Glory! OMG!

Doris and I have been together for forty-something years now. It is a challenge, on those special occasions in our life, to try and find the perfect gift for the perfect person who has everything (she is perfect you know... and enchanting! ). In December, for example, I begin the agonizing search. I shop until my feet are aching. I look until my eyes are blurring. I think until my head is spinning. There have been times when I thought I had found the perfect gift. For example, she loves cats. One Christmas I gave her a kitten, and that turned out to be a huge mistake. Right before my very eyes it quickly morphed into a cat. IT BACKSLID!

I thought I had found the perfect gift for our 25^th wedding anniversary. For years I had promised her a trip to Hawaii on this occasion. As fate would have it in our 25^th year we were appointed to Hawaii as divisional leaders. On the morning of June 4^th 1991 I took her out on the front porch of our home nestled in the lush gardens of Waioli in the Manoa valley. After surveying the tropical landscape, coconut, papaya, mango trees, I pointed to the blooming orchid bush in our yard, took her in my arms, gave her a kiss and said, “Happy anniversary. Its all yours!” And she said, “WHAT A GUY!”

On another special occasion I thought I had found the perfect gift. I gave her a very expensive set of diamond earrings. They were so expensive she hid them and then forgot where. For years those earrings remained hidden and she didn’t have the pleasure of wearing and enjoying them. We returned from our appointment in Hawaii and decided to go skiing. When she put on her ski boots she felt a strange object in the toe of her boot. The diamond earrings—GLORY!

On another Christmas, under the tree was a figurine, hand sculpted by “Illadro,’ of a nurse, as is she by profession and training. It is today prominently displayed in our home. She finds joy and great serenity in the beauty and handiwork of this great artist. In that way, it has great value to her.

When I look at it today, I look at it through different eyes. I look at it through an investor’s eyes and see how it has appreciated in value. When I look at it I see part of the mortgage being paid down. When I look at it I think about the next earthquake that will inevitably come. She says I have no soul. And with respect to that figurine she’s probably right.

In our home is also displayed the greatest gift ever given. It is not a static gift displayed in an ornate cabinet. It is a living gift that keeps on giving. People don’t have to come into our home to enjoy it. We take it with us wherever we go. And its value cannot be measured in material terms. With respect to this gift, I have a soul that is full of glory.

The Word (perfect gift) became flesh and blood, and moved into the neighborhood. We saw the glory with our own eyes – John 1:14 TM).

“OMG!”

JN