The other day I asked one of our new girls in the home what she would like for Christmas. She quietly whispered, “A little bag of chips.”
I said, “No, I’m not going to give you a snack-size bag of chips for Christmas.” She didn’t know how to respond, so I asked if she would like a toy or a doll.
She lit up on the inside, which turned to a big smile on the outside, when she heard me suggest a doll, and said, “Yes, I want a doll!”
You know what she is getting for Christmas.
But this got me to thinking about how and why we respond to our Lord sometimes. Just as Estefani and I were walking hand in hand, alking together, God wants to do the same with us. Yes, He wants to take you by the hand, walk with you, talk with you and just be with you.
And I can just envision God saying to us, “Say, you know what? We are about to celebrate Christmas, the day you remember My birth. And I want to do something special. I want to bless you. What would you like to have?”
And many of God’s people act like shy little Estefani. We do not know how to come boldly before His throne of grace and make our petitions known. Heb. 4:16 sends out the following invitation to us, “Let us then come with confidence to the throne of grace, that we may obtain mercy and find grace to help in time of need.” And Phil. 4:6 also says, “Be anxious for nothing, but in everything, by prayer and supplication with gratitude, make your requests known to God.”
Don’t be afraid to ask God for what you have need of or for the desires of your heart. He wants to bless you above and beyond that which you can even possibly think or imagine (see Eph. 3:20).
Let’s face it: God is a giver. John 3:16 says that “God so loved the world that He gave …” He loves to give us good gifts (see James 1:17.) like salvation, the Holy Spirit, healing, deliverance, wisdom and provision, to name just a few of the most important ones. And He’s asking you, “What can I give you today that will bless you?”
Maybe you’re even more like little Estefani, and you’ve never had someone demonstrate how much they really care. And you are uncomfortable with the fact that He loves you. God wants to take you by the hand and show you how to trust Him, how to be confident in His goodness towards you. He desires to embolden you with the power of faith so you will not hesitate to run directly to His throne of grace anytime you want
.
Jesus doesn’t want you to miss out on any of the benefits He so generously lavishes upon us. He’s the giver of life (see Gen. 2:7): everlasting life (see John 3:16) and abundant life, too (see John 10:10). And He’s asking you, “What can I give you today that will bless you, I mean really bless you?”
