The Sweet Taste of Christmas

Sometimes, our efforts to share joy lead to unexpected delights. It happened to me just this week. Baking Christmas cookies is one of my favorite pastimes – one that works best when the results are shared. “Hmm,” I thought, “We can give cookies to our neighbors, the people we see on a regular basis.”

My home-baked cookies easily filled enough goodie boxes to share with those living nearby, but something was missing. They needed an uplifting message of hope and cheer. I thought about favorite Bible verses, but felt presumptive in trying to decide what to say. In the midst of pondering my dilemma, I prayed. Surely God knew how best to use this idea. He certainly did!

The answer came in the form of a new line of “Have A Little Faith” gift cards from Tristan Publishing (www.tristanpublishing.com). Each card in the set has a simple Bible verse with uplifting messages of encouragement on topics such as: faith, trust, and belief. I jotted our name inside each of the cards and sealed them in their envelopes.

After my husband and I prayed over the cards, we headed out to distribute our treats. Only God knew which of the 12 Scripture messages individuals would be given. To our delight, we found ourselves receiving gifts in return.

Without fail, smiles appeared on the faces of everyone who accepted our little gift. Among the gifts we received, one young guy gave us both hugs, and the parent of small children said, “This is the best thing to happen today.” It was fun to talk with people, laugh together, and catch up on neighborhood news.

We may never know how God’s Word will impact our cookie recipients. Our greatest blessing in this cookie dispatch is knowing we can stand on His promise from Isaiah 55:10-11: “As the rain and the snow come down from heaven… so is my word that goes out from my mouth: It will not return to me empty, but will accomplish what I desire and achieve the purpose for which I sent it.”