Every Good Gift

Given that it's Christmas-time, and folks are in a gift-giving mood, I've been thinking about the nature of presents a lot. What makes a good gift?

My husband and I have a long-standing disagreement over whether certain items are appropriate or not. The table below indicates our position on these items.

Gift Item	He	I
Clothes	Only if they bear a Star Trek logo. Otherwise, no. Not ever.	Yes, especially if they come with shoes and a bag.
Power tools	No thanks. Unless your name is Hank Hill, these are simply work requests in disguise.	Absolutely. In fact, I want some. I'll make a list.
Exercise equipment	Judging by the fact that he has actually purchased some for me, yes.	Heck no, unless you want to see me burst into tears.
Vehicles	If it's a practical car for going to work, then no. That's just a necessity. If it's a gas-guzzling muscle car, then absolutely yes, yes, yes.	If I buy you a car, you'd better show some appreciation. Otherwise, you can just walk.
Fruity soaps	Only for teenage girls and pig farmers.	Get me the ones that smell like lemons.

The list goes on, but these are the ones that come to mind first. If you'll notice, though, there is a definite pattern in our philosophical differences. With the exception of gifts telling me I'm fat, I really like practical presents. I want things that I will use over and over. On the other hand, he likes gifts that speak to his wants and not his needs. His rationale is that if he needs something, he'll buy it himself. He wants people to give him things that he wouldn't normally purchase on his own.

As I've been thinking about presents, I've realized that over the last few years, I've been blessed in so many ways. In fact, this Christmas marks the end of my second year as a stay-at-home mom. This is something that I always dreamed about since the birth of my first child, but I never thought I'd be able to do.

This realization helped me see that God is, in fact, the ultimate gift-giver. Because we needed a savior, He gave us Baby Jesus at Christmas. He also provides for our physical needs such as food and clothing. But He is not content to give us what we need. He also gives us the superfluous extras, the things that make us happy -- like the ability to stay home with my babies, bear-sightings when I'm feeling blue, a bundle of pussy willows left on my doorstep.  He gives us the desires of our hearts. I think both my husband and I can agree that He's got us both covered.

I may not get to writing another post between now and the 25th, so I wish you and yours the very merriest of Christmases. Peace on Earth & good will to all men.

Love,
Julie