[Faith-talk] Daily Thought for Thursday, December 19, 2013

[Paul]

Hello and good day once again to all my loyal readers out there, no matter where in this world you happen to reside.  I hope and pray that, by God's matchless grace and His providential care, that your day is going well, whether it's about to end or begin or maybe even in the middle of the day.

Today's article is by Barbara Felts Bess of Orlando Florida and is entitled "A Gift To Remember," rendered as follows:

One Michigan Christmas nearly 50 years ago will stay with me for the rest of my life.  Snow covered the ground in a blanket of white.  Excitement was in the air.  In my second-grade class at the Scotch School, there was a buzz about the party and exchange of gifts on the last day before the holidays.

We had been making preparations for weeks.  Our room was decorated with paper snowmen and angels, Santas, and reindeer.  There were handmade snowflakes tacked to the walls and stars hanging by colored yarn from the ceiling.  Red and green garlands looped across the top of the blackboard.

My class was the usual mix of kids, but one stood out.  Her name was Kristy.  She came to school in frayed dresses and rundown shoes.  Her hair was never combed all the way, and we often noticed dirt on her legs.  "Doesn't she take a bath?" we whispered.  But Kristy didn't make excuses about her appearance.  She was always friendly.  She seemed completely accepting of herself.

Each of us brought a gift to the Christmas party.  Boys gave to boys, girls to girls.  We put our gifts on the wide ledge of our room's bay windows, each box wrapped in fancy paper and topped with a bow.  One gift stood out, just like the girl who had placed it on the window ledge.  It was cylindrical.  The paper was ripped at one end and the narrow ribbon was frayed.  Kristy noticed my horrified expression.  "It's a good present," she insisted.  "The wrapping's torn, that's all."

The morning crawled by.  After lunch and recess we trooped back to our room, eager for the festivities.  We squirmed in our seats as our teacher walked up and down the rows of the desks.  She held two hats.  One contained numbers for the boys, and the other for us girls.  The teacher had put corresponding numbers on the presents.  A number was drawn, the student walked to the tantalizing pile, found the correct package and returned to his or her desk.  No gift was opened until everybody had one.

When my turn came, I reached into the hat.  Many beautiful wrapped gifts still lay on the window ledge.  I hoped to put my fingers on the precious scrap of paper that would entitle me to the grandest present of all.  Here goes, I thought, and drew a number.  Then I went to match it on the window ledge.  "Oh, no," I sighed.  It was Kristy's gift.  My classmates chuckled.

"I think you'll like it," Kristy said.  At last all the packages had been claimed.  Our teacher said it was time to open them.  Most of the kids ripped off the wrappings with gusto, but I removed the ribbon and torn paper as slowly as I could.  I felt Kristy's eyes on me.  I just knew it was a terrible gift, something no one would want for Christmas.  But what would I say? I didn't want to hurt Kristy's feelings.

When I finished unwrapping the gift, I couldn't have been more surprised.  It wasn't terrible at all! Inside, rolled into a cylinder, were two of my favorite things in the whole world:  a coloring book and a dot-to-dot.  I looked at Kristy.  "This is a very good present," I said.  Kristy couldn't have known how much I like her present.  She certainly couldn't have known that I would be the one to receive it.  Could she?

"Thank you," I said.  Kristy grinned.  For once I didn't see her old clothes and messy hair.  I saw a friendly girl who had given me the perfect gift.

I don't remember anything else I received that Christmas in 1958.  My family moved away the next year, and I never saw Kristy again.  We hadn't become best friends, but I reached an understanding because of her.  The outside of a person, or the wrapping on a gift, isn't what's important.  It's what's inside that counts.

And I say "Amen!" to Barbara's last sentence.  Do you want biblical proof? Look at I Samuel 16:7 which says in part that "man looks at the outward appearance, but the Lord looks on the heart." And I believe that we, in our own simple yet profound way, do that to each other on the various lists to which we subscribe.

And now may the God of Abraham, Isaac and Jacob just keep us safe, individually and collectively, in these last days in which we live.  Lord willing, tomorrow there will be yet another Daily Thought message for you.  Your Christian friend and brother, Paul