Over the next couple of days one of the most frequent questions we are going to ask or hear is "What did you get for Christmas"? It is a very reasonable question as Christmas is a time for exchanging presents. We have spent a lot of time planning our lists of presents to buy, we spent time shopping, and we spent money.
Last Sunday at Church our former Bishop, Bishop Stephen Walker, gave a brief talk towards the end of Sacrament Meeting. In his talk he encouraged us to change the word get to give, so it now becomes "What did you give for Christmas"? He did not mean what present did you buy for who, how much did you spend or who did you buy for. He was talking about what did we give of ourselves, our talents and our time.
Did we donate to a charity? Did we help someone in need? Were we there for a friend? Most important is what did we give to Christ? He gave everything for us so why not give something for Him?
Let's try and forget about how commercial Christmas has become, and let's remember what this day is all about. President Thomas S Monson of the Church of Jesus Christ of latter-day Saints said that asking that question "prompts stimulating thought, causes tender feelings to well up and memory' fires to glow ever brighter."
Take some time and think about what you have given, not just at Christmas but all year. Let's all make an effort to try and give a little more of our time to helping and serving others. Christmas Gifts can become Christmas Blessings.
I wish all my family and friends a very Merry Christmas. I hope your day is full of love and laughter. If you can, tell me a little about what you gave for Christmas.
2 comments:
Great question and great post! We gave to the Lakewood Police Independent Guild, and it felt good to feel like we might be helping just a little bit.
I love this idea! Saduq and I did it
together and we decided we have given a lot of time, love, and money to our families and friends, but we can give
more to Christ!
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