Disappointed In Gifts?

John the Baptist saw Jesus and said, "There's the Lamb of God!" Right away, two men named Andrew and John asked Jesus, "Teacher, where are you staying?" Jesus answered, "Come see." Andrew told his brother, Peter, "We have found the Messiah, who'll save the world!" The three men left with Jesus and became His first Apostles.

By now, some of your Christmas presents are "old news." You've only had them for a few weeks, but you're already bored with them - probably because they looked a lot cooler in the store or on TV than they are in real life.

On the other hand, there are gifts you're using all the time: the remote-controlled robot you play with every day; the sweatshirt that's so soft and comfortable, you never want to take it off.

It's so disappointing when something you dreamed about doesn't turn out to be that great - and so satisfying when it really is great! In this week's Gospel (John 1:35-42), the Apostles learn that. 

A lot of kids make Christmas lists from what they see on TV. In commercials, every toy looks cool: Groups of kids play the games and cheer; music plays as girls in pretty dresses play with dolls.

In real life, the game might be hard for just you and your brother to play, and the doll isn't as exciting without the music.

When Jesus became a person and started teaching people about God, the people He met had high expectations of Him, too. They called Him the "Messiah," the "Lamb of God" and the savior of the world. An average person could never live up to that!

Luckily, Jesus wasn't like a Christmas toy on TV, made to look like the most amazing thing ever until you get it home. Jesus really did come to save the world. He was the Son of God, the Messiah - all the things people dreamed about.

Gifts can get boring after Christmas, but the really good ones keep you excited for a long time. That's why the Apostles followed Jesus right away: They could see that gift wouldn't lose its shine!

(1/15/09)