Receive the Gift of Christ

The moment you receive Christ as your Savior, you receive everything He is in your spirit. In and through Him, you are a joint heir of the Kingdom of God, which Romans 14:17 says is righteousness, peace and joy in the Holy Spirit.

There is such power in those gifts! All you need to do to enjoy them is open your heart to God and receive them, like a child on Christmas morning. You don’t even have to wait. You can start unwrapping His gifts right now!

The Gift of Peace

Jesus―the Prince of Peace―wants us to have His peace in every part of our lives, at all times. Let's look at what John 14:1 says: "Let not your hearts be troubled. Believe in God; believe also in me.” Instead of hanging on to worry, anxiety, fear or frustration, you can receive His gift of supernatural peace. Moment by moment, day by day, I encourage you to put your trust in God. As you go through the process of releasing your worries and cares to Him, you will find a peace that surpasses all understanding.

The Gift of Joy

Fullness of joy is found not in God’s presents, but in His presence. That’s why the Bible says we can have inexpressible, glorious, triumphant, heavenly joy no matter what is happening around us. One of the easiest ways to increase your joy and the joy of others is to keep your heart and mind focused on God and His Word. As you carry out your daily responsibilities and activities, ask God to help you and lead you. Then relax in the overwhelming, empowering joy of the Lord—joy that cannot be fully explained or understood!

The Gift of Righteousness

Righteousness is right standing with God. When we accept Jesus, He gives us the gift of His righteousness, and by faith we are made right with God. You don’t have to worry about making mistakes. God knows you will make them! But because of Jesus, you can rest in His righteousness. As you unwrap this incredible gift, I encourage you to pray with boldness. Remember, He does not hear or answer our prayers because we are good; He hears and answers because He is good!

The Gift of Hope

Hope is an extraordinary gift. It allows us to experience peace and joy as we simply believe God’s Word and the promises it holds. Romans 15:13 (AMPC) says that by the power of the Holy Spirit, we can overflow or “bubble over” with hope. Although we can’t prevent negative feelings from ever showing up, we can quickly chase them away by choosing hope-filled thoughts, words and actions.

Our hope is in Christ, and He will never fail us.

The Gift of Faith

Faith in God brings a supernatural rest into our souls, allowing us to live simply and freely, the way He wants us to live. Trust doesn’t just happen in our relationship with God, but grows as we come to know Him more personally, take steps of faith and experience His faithfulness. It is a gift that is often released through the power of prayer and thanksgiving. I encourage you to ask God to help you develop a deeper trust in Him, and then thank Him in advance for the gift of faith He has given you.

The Gift of Love

God's Word teaches us to love everyone, including ourselves. As you receive God’s love and learn to love yourself by seeing yourself through God’s eyes, then you will be able to love others the way God loves them. God’s love is a wondrous gift that He freely gives us. We can’t earn it and we don’t deserve it, yet He willingly and continually longs to express His love to us. All we need to do is open our hearts, believe His Word, and receive it with thankfulness. Believe that God loves you with an everlasting love, and then share that love with others.

I want to encourage you to continue to pursue a deeper, more intimate relationship with Him through the Word and prayer each day. As you do, God will bless your heart with peace and joy as you in turn share that blessing with others through acts of love!