Perfect Gifts

What makes a perfect gift?

Is it when you know someone really well, know his tastes, hobbies, likes and interests, and you have a flash of inspiration or you spot something and just know that he would really love it? Or when your children are obsessed by really interested in a particular range or type of toy and you find the latest item at a generously discounted price? Or is it when you yourself have wanted something for over a year, and finally, this Christmas, you're going to receive it?

Is it when someone notices you mention that you've never tried a particular food item, and that someone goes to the trouble of procuring your address and sending you a sample? Or when someone sends you a wonderful little package of scrappy goodness, completely unexpectedly and out of the blue, 'just because'? Is it when someone creates a beautiful and unique item just for you? Or is it when someone who lives many, many miles away is still a close friend and sends gorgeous packages with touching messages that bring tears to your eyes?

Or is it something money can't buy? Is it family, and friendship, and love, and care, and looking out for people, and people looking out for you? Is it a word or an email or a note that just says 'Hello, friend'? Is it a hug or a smile or an offer of practical help or just being there in companionable silence?

Or perhaps it's a baby, born over 2000 years ago? A baby who grew into a man who died on a cross to atone for all that we've done wrong? A man who rose again and thus defeated death so that we, too, may have eternal life?

The most perfect gift of all: Jesus.