Are You a Giver or Receiver?

There are many people who feel like they are a giver by default. There are also some people that do well with receiving than giving.

When I was a child, I could remember a time I was told it was my stepdad’s birthday.

 I ran to my toy box looking for the perfect gift that would put the biggest smile on his face.

To let him know he was so very important to me.  I searched for an item that surely would get the reaction I was looking for.

I found some coloring pages and wrapped them up the best my little hands could do.

It was perfect in my eyes, and I knew he would love it as much as I did.

I heard he just got up out of the bed and sat down in the living room, this was it, time to give him his birthday gift.

Walking up with my hands behind my back, with the goofiest smile on my face.

He gave a half grin, knowing I knew it was his day.

I told him to close his eyes as I put the gift into his hands.

He opened them and unwrapped them, smiling really big he thanked me by hugging me.

Yep, it made me feel the best. I am sure he was thinking oh goodness this kid and her toys.

 Growing up I always felt like what I was giving was never enough.

So, I needed a bigger reaction from him and wanted him to keep the smile going.

 I ran back to my room and dug through the toys once again. Found a coin bank that was the shape of a boy.

Quickly, wrapping it before his mood changed, I ran back into the living room.

He told me that the first one was good enough, but I was not convinced.

As he opened the last gift, his expression went into laughter and he asked me, “where did I get that?”.

I was confused, I told him it was in my toy box.

He stated that was his when he was a boy. I got excited and told him he could have it back and to keep it safe.

The story is cute, and it was a great memory of my stepfather.

I just think as an adult we should be that way with our Heavenly Father.

God does not want physical gifts, he just wants your attention, admiration, devotion, and those little talks.

God is a giver; he gave the most precious gift that he could give to us all.

The one thing that we as human beings could not wrap our minds around.

He gave us his son, to save us from a place of constant torment.

As an adult, I love to give and my gift in return is to see how it made the person happy.

It hurts my feelings when I put so much into either picking out the right gift or service for someone, for them not to give the appropriate reaction back in return.

Do you feel the same way, because you either spent a lot of money on it, worked your bottom off to accomplish that task, or went out of your way to accommodate someone’s need?

Only for them to not thank you or they acted like it was not that big of a deal to them.

It might have hurt your feelings, right?

I know it does mine, especially, when I give someone my time.

I could only imagine how God felt when he let his son get crucified on the cross and had to turn his back on him only for the sake of us.

Just so he could have a relationship with us without a veil being in between.

I am a horrible receiver, and I feel like I need to give something back in return.

I know that people say that God expects nothing in return. However, I cannot agree with them on this statement entirely.

In my opinion, he does expect something. He expects us to not take his gift lightly, and not dismiss it as if it was not good enough.

God gives us a choice, but once you accept Jesus into your heart, you should always do your part by appreciating what he has done for you.

Imagine this for a moment, when someone bought you a gift whether that is a Birthday or Christmas gift.

It was something that was not ideal for you and your facial expression stated what the words never did.

You then saw upon that person’s face the heartbreak and you immediately felt like dog poo.

Could you do that with God standing in front of you having his hands out and you noticed his gift?

What type of reaction would you have towards him? One thing that is different between a person’s gift and his is eternal life.

Could you receive his gift without feeling like there are strings attached? My mindset was like, what could I do for him?

Was there anything I could do in return that could be as much as what he gave to me when I finally accepted his gift?

Since I am a giver, this was a hard lesson. There was absolutely nothing that I could give back to God.

That was hard for me to swallow. I am the type that I do not want to feel like I owe anyone anything.

I was always taught to pay back what is given and work harder than what is expected.

Never believe anything is free because there was a price that was paid for it.

In this instance, there was a price. God paid the price to hand his son over, and Jesus paid the price to crucify himself on the cross to take all of our sins upon himself.

So that we do not face hell.

That was a hefty price to pay, don’t you think? That gift is one I could never match or want to match.

So the only thing I could do was accept it.

Jesus’s scared-up hands are reaching out, with the biggest smile on his face.

With a heart that is looking for nothing in return EXCEPT that we ACCEPT his gift.

That is all, to love it, appreciate it, value its worth and understand the price that was paid.

Dear Jesus, I am sorry for taking your sacrifice lightly, and believing I could give back in some way that could match it.

I have always been a giver and this time in my life showed me that nothing I could do, worked, or paid for could be close to what you did for me.

Thank you for loving me more than what I am able to give back. Amen