Gift Receipts

I've been thinking a lot lately about gifts and giving and Christmas in general. Ezra, one of the pastors at my church made a comment about how ridiculous gift receipts are. His comment has really stuck with me and made me see gift receipts as a great symbol of our attitudes both as givers and receivers.

For the giver, the one who goes out and spends the money, the gift receipt can illustrate our fear of rejection, our fear of getting the wrong gift, or perhaps our lack of care because we just expect the person to exchange the gift for something else. A gift receipt is a safeguard, a way out if we see disappointment as a response, we can always say, "and I included the gift receipt if it's not exactly right". Of course, for clothing and shoes which require the proper size it is understandable I suppose, but really, would it really be so much harder for us to call up a family member and ask for the right size?

As givers, we want to please, we want to bring a smile of joy and a sparkle of excitement to the face of the one we are giving a gift to. So often, we put hours of thought into a gift, days of careful listening for hints or weeks of desperate searching for the prefect thing but yet, we are so nervous in that moment of unwrapping. We so much want to please and I know I selfishly hope for affirmation as perhaps some of you do. The gift receipt not only portrays this nervous fear but also undermines all the thought we put into our gifts because it implies that even we don't think it is a the right gift. The gift receipt itself may cause doubt in the receiver.

As receivers, however, we become the problem. For I think it is our selfish desires and crummy attitudes as receivers that really creates the problem. For some reason we think that when someone is going to give us a gift, whether for birthday or Christmas, or even just something random, we have certain expectations. I always look for something I have asked for, or hinted at and feel disappointed with something not to my ideals. Or I compare my gift with someone elses' and think I see more thought or love in their gift which makes my gift seem not so great. Instead of receiving the love that comes behind the gift, I grudgingly accept the object which I may or may not like/use. We secretly hope for a gift receipt in order to have the option of choosing something we want or 'need'.

I'm beginning to see more than just stuff under the Christmas tree. Each gift is a display of love. With each purchase, someone was thinking of another person. Even if they didn't spend hours in thoughtful meditation to discern the 'perfect' gift, they thought of you or me or whoever for a few minutes while they searched, picked up, bought and wrapped that object. I think we, or at least I know I need to change the way I've been thinking. When I give a gift, I'm giving a representation of my care, my thoughts, my time, my appreciation and my love. When I receive a gift, somehow, I've got to realize that I am not just getting some random object, but all that comes with it.

In reality, the things we get under the tree are not what bring us real joy for "heaven and earth will pass away..."(Matt 24:35) and these things are not the real treasure for here on earth, "moth and vermin destroy and...thieves break in and steal" (Matt 6:19). So really, we shouldn't be putting so much hope and expectations in the gifts or even in the people we are giving to. We are all fallible sinners but with God's help, we can enter Christmas with the right attitude and have an awesome gift giving and receiving season.