Ladies & Gents, she's done it again! The Queen of Talk, Oprah Winfrey, AKA the Queen of Giving, has made television history by giving away the most elaborate collection of gifts, worth tens of thousands of dollars, to her studio audience during her Oprah's Favorite Things show.
For starters, instead of just hosting her usual Oprah's Favorite Things show, she hosted two of them—all for people who have shown extraordinary altruism in their lives.
Then, she lavished her audience with gifts so amazing that the Paramedics were there on stand-by, just in case.
The first group received (among other things), a 7-day Royal Caribbean Cruise, a 3-D Sony HDTV, and an Oprah 25th anniversary watch (worth nearly $2500). The second group received an iPad, diamond earrings, and a Volkswagen 2012 Beetle. In total, both audiences received forty-four gifts, ranging from items as practical as winter sweaters, to gifts as extravagant as diamond watches.
While hearing my mom enviously describe the gifts that O’s audience received, I couldn’t help but think that this is how God blesses us—in abundance, beyond what is socially acceptable, surpassing what has ever been done before. He blesses us both materially and spiritually, but sometimes it’s so much that others look on in disbelief, their eyes secretly coveting what we have, whether it’s our unexplainable peace or a new car.
In John 12, we see a woman named Mary pouring an expensive perfume (worth about a year’s wages) onto Jesus’ feet. She is anointing Jesus, a lavish gesture, but the onlookers say that the gift is a waste, too much to give at once. Thinking about this story, I can't help but think that this is her gesture of love, how she chooses to give to Him. And this too is how He chooses to give to us.
What Would Jesus Do? He would and does give extravagantly, beyond what Ms. Winfrey and her sponsors are capable of. Why? To show us that He loves to give to us, that He is the ultimate gift giver. A very Merry Christmas (and life) indeed.
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