“They first gave themselves to the Lord, and then to us by the will of God.” 

(2 Corinthians 8:5 NKJV)

We’ve all been there — receiving a gift that leaves us at a loss for words. Maybe it’s an ugly sweater or a gadget so obscure you can’t even figure out how to use it. In those moments, you scramble for something polite to say. Fortunately, someone has come up with “Things to Say About a Gift You Don’t Like”:

• Hey! Now there’s a gift!
• What a shame! If I hadn’t recently shot up 4 sizes, this would’ve fit.
• I hope this never catches fire! It is fire season though. There are lots of unexplained fires.
• If the dog buries it, I’ll be furious!
• I love it — but I fear the jealousy it will inspire.
• How unfortunate! I got this the year I vowed to give all my gifts to charity.

Whatever you say, you know full well that a return trip to the store is in your future!

There’s a beautiful story in 2 Corinthians 8 about a gift that the churches of Macedonia gave to Paul to help needy Christians in Jerusalem. It was a gift that Paul was reluctant to receive. Not because there was anything wrong with it. Quite the opposite — it was a generous gift. Perhaps too generous. The Christians who gave it weren’t wealthy, so the gift seemed excessive.

“I can testify that they gave not only what they could afford, but far more. And they did it of their own free will. They begged us again and again for the privilege of sharing in the gift for the believers in Jerusalem. They even did more than we had hoped, for their first action was to give themselves to the Lord and to us, just as God wanted them to do.” (2 Corinthians 8:3-5, NLT)

True generosity isn’t just about giving money or resources; it starts with surrendering ourselves fully to God. The Corinthians didn’t just open their wallets — they opened their hearts. Their generosity was an outpouring of a deeper spiritual commitment. They recognized that everything they had belonged to God, and because they had first surrendered their lives to him, their giving became an extension of their faith rather than just an act of obligation.

The best gift you can ever give — one that will never need to be exchanged — is the gift of yourself to God. When you surrender your heart, your time, and your life to him, you are offering something precious. Unlike that ugly sweater or a gadget that gathers dust, your wholehearted devotion is exactly what God wants.

Prayer: Lord, help me to give myself fully to you, just as the Macedonian Christians did. Teach me to be generous with my time, my resources, and my heart, knowing that when I give to you, it is always the perfect gift. In Jesus’ name, amen.

Alan Smith
Reprinted with permission from Alan Smith’s Thought For the Day