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Every good and perfect gift is from above, coming down from the Father of the heavenly lights, who does not change like shifting shadows” (James 1:17 NIV).
I’m a GIFTS Person! I love to give gifts; I love to get gifts. The way I feel and express love is through the giving and receiving of gifts.
I am the type of person that has to buy the perfect gift. I will agonize over getting and finding just the right gift. That’s what a person with the love language of gifts does.
But, I am also the person that can’t keep the gift a secret. I get so excited by finding just the perfect gift, I want to give it right away. Although, in my defense, I will say that I am way better than I used to be. In our house it goes down like this:
I am out window shopping and having fun with my friends. I really am not looking for anything in particular but remembering that my husband’s birthday is coming up. Then I see it. Elephant bookends– my husband loves elephants! I contemplate and agonize over whether this would be something he would want in his office or even like and then I buy them. I get home with the intention of saving it for his birthday … and then I can’t contain myself. My joy at finding the perfect gift for the one I love is bursting at the seams. I can’t wait.
“Hey honey, guess what I got you today?”
He looks at me with a smile in his eyes, “It’s not my birthday yet. Shouldn’t you wait to give it to me on my birthday?”
“I know, it’s not your birthday yet, but it’s your birthday month! It won’t hurt if I give it to you early. I promise, you need it now!”
God is the same way with us. He is the best gift giver! He loves to give us gifts in unexpected ways. Often times, these gifts come when we aren’t looking for them and when we may need them the most.
This very thing happened to my friend Susan B Mead. In her book Dance with Jesus From Grief to Grace, she shares about two times when the Lord brought her great comfort and joy through the avenue of dreams.
Not only did God give us the gift of His Son, He gave us another gift, The Holy Spirit. (Read Acts 1 & 2) The Holy Spirit is a BIG gift all by Himself and when you begin to unwrap Him, you find all kinds of gifts contained in this one BIG gift. The Holy Spirit is an important part in the life of the believer. God communicates to us through His Holy Spirit, and one of the ways He can speak is through our dreams.
If you then, being evil, know how to give good gifts to your children, how much more will your Father who is in heaven give good things to those who ask Him! (Matthew 7:11 NKJV).
When people hear I teach on dreams, they are somewhere on the spectrum from intrigued and want me to tell them what their dreams mean, or they are skeptical and don’t believe dreams are anything other than an after affect of something they ate the night before.
The most common questions I get are:
Q: Are dreams really messages from God?
A: They can be.
Q: Can God speak to us through Dreams?
A: Yes, He can. There are many examples throughout the Scriptures.
Q: Are they Biblical?
A: Absolutely
Q: Was it just the anchovies I ate on the pizza last night?
A: No
Q: Are all dreams from God?
A: No, there are 3 sources: God – Self – Enemy
However, God given dreams can be powerful! The important thing I always tell people when it comes to dreams is that we should not be focused on the avenue of the message but on the Giver of the message and that is God. (If you would like to understand more about dreams, check out: Dreams Part 1- A Basic Understanding
Whenever God speaks to us, it will always line up with the Word of God.
This was the case for Susan. On the day of her son Kyle’s memorial service, God spoke to her through a dream. I won’t give it away, but you can read it for yourself on page 47 of her new book Dance with Jesus. God loves to give us gifts and that day, when Susan needed one – God gave her a gift that would bring her joy in the minutes, days, and years to come. This one dream led to another gift, a God given dream. These dreams were messages from God, which helped her move forward in the grieving process from mourning to dancing.
Hear, O Lord, and have mercy on me; Lord, be my helper!” You have turned for me my mourning into dancing; You have put off my sackcloth and clothed me with gladness (Psalm 30:10-11 NKJV).
Although, I haven’t met Susan face to face, I know she is a gifts person too, because she is giving away a fabulous gift in honor of Kyle’s 28th Birthday. He would have been 28 on August 27th so we’re celebrating him with 28 days of fun from July 31 to August 27.
Today, I have the honor of guest posting at SusanBMead.com. Please come join the party and leave an encouraging note of blessing for Susan as we honor her and celebrate her son Kyle. Plus remember to join the social media party for your chance to win the $100 gift!
To see my review of Dance with Jesus and enter yourself for a chance to win your very own signed copy, follow this link: Book Review Monday- Dance with Jesus Giveaway
Entries for the giveaway ends August 31st
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My Post: “Will You Sit with Me?” was featured here:
My Post: “The Journey through Change” was featured here:
I have been know to link to the following Inspirational Parties:
Sunday’s
Monday’s
What Joy is Mine/Monday Musings
Tuesday’s
Wednesday’s
Thursday’s
Friday’s:
Saturday’s:
I think I encouraged you to tell John about the elephants you bought for him while you were here so I guess I have a hard time keeping good gifts a secret too!
Heading over to read your guest post – WOOT!
Blessings,
Patti
HAHAHA Yes, I think you did encourage me to tell him. 🙂 Thanks for visiting today and always being an encouragement and support to me. Much love and blessings being sent your way!!!
God does love to give us gifts in unexpected ways! Thanks for sharing!
Sue – thanks for stopping by – and you are most welcome for sharing. Blessings
I am enjoying your blog and am excited for your conference at Radiant Church…I so understand the can’t keep a gift a surprise…I do the same thing.
Good word!
Thanks Linda – I am so glad you are enjoying the blog. I look forward to seeing you in October! It’s going to be great and exciting to see what God does for all who attend 🙂
Amen and Amen (and now I am clicking over to Susan’s place to read the rest of your post!) Glad we are neighbors today over at Holly’s!
Hi Neighbor!!! So glad to have you pop on over for a visit. Blessings
Visiting from RaRa Link-up – enjoyed your post. He is such a giver of good things, a love like His, the best gift…
Paris – you are so absolutely right – His love is the best gift ever – and all that we get on top of that is a bonus. Blessings and thanks for stopping by 🙂
I don’t usually remember my dreams, and I don’t think I dream messages from God very often. One time though I dreamed words for a talk I was doing, so I got up and wrote them down so I wouldn’t forget. This week I have been reflecting on Jacob’s dream and what God did in his life through a dream.
Visiting from the Thoughtful Thursday link up… God really is so good in His gifts to us, even though we don’t deserve it! Especially in the gift of His Son.
Another wonderful post, Debbie! I too love to give gifts! There’s something very special about buying little treasures for the ones we love. … And just so you know, you are a very special gift from THE LORD! 🙂
Tai – Oh, thank you so much for such kind and loving words. I love being a gift from the Lord. 🙂 That just made my day and I am smiling all the more. You are such a wonderful blessing and encouragement to me. I love when you stop by to visit. Oh, and yes, there s something special about buying treasures for the ones we love 🙂 Blessings to you my friend.
I enjoyed how you said, “God give us gifts in unexpected ways.” It is so true! I am excited to read Susan’s book. I think it looks like an amazing book! Thanks for sharing with #SocialButterflySunday! Hope to see you link up again this week 🙂
thank you for stopping by and commenting – Susan’s book was good and I was blessed to have had the opportunity to participate in her blog-tour & review her book. 🙂