AS the Christmas season approaches, gift lists start growing—often kept in secret places so as not to spoil the surprise for other members of the household! These lists normally represent the joy associated with giving. But sometimes the coin flips and a sense of burden creeps in. The list appears endless, and the inspiration needed to match a gift to each person seems to fly out the window. The questions arise: What is behind all this giving and receiving? How can I maintain the Christly sense of spontaneity and joy amid the hustle and bustle of the holidays?

A few years ago I was faced with a schedule that involved traveling right up until Christmas. The household included its usual extended family, and I wanted each one to feel cherished, but there was very little time in which to think about getting gifts for everyone.

Detecting the first signs of burden, I affirmed that the activity of giving, in its highest sense, expresses the spirit of the Christ. Science and Health states, "Metaphysics resolves things into thoughts, and exchanges the objects of sense for the ideas of Soul" (Mary Baker Eddy, p. 269). Dealing with the ideas of Soul is joyful and spontaneous, entirely free from time or human planning, and it is "weightless" in that it carries no burden of personal responsibility.

I found that during my travels there would be short spaces when I was free and near some shops. I thought of my family and friends, cherishing each one as the child of God, complete, fulfilled, and abundantly blessed. Inspiration came quickly as to little gifts to buy in the time available, although not necessarily as to whom they were for. These were put in a drawer at home without further thought until Christmas Eve, which was my first opportunity to review the collection. Imagine my joy when I found exactly the right gifts for everyone! We were even able to shop for all the food for the holiday period just before the supermarkets closed, and we found everything we needed. There was no rush, no burden, no labored planning. It was truly an unfoldment of the ideas of Soul in consciousness—in all their beauty, perfection, and order—and these spiritual ideas appeared in our experience as needs being met, down to the last detail.

Of course, it's not only at Christmas that giving and receiving take place. They are daily events—graces of the spirit that always promote. Giving and receiving represents the circulation of the ideas of divine Love, the ceaseless outpouring and influx of infinite spiritual good. They don't happen at random but result from divine Principle in action.

Because God is both divine Principle and divine Love, these two are in fact one, showing the unity of these two aspects of God's nature. Science and Health also states that "Principle and its idea is one, and this is God, omnipotent, and omnipresent Being, and His reflection is man and the universe" (pp. 465—466). Man, as the idea of God, is not a separate, personal giver or receiver, but rather the expression of God, who is the great giver of all good. Man gives as the expression of God, his divine Principle, in the same way that he loves as the expression of divine Love. Living from this basis, we find that giving be-comes both wise and intuitive, ordered and spontaneous, and is free from the complications that a personal sense of giving and receiving can bring.

The pure motives that result from this Principle are the safe-guard that ensures the success of the venture. Then there's no danger that giving can become just a way to win friends or create a sense of obligation, can cover up greed or laziness on the part of the receiver, or can postpone the honest facing up to anything that needs to be healed. When God prepares the heart of giver and receiver, both are blessed.

Surprisingly, being on the receiving end is often more difficult than giving. This was true in the case of young couple just getting married. A friend of the family wanted to help them get started, and knowing their financial means were limited, she gave them a generous gift. Then when they found a small apartment, she lent them the down payment and also offered to buy them a modest car. This generosity was so amazing to the couple that at first they didn't know how to accept it. Because of their still limited understanding of giving and receiving, they chose a car that was not a good buy, and within months it was useless. They also felt burdened by the loan on the apartment, feeling they would never be in a position to pay it back.

Their friend knew they hadn't gotten the message! She invited them to visit her again and carefully explained her motives to them. She knew their love for God and wanted to support their desire to devote their lives to His service. She wanted to help them stand on their feet quickly so that they could help others more effectively. Once they were established, she did not expect them to lean back on her as a cushion, but to continue to go forward with sturdy reliance on God as the source of all good. She turned the loan on the apartment into a gift and then said, "Now, go out and get a proper car—one you can use to help other people. And I don't want you to repay me—in due course, do this for others!"

Immediately, all sense of burden about accepting the gift vanished! The divine Principle underlying it was now so clear that they were able to accept with deep gratitude not only the practical help but the spiritual lesson their friend had taught them. The effect was that throughout the following years their homes and cars—and even their family—never felt like possessions, but more like a trust to be husbanded wisely and shared abundantly. And in due course they were able to give to others in the same spirit, maintaining the momentum of joyful giving and receiving that had blessed them. This is the way of living taught by Christ Jesus. He said: "Give, and it shall be given unto you; good measure, pressed down, and shaken together, and running over, shall men give into your bosom. For with the same measure that ye mete withal it shall be measured to you again" (Luke 6:38).

In certain parts of Africa, gifts are often given and received with both hands held out together. This symbolizes fullheartedness in giving and receiving. A true gift cannot be halfhearted, for that would deny the very nature of Christ. Christlike giving is substantial and lasting because its currency is spiritual, and it represents the unconditional love of God for His children.

When impelled by Christlike love, gift giving conveys the very touch of heaven. So as we gather together once again around one of the most loved of all Biblical scenes this Christmas, may our giving and receiving overflow with the joy of the nearness and dearness of God's love, in the spirit of the following thoughts: