Welcome to today's encouragement from Our Daily Bread.

Our reading titled, Giving Like Christ, was written by Patricia Raban.

When American author O. Henry wrote his beloved 1905 Christmas story, The Gift of the Magi,

he was struggling to rebound from personal troubles. Still, he penned an inspiring story that

highlights a beautiful, Christ-like character trait, sacrifice.

In the story, an impoverished wife sells her beautiful long hair on Christmas Eve

to buy a gold pocket watch chain for her husband.

As she learns later, however, her husband had sold his pocket watch to buy a set of combs for her

beautiful hair. Their greatest gift to each other? Sacrifice. From each, the gesture showed great love.

In that way, the story represents the loving gifts the magi, wise men, gave to the

Christ child after his holy birth. More than those gifts, however, the child Jesus would grow up

and one day give his life for the whole world. In our daily lives, believers in Christ can highlight

his great gift by offering to others the sacrifice of our time, treasures, and a temperament

that all speak of love. As the Apostle Paul wrote in Romans 12,

I urge you, brothers and sisters,

in view of God's mercy,

to offer your bodies

as a living sacrifice,

holy and pleasing to God.

There's no better gift

than sacrificing for others through Jesus' love.

Today's Our Daily Bread Devotional Scripture reading is from Romans chapter 12, verses 1 through 3.

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