Spoiled Wives,
So……My husband didn’t get me anything for Christmas, which is so odd for him because I have been really spoiled by him. This was quite a shock and a disappointment. It was as if he had a wall around him that prevented him from doing so.
We have always exchanged gifts Christmas morning. I was convinced he had something put back for me. As I was giving him the gifts I had bought him, it became very apparent he wasn’t bluffing. He really hadn’t got me a gift! I'm not going to lie. I was livid!
We headed out the door for church Christmas morning and I was so “ate up with it” I couldn’t even begin to enjoy the reason I was there in the first place. The next day I returned his gifts. I swear I did. I returned his underwear and the shirt I bought him. I wanted revenge. All along I knew, I mean I knew! -the Lord was teaching me something. Oh I could just feel the love and the discipline, but I made every excuse in the book not to accept it. “Lord, you did see what he just did, right?”
A few days later, God spoke to me in my kitchen. He said, “Alice, I don’t like your heart in giving those gifts. You didn’t give them because you wanted to bless him with them, you gave them to get something back.” Guilty as sin.
There I sat in my puddle of tears guilty. Oh how good of a Father is he!?! God gives me everything I need. Everything. What more could I possibly want?
I gave all the presents back to my husband with an apology and with the right heart! God gave his Son to me. For this very sin (the sin of self and pride) He gave Jesus and expects nothing in return!
He does want our heart, but he did not give his Son with an evil ulterior motive. He simply wants to give us eternal life-another gift!
For a long time I have been searching for the true joy of Christmas. I always felt guilty about the gifts. Now I know why, they were never meant to be. The material things wrapped with ribbon and bows, signifying how much someone “cares” for you is not Christmas at all. “My God! How much more could you love us by sending the gift of your Son to us?”
I will never forget this Christmas as long as I live. Not because I am mad or want revenge, but because of the true gift that I finally “got” standing in my kitchen on Christmas morning. As all the shiny packages were stripped away from my soul, I could not have asked for anything more! It was a Merry Christmas to me! O what Joy!
I pray you encounter the true joy of Christmas. It may come in a harsh package or no package at all, but I truly hope joy comes to you!
Alice Bennet, Mountain Momma
So……My husband didn’t get me anything for Christmas, which is so odd for him because I have been really spoiled by him. This was quite a shock and a disappointment. It was as if he had a wall around him that prevented him from doing so.
We have always exchanged gifts Christmas morning. I was convinced he had something put back for me. As I was giving him the gifts I had bought him, it became very apparent he wasn’t bluffing. He really hadn’t got me a gift! I'm not going to lie. I was livid!
We headed out the door for church Christmas morning and I was so “ate up with it” I couldn’t even begin to enjoy the reason I was there in the first place. The next day I returned his gifts. I swear I did. I returned his underwear and the shirt I bought him. I wanted revenge. All along I knew, I mean I knew! -the Lord was teaching me something. Oh I could just feel the love and the discipline, but I made every excuse in the book not to accept it. “Lord, you did see what he just did, right?”
A few days later, God spoke to me in my kitchen. He said, “Alice, I don’t like your heart in giving those gifts. You didn’t give them because you wanted to bless him with them, you gave them to get something back.” Guilty as sin.
There I sat in my puddle of tears guilty. Oh how good of a Father is he!?! God gives me everything I need. Everything. What more could I possibly want?
I gave all the presents back to my husband with an apology and with the right heart! God gave his Son to me. For this very sin (the sin of self and pride) He gave Jesus and expects nothing in return!
He does want our heart, but he did not give his Son with an evil ulterior motive. He simply wants to give us eternal life-another gift!
For a long time I have been searching for the true joy of Christmas. I always felt guilty about the gifts. Now I know why, they were never meant to be. The material things wrapped with ribbon and bows, signifying how much someone “cares” for you is not Christmas at all. “My God! How much more could you love us by sending the gift of your Son to us?”
I will never forget this Christmas as long as I live. Not because I am mad or want revenge, but because of the true gift that I finally “got” standing in my kitchen on Christmas morning. As all the shiny packages were stripped away from my soul, I could not have asked for anything more! It was a Merry Christmas to me! O what Joy!
I pray you encounter the true joy of Christmas. It may come in a harsh package or no package at all, but I truly hope joy comes to you!
Alice Bennet, Mountain Momma