It starts with a list. The Christmas list.

Making the list starts for us before Thanksgiving. We have conversations with the kids and ask what they really want. One very efficient daughter emails us her list with links to the websites. She makes it easy. The ordering begins in earnest right after Thanksgiving. I remember when we used to go from store to store. I once drove to Florence a day or two before Christmas to be the first in line for a Power Ranger shipment. Those were not the days. Now, almost all the ordering is point-and-click. The UPS and FedEx trucks seem to stop at every house on our street. The Postal Service even delivers packages on Sunday now – for a few dollars more.   

Occasionally, we will remember someone we need to buy for, and in a panic, we order, hoping the gift will make it on time. The kids will change their minds about something, which means ordering something new and then going through the whole process of returning what last week was the “perfect gift.”

By mid-December, we are asking ourselves if we are staying on budget. Usually, we are doing pretty well. It is that last-minute flurry that gets us. Stocking stuffers must be found. There is the mammoth grocery run as we prepare to feed nine people for three days. Double A and triple A batteries must be acquired for the unexpected gift that says, “Batteries included,” but the batteries are dead. A last-minute trip to Walmart on Christmas Eve is almost required. It will make you feel better about yourself when you see people who are starting their Christmas shopping on Christmas Eve.

Gift-giving has changed over the years.   We used to open gifts to each other on Christmas Eve, and then Santa came on Christmas Day. Everything is different now with everyone’s travel schedule. Now, the gift opening is divided into two parts: the grandson’s gifts and everyone else’s. It is a wonderful time to express love by giving gifts.

It struck me the other day that one name is missing from our list: Jesus. Seems strange, doesn’t it? After all, it is His birthday. 

Granted, Jesus is hard to buy for. What do you get the person who has everything?   I mean, literally, everything! He already owns the cattle on a thousand hills and stars by the thousands. What could He want anyway?

Jesus actually has a list. It is found in the book of Micah: “What does He require of you, O man, but to do justice, love mercy, and walk humbly with your God?”

This Christmas, give Jesus the gift of doing justice. Justice is about more than being fair; justice is having a standard of right and wrong and measuring our lives against it. Most of us want to create a standard of right and wrong that favors us. To do justice means we accept God’s standard, and we do it. We make decisions and behave in a way that makes God’s standards come alive. We treat each other with respect, stand for what is right, speak for those who have no voice, and do what is right even when it costs us. Imagine a world that gave doing justice to Jesus as a gift.

This Christmas, give Jesus the gift of loving mercy. When someone offends you or hurts you, forgive them. Give grace to the hurried UPS driver and the tired cashier. Be merciful to the waitress who messes up your order. Don’t just tolerate your annoying uncle. Remember, Jesus loves him, so be kind to him. Be patient with the child who pitches a fit because he or she did not receive that one gift they wanted: a working bazooka. Being merciful means loving people when it is hard to love them.

This Christmas, give Jesus the gift of walking humbly with Him.  Admit to Him you have no idea how to live your life. Ask for His help and guidance every day. Walk closely with Him so you learn to be like Him.  Stop where He would stop. Walk past temptations as He does. Climb mountains with Him.  Rest in the valleys with Him. Listen to his teaching. Let his love and grace keep your soul washed from sin. When you are discouraged, hear his gentle whisper: “You matter to me. I love you. Follow me.”

This Christmas, the best gift to give Jesus is yourself. He delights in you and will love the gift you present. Ironically, when you give him the gift of yourself, you receive back the best gift ever: Jesus.