.