Glimpsing God’s Take on Gifts

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Glimpsing God’s take on gifts is important, because although we may have a sufficient amount of physical things, those don’t completely satisfy us.
Back Then:
When I was born prematurely in 1957, weighing two pounds, one ounce, pediatric ICU’s were rudimentary. The priest on standby at St. Mary’s Hospital baptized me on the spot, and doctors placed me in an incubator. There weren’t guidelines on how much oxygen I’d need, so there was no certainty that I wouldn’t be blind or mentally handicapped.
These Days:
On an ordinary physical level, God gifted me with my physical life and a measure of intelligence. Although I do have cerebral palsy that reduces the strength and flexibility of my left side and I stiffen when I’m nervous, my hands work well enough to type these posts. (I’m tremendously grateful for the people who thought up computers, because I was the despair of my high school typing teacher back in those days before Delete keys made white-out obsolete.)
Short Rabbit Trail:
By the way, the vast majority of people with cerebral palsy are fully mentally sharp. Each person’s manifestation of the condition is different, and some of us do have difficulty speaking clearly. Listen well, and please, don’t treat us like small children when we’re adults.
Back to These Days:
I speak fluently, my eyes function, and I see all the color God designed into the spectrum. I enjoy nature photography because flowers and autumn trees are self-explanatory. God has never let me be unsheltered or starved. I live on my own, and tend myself. I have sufficient Things.

Glimpsing God’s take on gifts brings up an entirely different list.


Other than physical things, what sorts of gifts make God’s list? Relationships, for one thing. God the Father, God the Son and the Holy Spirit confer together, and cooperate, making and sustaining Creation and organizing a perfect Plan for it.
Made in God’s image, I have my relatives, friends in my church who imitate God’s perspective, and thereby see things in me that I don’t see in myself, as well as acquaintances from my community whose company I appreciate and can contribute to.
Another item on God’s list is probably Humor. Why do I believe this? In yesterday’s mail was an advertising flyer from a local car dealership. With it came a lottery-type ticket.
Ordinarily I discard such things, but yesterday I lifted the tabs on the ticket. One exposed a Winner! with an image coded to make it appear that against astounding odds, I’ve won a substantial sum.
Wouldn’t the people at the dealership be shocked if I rode up to their doors via the public transportation system for the handicapped that I habitually use, and asked for my prize?
Which relationships have given you the most humor to remember and celebrate? Let me know in the comments, and if you can, thank those people for enriching your life.

9 Comments

  1. Ruth DeMaat

    Reply

    Heidi, you have made me think today. I, too, am very thankful for the relationships in my life.
    My mother was unexpectedly born at home in 1916 with her aunt as midwife. She weighed three pounds in her diaper. My grandmother had no way to know she was carrying twin in that era, so when mom was born so tiny, all attention went to her. Sadly, her twin sister died in the womb. Miraculously, my mother survived, kept warm bundled up in a little box on the radiator. She lived to see her great grandchildren and went to Heaven at the age of93.
    Mom’s sense of humor abounded. She teased my dad mercilessly, in spite of his disdain for fun. He was a serious man. I can still see him now, shaking his head at her antics!
    I thank God for his blessing of family and friends, of miracles and emotions: love, joy, and the peace of knowing HIM!

  2. Jan Verhoeff

    Reply

    Interesting perspectives. Thank you for sharing the gifts you’ve been given in such an intriguing way. You’ve given pause for thought, about all the gifts we have in our lives. The gift of life itself is amazing, every single moment! I’m grateful for opportunities to help others. This is a huge thing for me, and I find God provides many who need my skills and efforts to benefit them. I feel blessed to be able to make a difference. And I’m so grateful for all the gifts into my own life, including the opportunities I’ve been given. What a blessing!

    • Heidi Kortman

      Reply

      Long may the “intrigue” continue, as well as reader patience. (One agent I queried despised use of as well as. Personally, there are times I think it works.)

  3. Maureen Geerlings

    Reply

    Heidi, this is wonderful, and I appreciate you educating us on CP. I still hope you write an autobiography someday!

    • Heidi Kortman

      Reply

      I haven’t accomplished enough of note to make a memoir or autobiography an act of anything other than hubris. A cautionary tale, perhaps, but those tend not to hold a reader’s interest.

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