74 Piñatas

Piñatas

Nothing reveals the true heart of mankind quite like a piñatas. The piñata is a gift given in love. I've never heard of one being given for the purpose of evil or even without good intentions. They seem to be a gift given in love and with joyful expectations. But then the games begin. There may be shenanigans with the rope holder, which might cause tensions to arise with many missed swings. There might be one that will peek under the blindfold. How easy it is to become furious with missed swings, an impenetrable strong piñata, or even confusion on turns. And this is all before the treasure has even been scattered. Once that fatal stroke arrives and the candy rains down, chaos ensues. A pleasant and well mannered bunch become a pack of mad hyenas as they scramble to grab, to protect, to snatch each and every yummy treat they can. The true heart of mankind is revealed in the excitement. It is the trap many of us fall into. God gives, sometimes just enough, but sometimes excessively and in abundance. How quickly we turn into mad hyenas, snatching what we can, while we can, and guarding our hoard with a snarl. Many gifts God gives us He gives before we even ask or realize our need. He provides at just the right time, when we are living as content and expectant children. What we do with these gifts seems ever important. How we respond, how we manage, how we actually grow them seems vital to the very purpose of gifts. I think God only gives good gifts for a good reason. When our heart is for God, the gift or blessing He brings does not replace our love for Him, but strengthens it. It becomes a search or kind of quest to find the good reason why He has given what has been given. It is a continual thing, protecting our hearts from entitlement, greed, selfish ambition, or even vanity. The goal in my mind is this. When a good gift is given, three things should grow from it. First an awareness of the character of the God who gave it. Second a searching out of how it can be used for God's kingdom. And lastly to simply enjoy it, because God loves you.