Mystery Gifts

I tried something different this Christmas with my kids that I want to share with you. My kids are to the age where giving gifts is just about over. Before long mine and Pam's attention will be giving gifts to our grand kids so I wanted to give them gifts that they could give someday to their kids when they get older. If you are looking for presents to give them next year that will be different, try my idea with "Mystery Gifts". What Pam and I did this year was wrap a bunch of presents for the kids to open but they were totally empty. Once they started to unwrap gifts that seemed to be empty and confusion was at its peak, I shared the following devotion with them.

The Mystery Gift

I know you are all confused and wondering what is up with all the presents that seem to be empty. You know me; I am always up to something trying to teach you important lessons in life. This is one of those important lessons I want each of you to know. I remember a time when you all were much smaller when several presents were under the tree and you were all excited to see what you got. That was a time when you didn’t know what you were getting. Today is much different now as you are adults. But I still want to give you something you didn’t expect and I hope you remember what this all means when life gives you presents that seem empty.

1,000 years before Jesus came to this earth; there was a king who loved God very much. His name was David. Over the many years in David’s life God had helped him through many difficult times and once David became king and life seemed to settle down and life was good, David had an idea that he thought was a great idea. David just built a huge palace for himself and realized that as he sat in his house, the Ark of the Covenant, God, still lived in a tent. So David decided to build God a beautiful house, a temple to live in.

We have to give David credit, never before had anyone ever thought up this idea. David and God were close and David felt bad that he had a beautiful house to live in and God was in a tent. David was excited to follow through with his idea until God sent David a message through the prophet Nathan:

1 Chronicles 17:3-4 That night the word of God came to Nathan, saying: “Go and tell my servant David, ‘This is what the LORD says: You are not the one to build me a house to dwell in.

Now I don’t know about you but if I were David, I would be very disappointed if I had this great idea to do something neat for God and he sent me a message of “thanks but no thanks”. But that is exactly what God did. In fact, God said that the idea was a great idea but he was going to allow someone else to take the idea and build the temple. But if we look close at what scripture says about this, we will see that God actually said no to David and yes at the same time.

Samuel 7:8-9, 12-13 “Now then, tell my servant David, ‘This is what the LORD Almighty says: I took you from the pasture and from following the flock to be ruler over my people Israel. I have been with you wherever you have gone, and I have cut off all your enemies from before you. Now I will make your name great, like the names of the greatest men of the earth. “‘The LORD declares to you that the LORD himself will establish a house for you: When your days are over and you rest with your fathers, I will raise up your offspring to succeed you, who will come from your own body, and I will establish his kingdom. He is the one who will build a house for my Name, and I will establish the throne of his kingdom forever.

What we find here is that God thought David’s idea was a great idea. He just wasn’t going to let David build the temple, his son Solomon was going to build it. In a way God told David no but actually we see that God told David yes. What is the point to all of this? There will be times in life when you will have great dreams and goals to accomplish. As you grow in your relationship with God, you will share many of those dreams and goals with Him asking for direction and help with those dreams. But like any good parent, sometimes parents will say no knowing that your plans are not best. Mom and I said know many times to you knowing your plans were not the best choices trying to protect you and teach you to look for the best ways.
 
But God did give a beautiful gift to David. At the time David was disappointed that he was told no and was very confused that God was giving his idea to someone else to complete. But often when God tells us no in life, He often times says yes and places under our tree beautiful gifts. When we open them they might seem empty but in reality, they are full of the love God has to give. In David’s case, that is exactly what God did.

I will raise up your offspring to succeed you, who will come from your own body, and I will establish his kingdom. He is the one who will build a house for my Name, and I will establish the throne of his kingdom forever.

In this promise to David, God not only promises to allow his son Solomon to build the temple, but He also tells of another son who later will establish his thrown forever. The present God gave to David was very similar to some of the presents you gave to me, They were the ones that were empty at the time you gave them to me.  You told me that it didn’t come in yet and would be here in a few days. I believed your promise of the gift and looked forward to getting it. For David, it took 1,000 years to get his gift. In fact David never saw it in his lifetime. We know the gift as Jesus, being born as a baby.

Today, Jesus house is established forever. God no longer lives in a temple that Solomon built, but God lives in us. That temple that Solomon built was torn down many years ago and no longer exists. But the true gift God gave David still exits and He lives in our hearts. There are going to be times when God will say no to your dreams and goals in life. At the time you will be disappointed and even mad. But look beyond the initial disappointment and look to the small and beautiful gift, the mystery gift He gives to you. Your direction might be a good way to go, but God might redirect you to walk in the best direction. Accept it, love it and look forward to better promise God has set before you.