by Rachel Stacey

Created on: November 19, 2010

The best gift that I have received from God is the gift of salvation. God accepts us with all our imperfections and promises us a lifelong friend, protector and encourager in Him. We give Him all of our "bad" and he gives us all of His "good". Not a bad trade, huh? After receiving the gift of salvation from God, He began to impress upon my heart the importance of missions. One summer at Christian camp after hearing a message by evangelist Carey Grant, I felt moved of God to dedicate my life to serving others, to meeting the needs of a hurting world. Of course I knew I couldn't do this alone, only by His strength. God provided me with the realization the we must be His hands and feet.

After salvation, I would say that the best gift that I have ever received from God is a broken heart. It is my daily prayer that God will cause my heart to break over the pain and suffering experienced by people in the world. I am so thankful for this gift! In a world where we are daily bombarded with heartbreaking images of hunger, disease, war, abuse and exploitation, it is so easy to become numb. The statistics are overwhelming, the problems faced by hurting people are so numerous. How can we make a difference? I think that God asks of us, "How can we afford not to make a difference"? In fact I know He does. It's all outlined in the Bible. Verse after verse, in fact over 300, contain God's commandment to us to serve the poor. One such verse can be found in James 1:27, "Reach out to the homeless and loveless in their plight, and guard against corruption from the godless world". This is God's commandment to us.

Many Christians get comfortable in their routines of attending church and, on occasion, opening their wallets to the poor or attending a community event. While I belong to a church that is very dedicated to missions, my heart is continuously broken over the fact that so much more could be done! Some of the best gifts God gives us are gifts that spur us into action. God gifts many families with children. What a precious gift! Parents who have relationships with God as well as those who don't are constantly inspired to be a better example, to be a the best person that they can be in hopes that their child will follow their example. For me, God's gift of a broken heart is one that He gives over and over again. I too often forget or become too busy to be concerned with the hurting and poor. That's when God reaches down with love and again reminds me, "You are nothing on your own. See how easily you fall when you don't lean on me, when you don't follow my plan?" I know God's plan for me: to do everything that I can to show His love to a hurting world. I pray fervently each day that God will continue to break my heart and reveal the needs of others to me. I thank Him daily for the gifts of my salvation and the gift of a broken hear.

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