Every minister can tell you that every once in a while, as you’re sitting in your office, a phone call comes in that puts a smile on your face. I had one of those today. It wasn’t looked-for, it wasn’t expected…it wasn’t even that big of a deal. It was simply a congregant who wanted to bring a friend to some of our programs and was looking for confirmation on the dates that they were starting up.

But in our conversation and shared laughter, God sent renewal to my spirit. Does that sound a little new-agey and woo-woo? Maybe. But I think God has a way of doing this – sending us little gifts during our day. If our eyes are closed, we can easily miss the gift. But if our eyes our opened, our spirit may be transformed by the gift.

Isn’t that always the way with God? He sent Jesus and to some, it was just another dark night in the midst of a dark season. But for those whose eyes were open – for the Shepherds, and the Angels and the Wise Men, for Mary and Joseph, for me all these years later – it was transformational… Like the sun rising in the East or like a new star appearing in the sky.

I’m often surprised by how quietly a gift from God is given. He really does leave it up to us to acknowledge it or ignore it. It’s shocking, actually, how much of it God leaves in our hands. We really do have a choice. And that in itself is a gift.