Gifts and Gift Bags

I have been blessed this Christmas season with many unexpected gifts. I mean, I have gotten some nice things from some very nice people. I always try so hard to make my list of everyone I need to buy presents for, but then some people who I never would have thought to buy a gift for bring gifts to me. It is truly a special blessing. At first, I am tempted to think, oh no, they got me something and I don’t have anything for them. But then I realize that is not the reason they gave me a gift. They gave me a gift not because they felt obligated, but simply because they wanted to thank me for something or because they just wanted to give me a gift. I know these people are not going to read this blog, but I would like to say how much these thoughts have blessed my life this Christmas season, and I pray that God will bless each of them richly.

And every time I get one of these gifts, I get so excited about the gift bags! I recycle gift bags by using them for gifts that I give, and every time I get a present in a gift bag, I am thinking, oh goody, now I have another gift bag! Why am I this way? Is it because I was short on gift bags this year? I mean I could have gone to Wal Mart or Target and bought some gift bags, but no! I just re-use old gift bags. And then, if that is not weird enough, after all this I get super conservative about using them. I have them but I won’t use them because I think I might need it at some time in the future. I do this with other things also and I do not know why I always try to conserve things and not use them. What would really be the difference in using it now, or using it in the future?