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As a kid, the first thing that came to my mind was gifts. We would put up the tree and then begin to assemble a huge pile of gifts underneath it. I would shake, rattle, and roll each one in the hopes that some of the paper might come off and I might discover what wonderful present lay beneath the surface of the wrapping paper. It was so exciting. It still is, I must admit. The excitement about a gift is one of the best parts of Christmas.

Of course Christmas is a celebration of the ultimate gift—Jesus Christ. He was God's gift to us. Perfect and complete, with no strings attached, and no need or desire to ever return it. And the size is just right.

Thinking about those gifts makes me also think of spiritual gifts. We don't talk about them too often, except usually when we are asked to do something in the church, and then we say, "Oh, I would, but it isn't my gift." I laugh sometimes, because I know I must have said that in the past and I am sure I didn't even know what my gifts were at the time, but I just said that to get out of doing whatever was being asked.

You know what that is like though. It is a little like just leaving all those presents under the tree. Never opening them. Oh, perhaps we speculate about what might be in this one or that one, but we never open it up. That would be ridiculous. It would defeat the purpose and the effort someone went to in order to give us those gifts. But of course we do open those gifts and celebrate them and use them with great joy.

How about our spiritual gifts. Are many of them left unopened year after year? That too is ridiculous. God gives to each and every Christian at least one spiritual gift. And, it is a gift that is to be opened and used and enjoyed. I trust that you will look at your spiritual gifts in that way. Open them up by opening yourself up to many different ministries within the church. Discover the joy there is in using what you have been so graciously given. Your unique gift mix is a vital part of our church. We can't survive without them.

This Christmas, as you open your gifts from family and friends, think about the spiritual gifts that God has given you, and begin to really discover how to use them in service of your Lord—Jesus Christ, the ultimate gift.