A House Built on Sand

“Do not forget this. At first it is natural for a baby to take its mother's milk without knowing its mother. It is equally natural for us to see the man who helps us without seeing Christ behind him. But we must not remain babies. We must go on to recog­nize the real Giver. It is madness not to. Because, if we do not, we shall be relying on human beings. And that is going to let us down. The best of them will make mistakes: all of them will die. We must be thankful to all the people who have helped us, we must honour them and love them. But never, never pin your whole faith on any hu­man being: not if he is the best and wisest in the whole world. There are lots of nice things you can do with sand; but do not try building a house on it.” ― C.S. Lewis

Good Gifts from Above

“Do not be deceived, my beloved brethren. ¹⁷ Every good gift and every perfect gift is from above, and comes down from the Father of lights, with whom there is no variation or shadow of turning. ¹⁸ Of His own will He brought us forth by the word of truth, that we might be a kind of firstfruits of His creatures.” ―James 1:16-18

Prayer

Heavenly Father, help us to see behind the gifts that surround us. We are grateful for the people who bless our lives, but we acknowledge that even they are gifts from You. We are especially thankful that You gave us Your Son as the greatest gift of all. AMEN.

Advent Action

Think of three people who have been a great blessing in your life and tell your family members why they have been such a blessing. Write a brief note of thanks and send it to those people if they are still living). Now, thank God for giving them to you.