dailydatewithgod

This time of year is fondly referred to as the season of giving.  It is a mixed bag of rushing to the stores or on-line to find that great gift for your loved one or coworker that tells them you are thinking of them with love this time of year and sharing the wealth through donations or service to charities. Children wait in expectation to see if Santa will fulfill their wishes and give them what they want, we fret over find that perfect gift to give, and people wondering where their next meal is coming from are treated to a full Christmas experience of gifts and a holiday meal.  These are all wonderful aspects of giving.  Giving is just one part of the process.  This is also a season of receiving.  When we open our hearts and our hands to give, we make room to receive.  We sometimes hear the message that giving is more important than receiving.  I think God is trying to tell us that giving is part of receiving.  One cannot happen without the other.  If we are holding on to something in our hands we cannot take on anything else.  If we give and don’t receive back then we do not allow the other person the opportunity to give.  The key here is the freedom of spirit in which it is done.  Giving out of obligation or expectation means our hearts are still closed to the process and purpose of giving which is love not obligation.  Sometimes it is hard to separate all these ideas.  God encourages us to go into our hearts and connect with how we can give love.  It may be through a gift, a smile, letting go of an idea that blocks us from growing, or receiving from someone else.  It is all an opportunity to give love. Openness to the freedom of the form and our mindset in the moment in which it is happening allows us to be about giving as God gives.