Tiny Gifts, Big Riches
Colossians 3:16 — Let the message about Christ, in all its richness, fill your lives. Teach and counsel each other with all the wisdom he gives. Sing psalms and hymns and spiritual songs to God with thankful hearts.
I remember the story Penny shared about a Christmas when money was scarce, and she had three daughters counting on her. She prayed openly, asking God for a way to make the morning feel like a celebration, even if the gifts were small.
Her solution was simple but perfect. Instead of gifts, she spent less than fifty dollars on little trinkets, wrapped them, and hid them throughout the house. She wrote clues on index cards and turned her home into a treasure hunt.
On Christmas morning, she handed the first clue to her daughters. The house erupted with sound. Feet hit floors. Voices bounced off walls. Each small treasure found became a prize. Each discovery turned into a shared favorite memory.
Penny watched her daughters and realized that joy can arrive in small packages. Laughter and excitement filled the holes in their family’s hearts that riches could not reach.
Later, Penny reflected on the lessons those lean years taught her daughters and herself — lessons that stayed with them long after the gifts were gone:
- Creativity blooms when the cupboards are bare.
- Laughter carries farther than money ever could.
- Giving does not have to cost anything; it can be time or a kind act.
- Family presence outweighs possessions.
- Discontentment shrinks as appreciation grows.
- Hard times teach lessons that last a lifetime.
Toward the end of the story, she shared a verse with me, the one she had read to her girls each Christmas: Colossians 3:16. “Let the word of Christ dwell in you richly, teaching and admonishing one another in all wisdom, singing psalms and hymns and spiritual songs, with thankfulness in your hearts to God.” That moment tied everything together.
It reminded her—and me—that they were never poor. Not then. Not now. Every Advent season, I return to that line. If the Word dwells in us, if gratitude fills our homes, and if He is already here celebrating with us, who among us could ever not call ourselves rich?
A MOMENT TO REFLECT
- When have you experienced joy that didn’t depend on money or material things? What made that moment meaningful?
- Colossians 3:16 speaks of letting Christ’s message “dwell richly” in us. What fills your home most often during this season — stress, comparison, or gratitude?
- How might creativity and thankfulness grow when circumstances feel limited?
- What simple traditions or shared moments have shaped your faith more than gifts ever could?
- In what ways might God be reminding you this season that you are already rich in what matters most?
