Dec
17
2015
The Primitive Angel
Posted in Christmas 2 Comments
I found an angel.
Not Clarence from, It’s A Wonderful Life, type angel.
This was a wooden angel.
I saw her tucked away in a corner of one of my favorite stores.
She had a rustic, primitive look about her.
She was about three-feet tall.
Her wings were made of pressed tin.
Her arms were extended before her.
In her hands, she was holding a red cardinal.
The angel was in profile.
Her long hair was made of braided yarn.
I knew just the place for her in my home.
Each year, I buy one whimsical Christmas decoration.
Country, primitive, and unusual are my criteria.
This angel fit the criteria nicely.
Until I saw the price tag.
It was about twenty dollars more than I wanted to spend.
I tried to justify the purchase in my mind.
I knew my husband would say, you should just get it.
He appreciates the country Christmas atmosphere in our home.
I had other things in my basket that I was ready to purchase.
I decided that I would pass on the angel.
But that primitive, wooden angel was so unique.
I got up to the cash register and laid out all of my items.
This flower and craft store is located in my place of solace.
I found my angel in the place of Amish buggies and farmland.
I had been shopping in the store for quite a while imagining all the possibilities.
I was pleased with the gifts I bought, but that angel would not leave my mind.
My order was tallied up and I signed for the purchase.
I have a card that is swiped each time I shop in this wonderful store and points are accumulated.
You have a ten dollar coupon, the cashier said as she waited for the coupon to emerge.
She handed me the paper with, $10.00 OFF your next purchase, across the top.
The angel was twenty dollars above what I wanted to spend on her.
This coupon brought that difference down to ten dollars above my price.
I left the register and went back to the room where I saw the primitive angel.
I lifted her up and carried her to the register, pushing the cart with my other hand.
The cashier that just waited on me was not at her register.
Another woman was about to ring up my purchase.
I handed her the coupon.
She looked down at it and then glanced up at me.
Did you just get this coupon? She asked in confusion.
Yes, over there, I said pointing to the register that was next to hers.
You can’t use this today, she said pointing to small letters on the bottom of the coupon.
See the date; it is good for thirty days starting tomorrow, she said with authority.
The first cashier came up behind her.
She can’t use the coupon today? She asked not believing it herself.
I’m so sorry, the first cashier said, I really thought you could.
I guess it wasn’t meant to be, I said trying to hide my disappointment.
I came home and told my husband about the angel as we were having dinner.
You should have just gotten it, he said, the verb tense different from what I imagined.
Well, maybe I will go back tomorrow or the next day and get it, I said more to myself.
You do realize that you will probably spend the $10.00 in gas on your return trip, he said.
He was right and we both laughed.
I was trying to save money, but I was spending it in another way.
I will go back and get the angel if she is still there.
I know just the place to put her.
God’s gifts and His call are irrevocable. (Romans 11:29)
That coupon was an unexpected gift.
The gift of a discount on another purchase.
Receiving the coupon brightened my day.
I was excited to use the coupon on something I wanted to purchase.
However, there were conditions on the gift.
I could only use it in a certain window of time.
The coupon had an expiration date.
It was only good for so long.
He causes His sun to rise on the evil and the good, and sends rain on the righteous and the unrighteous. (Matthew 5:45)
I am so thankful that God’s gifts do not expire.
God freely gives His gifts.
With God, there is common grace.
God’s gifts are available to all.
Our gifts come with conditions.
Our gifts have parameters.
Our gifts are for some and not for others.
Out gifts are so unlike God’s.
God’s gifts are irrevocable.
They are not able to be changed, reversed, or recovered.
They are final.
That is so like God.
The greatest gift God gave is the Gift of His Son.
There is one condition on that Gift.
We are to believe in the One that He sent.
That is the only condition but for some that is so terribly difficult.
We should rejoice that God’s gifts and His call are irrevocable.
We cannot believe i the One that He sent without the faith to believe.
Even that faith is a gift from God.
That call, that faith is final, never to be reversed or rescinded.
Hallelujah!
I know what I will think about when I look at my primitive angel.
As I glance at her holding out the gift of the red cardinal, I will think of God’s gifts.
God’s gifts have no limits and no expiration date.
How blessed we are to be the recipients of God’s great gifts.
Loved reading this today Gina! Your writings never surprise me by now…after all, you are truly gifted! The Gift of Christmas…Jesus Christ…is ever so more meaningful to our family…especially at these holidays…when we miss Katelynn so very much. Our hearts long for her every day but we are encouraged daily by the promise of reuniting with her one glorious day in heaven and getting to spend forever with her…only because of the Gift of Christmas…the Christ child…Jesus Christ!!
Thank you for your reminder, today of the wonderful gifts from God that are never changing…except life changing for us!!
Wishing you a Blessed Christmas with all your family!!
love,
Carolyn
Carolyn,
I am so acutely aware of the tension between the joy of Christmas and the pain of missing a loved one who has gone on ahead of us. You have lived out a vibrant faith in the face of suffering that is palpable and strong. Without the Hope we have in Christ, nothing would make sense and loss would be profound and endless. But God gave us His Son and because of His Gift, we have HOPE. What a precious word that is: HOPE. You are loved. We rejoice with HOPE because of the NOT YET of our faith. Have a Blessed Christmas.
Gina