Thursday, May 10, 2018

Every Good and Perfect Gift

I am writing this article in the month of May, surrounded by talk about high school and college graduations.  It takes me back not only to my own college graduation from the University of Iowa years ago, but to a particular story from my time there on campus.  I absolutely loved going to school in Iowa City.  It was always so full of hope in the spring time when returning students would meet up with new students - the town would literally swell to twice it's normal population.  Hopeful anxiety hung in the air as we shuffled off to begin a new set of classes with new students and different teachers.  


One thing that all of us were afraid of, however, was that time of year when the tuition bill came due.  It happened periodically throughout the semester, and there was always the worry that maybe this time my student loan allotment wouldn't quite cover the amount.  As you can probably surmise, there was just one such occasion when it didn't.

That particular semester, my university bill was $889 dollars more than I could afford.  I will never forget that amount.  For a struggling college student with a full schedule of classes and only a part time job, this was indeed a problem.  Tuition offices were largely unforgiving when it came to defaulting on a payment.  Something had to be done.  I felt that the amount was too large to burden my parents with, so I began visiting local banks and filling out loan applications.  Mind you I was twenty-something years old, with nothing to use for collateral and no steady income.  

The month previous, one of my friends moved out of college housing because she couldn't pay her bill.  All I could really do was pray, worry, and hope for the best.  

What I really needed - aside from winning the lottery - was a large financial gift.  It was a situation that I couldn't think my way out of, at least not yet, and there was a very real chance that consequences would follow if the money didn't somehow land in my lap in the next two weeks.

This leads me to think about who we turn to when the going gets tough.  If we look at the book of James in the Bible, the brother of Jesus seems pretty convinced that God is the one to call upon.  James 1:17 says, "Every good and perfect gift is from above, coming down from the Father of the heavenly lights, who does not change like shifting shadows."

You see, when we receive something from God, we can be assured of a few important things.  First of all, a gift from God the Father is always timely.  This is important to keep in mind because God's timing is often quite different than our own.  Wouldn't we all like an early assurance from above, that whatever we are struggling with now will be made right in the near future?  Wouldn't it just be easier if God sent a dove with a small scroll in it's mouth to perch on our window sill every time we needed some advice or extra money?  But in fact, if I look back at my own life, God's gifts often came at just the right time - exactly the day I needed it.  Not a week or two early, but rather at the very moment it was necessary.

We may also be assured that God's gifts are good.  This can sound like common sense, so let's unpack this idea a little bit further.  I do think it is quite possible for someone to give us something out of kindness that we don't really need.  Think of the enabling parent for example, who spoils his child day and night.  He loves the child, but his gifts can hardly be thought of as producing something good.  Instead, the young one grows up spoiled and entitled.  With God, however, the gift will be what we actually need, and not just what we want.  There is a difference.

Finally, God's gifts will produce lasting fruit.  When God shows up in our lives to equip and encourage us, it will typically change not only our own lives, but the lives of those around us.  A gift from the Father keeps on giving from the overflow of the heart of Jesus.  As many of Christ's parables state, fruit is produced and then multiplied ten-fold in order to help edify and build up the Kingdom of God here on earth.  

But what if we are praying ardently for something and it doesn't come to pass (or at least in the time frame we were hoping for)?  If we visit the book of Psalms for a moment, I believe we find an answer.  Psalm 37:4 says, "Take delight in the Lord, and he will give you the desires of your heart."

What are the desires of our hearts?  Are they Godly desires, or are we praying for things like a new car, more money, or a bigger house?  If we are firmly embedded in the Kingdom of God, then our prayers will start to sound different than the rest of the world.  We begin praying for our enemies.  We start asking God to help other people to see Him more clearly.  We begin praying for more peace, not more things.  These are the gifts we should be asking for, and these are the things that God is happy to provide to those who love Him.

It is also the truth to say that one of God's most important gifts to mankind was the sacrifice of His son on Calvary.  In fact, the cross may be the most influential and lasting gift in the history of our little blue planet. It provides hope where there would otherwise be despair, forgiveness instead of condemnation, and grace instead of guilt.  The cross is free to us, though it cost God quite a bit.  I am humbled that God feels we deserve the gift of salvation ... because it is timely, good, and produces lasting fruit.  A gift better than any other.

So what do we do with something like this?  Do we ignore the calling of Jesus to be in-grafted into the vine as sons and daughters of the most high God?  Or do we respond to His offer of grace and have our sins forgiven, once and for all?  

In a recent survey from 2016, it was reported that twenty percent of people in the United States claim no affiliation to any organized church or religion.  On surveys they check the 'none' box.  They are what pollers call the "nones", and their number is growing each decade.  I am afraid that there will someday be a generation living in this country that doesn't respond to God's gift at all.  I worry that we will be set adrift on a sea of nones, unable to see the shoreline either in front or behind us.  It will bring new meaning to the word 'lost.'

But there is also hope.  God's power and generosity doesn't depend on the strength of our faith, but it is the same yesterday, today, and tomorrow.  He will continue to extend the gift; it is up to us to respond to that call with something other than 'none.' 

I think back to how faithful I was back in college during that difficult time.  I wasn't demonstrating much faith at all to be honest.  At that point in time, prayer took up a minuscule part of my day to day activity.  But I will never forget receiving a plain looking white envelope in the mail one day after walking home from the bank.  I had just finished another loan application, and I was feeling tired and distraught.  The letter contained a check for $900 and a small note telling me that I had received a share of my grandfather's life insurance payout.  You see, he had passed away a number of months earlier.  But I knew who actually sent me that money, and who the true gift giver was that day.  Praise God that His provision was stronger than my faith that semester. 

We should think seriously about responding to God's gift.  We should at least entertain the idea of saying 'Yes' to a being who loves us indefinitely, and wants salvation for all who call on His name.  We should allow Him to step in and pay our tuition from time to time.  Things generally go better that way.  It certainly did for me that semester years ago when God allowed me to graduate from college.  I will never be a 'none' again, if in fact I ever was.



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