10th gift of Christmas

MERCY – The 10 Christmas Gift 

Luke 15:10 …But while he was still a long way off, his father saw him and was filled with compassion for him; he ran to his son, threw his arms around him and kissed him

Matthew 5:7 Blessed are the merciful, for they shall receive mercy!

Mercy may seem plain and ordinary, to the outside observer; but to the one who receives it Mercy is the most astonishingly beautiful thing on earth!

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Mercy Is –

A life-saving pint of blood from a stranger

A handful of tissues when our tears start to flow

A silent embrace when our world fell apart

The light at the door when we come home after dark

A kiss of acceptance from someone we’ve hurt

A check in the mail when we’ve been out of work

Angel songs in the night when we’re out in the field

And a Babe in the manger who’s the Savior of the world!

9th Gift of Christmas

Ninth Christmas Gift – Living Water

If you knew the gift of God and who it is that asks you for a drink, you would have asked him and he would have given you living water John 4:10

I know of a hidden waterfall that is not far from the main road but it can only be glimpsed in the winter because of the dense forest all around. It flows like Niagara Falls in the spring, but even in the driest months it never stops.

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That is the picture which Jesus calls up when He talks about the gift of living water. Living water springs from a well that can never be run dry. It gives its refreshing pure water at every season of our lives. We will never come to its banks without finding the water that flows from the well of Bethlehem. Though we may think we already have everything we need, Jesus comes and urges us to ask for His gift. He is often more ready to give than we are prepared to receive. But if we will listen closely like the Samaritan woman, we will also know the joy that can make us leave our cookie cutter answers behind and go on our way with joy! Because God’s waterfall never changes but its water is fresh and new every moment!

Seventh Christmas Gift

Seventh Gift of Christmas – Grace 

But he gives more grace. Therefore it says, “God opposes the proud, but gives grace to the humble.”  James 4:6

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If Jesus came as a barefoot child to your home would he be welcomed in? If He knocked at your door would He be considered a stranger? If He asked for your time would he be treated as an honored guest? If He was rejected by your neighbors would He be defended as a part of your family?

The good news of Immanuel (God with us) is that Jesus passes through our little world every day in all these hidden ways. If we want to know the riches of the gift of His grace, what better way than to give it away?