The Christmas Gift
A friend of mine named Todd received an automobile from his brother as a Christmas present. On Christmas Eve when Todd came out of his office, a boy on the street was walking around the shiny new car, admiring it. “Is this your car, Mister?” he asked.
Todd nodded. “My brother gave it to me for Christmas.” The boy was amazed. “You mean your brother gave it to you and it didn’t cost you nothing? Boy, I wish…” He hesitated.
Of course Todd knew what he was going to wish for. He was going to wish he had a brother like that.
“I wish,” the boy went on, “that I could be a brother like that.”
Todd looked at the boy and then said, “Would you like to take a ride in my automobile?”
“Oh yes, I’d love that.”
After a short ride, the boy turned and with his eyes so big, said, “Mister, would you mind driving in front on my house?”
Todd smiled a little. He thought he knew what the boy wanted. He wanted to show his neighbors that he could ride home in a big red car. But Todd was wrong again. “Will you stop where those two steps are?” the boy asked.
He ran up the steps. Then in a little while Todd heard him coming back, but he was not coming fast. He was carrying his little crippled brother. He sat him down on the bottom step, then sort of squeezed up against him and pointed to the car.
“There she is, Buddy, just like I told you upstairs. His brother gave it to him for Christmas and it didn’t cost him a cent. And some day I’m gonna give you one just like it… then you can see for yourself all the pretty things in the Christmas windows that I’ve been trying to tell you about.”
Todd got out and lifted the boy to the front seat of his car. The older brother climbed in beside him and the three of them began a memorable holiday ride.
That Christmas Eve, Paul learned what Jesus meant when he had said, “It’s more blessed to give….”
Thrive to be a giver.
