Ushered Into the Presence of the Great

Blessings upon everyone! I hope you all had a wonderful, blessed Christmas and celebrated the birth of Jesus in such a way that would make Him proud.

I had a wonderful Christmas celebration. It was good to gather with family and enjoy each other's company, catch up on each of their lives, and worship the one true King.

It is always nice to give a loved one gifts to show our appreciation of them. But with the economy as it is, it is not always possible to give monetarily. We then have to rely on our imagination to show our appreciation, which can be even more fun. A card, a note, a hug; all of which are avenues for us to pour out our love for others.

Why is it that we feel we must give gifts to those we love? I have some friends that can never let a person leave their house empty-handed. I think they buy extra gifts throughout the year just for these occasions. I have visited on any given day, just to stop by and say hello, and yet I still can't leave without being given a gift. It is just their way of showing they care.

Back in the days when mankind was ruled by kings, no person dared have an audience with the king without presenting him with a gift. It was considered disrespectful. Proverbs 18:16 says A gift opens the way for the giver and ushers him into the presence of the great. Thus the reason for presenting the king a gift; it ushered the giver into his presence.

Just think, being ushered into our Heavenly King's presence! Oh how precious! We should never come to God empty-handed. It is our gifts that usher us into His presence, the presence of the Great!

Wait! We must be careful of the gifts we give. Cain didn't give his best or from his heart and God did not accept his gifts (Genesis 4). And God said we should give with a cheerful heart (2 Corinthians 9:7). We should never give less than our best.

It is in the presence of God that we find peace, receive healing, experience deliverance, gain wisdom. If this is where we receive then shouldn't we be willing to give of our best in order to be ushered into His presence? Besides, He deserves nothing less than our best. He is worthy of all we have to offer and more.

The best gift you can give is yourself. Give God all of you and see what victories you will obtain. God Bless~