The Best Gift of All

 by Bridgett Green

“Do not repay evil with evil or insult with insult. On the contrary, repay evil with blessing, because to this you were called so that you may inherit a blessing. For, “Whoever would love life and see good days must keep their tongue from evil and their lips from deceitful speech. They must turn from evil and do good; they must seek peace and pursue it.” 1 Peter 3:9-11 

With a full-time job and three small kids, I have struggled with time management lately. Life is busy and messy sometimes and we all go through different seasons. But chaos can often lead to stress which has the power to take over your life if you let it.

And that is just what I have done over the last several months. We tend to put on a happy face and treat people with kindness when we know there is something on the line, such as your job. But the real work comes when you get home at night, and we feel as if we can act differently in front of our family.

But God tells us to lay all of our burdens on Him and He will give us the strength we need. Nowhere in the Bible do you ever see Jesus mutter unkind words under his breath. and he had a lot of people that were against him. He used his words to heal, to teach, to inspire and to lead people to the kingdom of God. He let people know that they were loved and forgiven.

Although we cannot live a perfect life as Jesus did, we can try to use our words to teach others and to love, remembering that He came to this world on Christmas day and gave us the best gifts of all: salvation, eternal life, love and forgiveness all wrapped in one tiny little package.

Lord, help me to control my words as they have power and they can be used to lift others up, to bring them closer to you. Help me to think before speaking and seek peace and pursue it. Amen.

Return to blog.ehwc.org for a new Advent devotional December 1-25!