Christmas came early for me this year, and it came bearing three different and unique gifts.

In November John and I spent a few days in Cancun, Mexico. It was not a planned vacation but a business trip for John. He was invited to speak at an International Chefs Convention and I was also invited as a guest. Initially I was not at all excited about going. It's just that it was at an inconvenient time. I was taking a computer class this semester and to miss a four-hour class would have meant missing a lot of work. I would have to play catch-up on the missed class work and then to get the assigned homework done - well it seemed like mission impossible. The trip was also during Thanksgiving week, which would have meant missing the traditional family gathering. This Thanksgiving was especially exciting because my son Robert, who is in the Air Force, was ending his tour in England and before going to his next duty station in Ca. he was coming home for a visit - for Thanksgiving. It was to be his first Thanksgiving home in ten years. So when I say I didn't want to go I really didn't want to go. Why couldn't they plan the trip in Jan? But I did go and it was a wonderful trip.

The weather was warm and perfect for sunbathing, our accommodations were so much more than I could have expected and the people we shared the convention with were so warm and friendly, (I truly felt like we were with family).

As it turned out it was the best Thanksgiving I ever had. It was during this vacation that I received three very special gifts. They were three individual spiritual encounters that I would like to share with you this morning.

My first gift came to me during of one of the presentations at the convention. An architect was speaking about the structure of a meal. As he spoke about the planning and presentation of a meal he gave these analogies: an artist embarks on a piece of work on a clean, white easel - A blank sheet; a new beginning. The poet begins each new work of art on a clean, white sheet of paper. A new beginning. Likewise, the chef invents his presentation of an entree or dessert as a new and unique piece of art on a clean, white plate. A new beginning. At that moment I was struck with the fact that God gives us a clean slate each and every day. A new and clean, slate to start over and over and over. Each and every day He gives us the gift of forgiveness. I was awed with the significance of its meaning. No matter what my mistakes, no matter how I may have fallen short, no matter how I had sinned God gives me a clean slate, a new, fresh, clean beginning each day. I was so moved I could hardly wait to talk to this chef and share my feelings with him. God forgives me, He takes away my sin and removes them from His memory. And what price do I have to pay for this great gift - the same price you pay - the same price all people have paid - Nothing, nothing at all. Jesus paid that price for us, He first came to us as a baby in a stable and then died a crucifixion death. He said it on the cross and I-believe he's been saying it every since.

"Father forgive them for they know not what they do"

My second gift was given to me while I was getting a massage. A massage is so relaxing - your body becomes so tranquil it's an effort to move a muscle. If only it were that easy to relax the mind. That's a little more difficult to accomplish. It seems the more relaxed your body is, the more active the mind becomes.

I was determined to make my mind focus on prayer. As I began to pray it was easy to start my list of petitions. So often prayer begins with asking for something. Not necessarily tangible things, but for spiritual gifts of patience, courage, sensitivity, cheerfulness - all good attributes but being the day before Thanksgiving I wanted my prayer time to be one of thanks. I had to stop myself and concentrate on my list of blessings. And so the list and the prayers began. Now an hour may seem like a long time to pray a prayer of thanksgiving, but I ran out of time. Initially I started with my family, friends, home, job, schooling and all those obvious blessings, but then the list became narrowed down to every day basic things I suspect most of us probably take for granted. Things like: warm clean sheets, and a variety of sheets to choose from - from light-weight cotton to sheets so tightly woven they feel like silk.

Tooth paste – how many choices of toothpaste do you notice when you shop? There’s Spearmint, Peppermint, fluoride, extra whitening, multi-care, tartar control/ cavity prevention -the choices are mind boggling! How do you decide? Think about some the items that go in your grocery cart and the variety you are given: soap (or do prefer body wash) shampoo, cereal, pasta-and all its different shapes and sizes; soda, {snack foods - even buying bread becomes challenging -there's 3 grain, 7 grain, low salt; high fiber, low fat - something for everyone -the list is endless. Our resources and choices are so great we can't take it all in. When a friend of my was visiting from Switzerland she told me how overwhelmed she felt the first time she went grocery shopping. She was so confused by the assortment of butters she couldn't choose one. She left the store in disbelief. And so it was during my massage, while focusing on Thanksgiving prayer - My heart was suddenly open to a new appreciation of how my life has been, and continues to be blessed with countless gifts. What a refreshing attitude of gratitude. It was a feeling of entering His gates with thanksgiving and into his courts with praise.

My third gift was difficult to receive.

It was given to me on Thanksgiving Day. John and I went to Chinchen Itza to tour the Mayan ruins. While on a tour bus with other vacationers we past through individual towns of Mexico most tourists don't want to see. They were the towns where the poorest of the poor residents of Mexico live. People existing in the smallest of homes - sheds really. Most of them built from trees: thin poles for walls and thatched roofs with no doors or windows. The flooring and walkways were made of packed down mud. Some homes were built so close together one could barely walk between them. There were some turkeys and pigs roaming the yards, among the broken bikes and barefoot children. Most of them wore very worn clothes. Women and children held up their hand-crafted items to sell as our bus drove by. A memory came to mind of how, not to long ago, I had gotten angry and frustrated when John brought home the wrong kind of toothpaste-and now witnessing such poverty I felt so ashamed.

Among a small crowd of mostly women and children, there was one women my heart was drawn to. She was an old woman, very small framed, frail, tired sad eyes, she stood with outstretched hands looking for something from anyone. It was easy to think she probably wasn't any better off than those Indians from the ancient Mayan tribes. I reached out to give her the pesos I had, our hands met, she took my coins, barely smiled and my heart just broke in two. What I really wanted to do was give her the biggest hug and tell her God loved her.

Just the day before I'm thanking God for His abundant blessings and here the next day wondering how is it possible for some to have too much while others have so little?

This was Thanksgiving Day - these ambiguous feelings took me by surprise - my heart ached for these people - but what could I do to make a difference in their lives? And then it happened. She gave to me what I didn't even know I needed - the gift of Hope. There it was in her small, brown eyes - the gift of hope. She lived geographically in the poorest of towns, but spiritually she lived with the richest of blessings - Hope. Her eyes were filled with the hope of expectancy. The hope written about in Psalm 43 "Why are you cast down, 0 my inner self? And why should you moan over me and be disquieted within me? Hope in God and wait expectantly for Him, for I shall yet praise Him, my Help and my God."

With all the obvious needs this woman had, despite the hardships she was obligated to endure she was living in Hope. Her days were probably spent craving the generosity of others while her spirit was thriving on Hope in God. It seemed like that was all she had, but all she needed. Her gift of hope helped me to see and feel within my heart: God is my greatest joy. If I lost everything else in life there would still be and always be hope, each day, every day. Hope in God, in His Son Jesus and in my salvation.

It was by far the most meaningful and most heartfelt Thanksgiving of my life. Three gifts were graciously given to me on a vacation that I didn't want to go on.

These gifts I now think of as my Christmas gifts arriving a little early and remaining with me each and every day. Have you looked into the manger and found what gifts God has for you? Don't let this Christmas season pass by without noticing and acknowledging what wondrous gifts and blessing our Lord Jesus Christ has given to you. When you realize them, accept them and - treat them as you would any gift - untie the ribbons, removed the bows, rip away the wrapping, lift them from the box, hold on and delight in them today and every day.