Eating Your Gift

A man who was well-to-do enjoyed buying his father unusual and exotic presents for Christmas.… But one particular Christmas this man found a gift for his father that was truly unique: a talking bird that could speak five languages and sing “The Yellow Rose of Texas” standing on one foot.… So he purchased the bird and had it sent to his father for Christmas. A few days later, the man went over to his father’s house to see if he was enjoying his unique and expensive gift. He knocked on the door and said, “Dad, did you get my present?” “I sure did,” his father said. “How’d you like it?” “It was delicious!” Dad had obviously missed the point of his son’s special gift, and so he treated as ordinary something that was very special. Too often, that’s how we treat the gifts God gives us.