Not too long ago, my mom sent me a picture of a list she found deep in some storage bin. This was a Christmas wish list I had made when I was ten years old. That year, after an exhaustive search through the inches-thick Sears catalog, I asked for some amazing things: a ventriloquist’s dummy, a pair of stilts, a clock in the shape of a giant wristwatch with NFL players on it … yes, I was a strange kid. And if I were taking this case to court, I would call that Exhibit A—evidence that we don’t always know what we need or what gifts are best for us. I never did get any of those things; my parents probably got me some better gifts that year … things I needed or things they knew I would use a bit more than a pair of stilts or a ventriloquist’s dummy. Most parents know their kids, love their kids, and give good gifts to their children (although why mine never sprung for a Lite-Brite when I asked for it three years in a row is still beyond me).

As children of God, he encourages us to make our wish lists. He truly wants us to talk to him and ask him for things. In his famous Sermon on the Mount, Jesus assured his followers of this promise:

“Ask and it will be given to you; seek and you will find; knock and the door will be opened to you. For everyone who asks receives; the one who seeks finds; and to the one who knocks, the door will be opened.

 “Which of you, if his son asks for bread, will give him a stone? Of if he asks for a fish, will give him a snake? If you, then, though you are evil, know how to give good gifts to your children, how much more will your Father in heaven give good gifts to those who ask him!” (Matthew 7:7-11)

How crazy is it that he wants us to ask him, he is able and willing to listen to us, and he responds with good gifts? Now, we should perhaps define what “good gifts” are. Our heavenly Father does indeed grant us many physical blessings—food, clothing, houses, health, vehicles, toys, furniture, plane tickets … so many creature comforts that when we actually stop to count them, we are overwhelmed with gratitude. But much like my lack of stilts and Lite-Brites, he doesn’t always say yes to every physical thing everybody asks for. There are still many Christians who are struggling to get by. There are still many Christians with failing health. There are times in all of our lives when it doesn’t seem like God is answering our prayers or giving us any good gifts at all.

I think it’s worthwhile at this point to turn to Luke’s gospel account of this same sermon. In Luke’s account, the last line is translated like this: “How much more will your Father in heaven give the Holy Spirit to those who ask him!” (Luke 11:13).

 Huh. My handy-dandy Bible footnotes tell me that “good gifts” can be translated as “spiritual gifts,” and Luke’s account emphasizes the Holy Spirit himself. God promises to give us his Holy Spirit, and although that might not seem like a super exciting gift, it absolutely is! Of the Trinity—Father, Son, Holy Spirit—the Holy Spirit sometimes gets short shrift. What exactly does the Holy Spirit do? I’m glad you asked. In fact, as the reformer Martin Luther eloquently put it in his catechism, “The Holy Spirit calls us by the gospel, enlightens us with his gifts, sanctifies and keeps us in the one true faith.” He gathers us into community. He works saving faith in our hearts. He stirs our souls and creates longing within us to be with God and live for him. I’d say that’s a pretty cool gift. But wait, there’s more! The Holy Spirit also gives us spiritual gifts! Love, joy, peace, patience, kindness, self-control, generosity, wisdom.

These gifts might not automatically make our lists; we often ask for physical things, addressing the “needs” that seem important at the moment and believing that we know what is best for ourselves. But we don’t. Too often we are like little kids asking for a pair of stilts, at best a dumb idea and at worst quite harmful. To be sure, God still wants us to bring our requests to him, big or small, physical and spiritual. He wants us to talk to him like little children, confident that he hears us. Confident that he will bless us. Confident that he will give us good gifts because he loves us and knows what is best for us.

 “Every good and perfect gift is from above, coming down from the Father of the heavenly lights, who does not change like shifting shadows” (James 1:17).

Every good and perfect gift! From the unchanging God the Father, who has been around and knows a bit more than we do. From Jesus the Son, who died on a cross for our sins. From the Holy Spirit, who binds us together with God in perfect unity and keeps us in the one true faith until we can realize the ultimate gift of heaven, where I’m sure there are several Lite-Brites waiting for us.