Multitude Mondays: Easter and the Gift You’ve Always Wanted
Just days before I became Mrs. Alicia Bruxvoort, one of my bridesmaids asked me what I was planning to give my groom on our wedding day.
I pictured my little green suitcase packed with five silky pieces of lingerie, raised an eyebrow at my seemingly nosey friend, and replied, “Well, what do you think I should give him?”
She shrugged her shoulders and assured me that I was the one who knew my man best. But then she proceeded to tell me about the diamond-studded necklace that her big brother had given his bride on their wedding day.
When I didn’t respond right away, my friend dropped her voice and reported soon-to-be-married sister’s secret plan to purchase an expensive golf club for her groom and write him a hokey note about being his hole-in-one forever.
I listened with a smile pasted on my lips and a sinking feeling in the pit of my stomach.
My wedding day was just seventy-two-hours away, and I didn’t have a special gift for my groom.
I was banking on a plethora of gifts, of course. The kind that our wedding guests would bring tucked beneath their arm as they entered the church.
After all, how else were two poor college students supposed to acquire the stuff of grown up life?
We’d already roamed the aisles of Target with wedded wish list in hand.
We’d grown giddy as we’d registered for dinner plates and mixing bowls, for bath towels and bed sheets.
And thanks to a happy smattering of bridal showers and generous relatives, we’d already built a stock-pile of casserole dishes and dinner plates, of hunter green washcloths and country blue place mats in the corner of my parents’ basement.
We’d enlisted gift attendants for our wedding day and had arranged a crew of family members to transport those shiny boxes from the church to our holding pile at home.
We’d organized a post-honeymoon unwrapping party so we could savor our one-time-only Christmas in August.
And we’d ordered three hundred gold-embossed thank you notes that matched our wedding invitations so we could respond with written gratitude in the months to come.
And we’d ordered three hundred gold-embossed thank you notes that matched our wedding invitations so we could respond with written gratitude in the months to come.
Pots and pans were on my radar; jewelry and golf clubs were not.
Truth be told, I hadn’t even considered the idea of exchanging wedding gifts with my groom.
Truth be told, I hadn’t even considered the idea of exchanging wedding gifts with my groom.
We’d spent the majority of our meager savings on our small diamond rings, and we’d used our remaining funds to finance a four-day honeymoon to the coast.
With two years of college left and a lifetime of grocery bills ahead of us, lavish spending wasn’t in our game plan.
It didn’t make any sense to buy opulent gifts for our wedding day when we were still trying to figure out how we’d pay our utility bills once the flowers had faded and my dress was packed away.
It didn’t make any sense to buy opulent gifts for our wedding day when we were still trying to figure out how we’d pay our utility bills once the flowers had faded and my dress was packed away.
At least that’s what I told myself as my friend babbled on and on about her siblings’ lavish presents.
But as day turned to night, and I replayed my bridesmaid’s words in my mind, I began to doubt my own practicality.
Would we would regret our frugal decision someday?
Would we would regret our frugal decision someday?
Would we look back on our wedding day and wish we’d exchanged grandiose gifts?
Would we curl up next to each other on our simple box-spring and mattress and wish we’d purchased a regal bedroom set or splurged on a hand-crafted armoire?
Would we curl up next to each other on our simple box-spring and mattress and wish we’d purchased a regal bedroom set or splurged on a hand-crafted armoire?
The next morning I thought endlessly about elite golf clubs and goofy love notes, about diamond necklaces and wedding-day surprises.
I counted the cash in my wallet and balanced my checkbook a dozen times.
I imagined presenting my golf-loving groom with a shiny new club on our wedding morning, and I even brainstormed romantic inscriptions I could have engraved on the metal shaft.
I drove myself crazy with the figuring and wore myself out with the wondering.
Then, finally, I spilled my worries to Rob.
He looked at me for a long quiet moment, and tenderly wrapped his giant hands around mine.
He captured my gaze with his shy green eyes and said, “If you want me to buy you a gift for our wedding day, I will.”
Then he flashed me that smile that melts my heart and added, “But don’t worry about finding something for me. I’m already getting the gift I’ve always wanted.“
I counted the cash in my wallet and balanced my checkbook a dozen times.
I imagined presenting my golf-loving groom with a shiny new club on our wedding morning, and I even brainstormed romantic inscriptions I could have engraved on the metal shaft.
I drove myself crazy with the figuring and wore myself out with the wondering.
Then, finally, I spilled my worries to Rob.
He looked at me for a long quiet moment, and tenderly wrapped his giant hands around mine.
He captured my gaze with his shy green eyes and said, “If you want me to buy you a gift for our wedding day, I will.”
Then he flashed me that smile that melts my heart and added, “But don’t worry about finding something for me. I’m already getting the gift I’ve always wanted.“
I kissed that cute boy from my fifth-grade class and suddenly laughed at my own trifled anxieties.
“I don’t need anything else, either,” I assured my groom as I rested my head on his heart. “I just want you.”
Then I stepped back and gave my man a flirty wink, “Holes-in-one are probably seriously overrated, anyway.”
This week, as I slow my soul and shift my eyes toward Easter morning, I want to be a bride who delights in my Heavenly Groom more than I covet His gifts.
I want to savor His presence, not merely seek His presents.
I want to rest my head on His holy heart and embrace the wonder of this special week.
And as I do, I’ll be reminded of what I’ve known all along—
that Jesus is the gift I’ve always wanted.
And in the light of Calvary’s cross, everything else is seriously overrated!
Letting these gifts shift my eyes to the Giver…
1891. Maggie- “Mommy, my lips just want to kiss you.”
1892. Wet snow flakes turning the tree-line into a lacy hedge. If spring refuses to come, at least winter still shares her beauty.
1893. Brothers with Nerf. guns; sisters setting up a spa… the gift of a Saturday afternoon at home.
1894. A husband who grills us dinner as snowflakes fly.
1895. Brightly-colored Easter eggs piled in baskets on the coffee table.
1896. Window-markered masterpieces on the windows— pink flowers and green stems— Hannah’s constant optimism: “if we can’t see them in the yard, we’ll draw them on the panes!”
1897. A “bleacher date” with Jen on the sidelines of Luke’s basketball game; the lavish gift of a sister in Christ who spurs me on to want MORE of Him.
1898. “Jesus in pajamas”…..Words that seep deep into my soul and shake me awake.
1899. A husband who dares me to dream.
“I don’t need anything else, either,” I assured my groom as I rested my head on his heart. “I just want you.”
Then I stepped back and gave my man a flirty wink, “Holes-in-one are probably seriously overrated, anyway.”
This week, as I slow my soul and shift my eyes toward Easter morning, I want to be a bride who delights in my Heavenly Groom more than I covet His gifts.
I want to savor His presence, not merely seek His presents.
I want to rest my head on His holy heart and embrace the wonder of this special week.
And as I do, I’ll be reminded of what I’ve known all along—
that Jesus is the gift I’ve always wanted.
And in the light of Calvary’s cross, everything else is seriously overrated!
Letting these gifts shift my eyes to the Giver…
1891. Maggie- “Mommy, my lips just want to kiss you.”
1892. Wet snow flakes turning the tree-line into a lacy hedge. If spring refuses to come, at least winter still shares her beauty.
1893. Brothers with Nerf. guns; sisters setting up a spa… the gift of a Saturday afternoon at home.
1894. A husband who grills us dinner as snowflakes fly.
1895. Brightly-colored Easter eggs piled in baskets on the coffee table.
1896. Window-markered masterpieces on the windows— pink flowers and green stems— Hannah’s constant optimism: “if we can’t see them in the yard, we’ll draw them on the panes!”
1897. A “bleacher date” with Jen on the sidelines of Luke’s basketball game; the lavish gift of a sister in Christ who spurs me on to want MORE of Him.
1898. “Jesus in pajamas”…..Words that seep deep into my soul and shake me awake.
1899. A husband who dares me to dream.
1900. A Savior who dares me to live.
Happily linking with Ann for multitude mondays, laura for playdates with God, Jen for soli deo gloria, The Better Mom, The Mom Initiative.
Awwww. Best line ever from a hubby…
Oh, this is good, Alicia! It sounds like me and my husband. We never have bought each other extravagant gifts; just getting to be his wife is a gift in itself.
And how much more a gift that we get to be the bride of Christ! Praying you have a blessed Easter.
“This week, as I slow my soul and shift my eyes toward Easter morning, I want to be a bride who delights in my Heavenly Groom more than I covet His gifts.”
This is beautiful, Alicia! Yes, I want to delight in Him more than the gifts He gives me.
Hey Alicia-so glad we are neighbors for SDG linkup! I can relate to you, because my husband (of 5 years now) and I had the same conversation :). What a beautiful post- so glad we connected! Seeking the Lord’s presence more than the presents 🙂
Oh, friend, this is a great post. He is the best gift ever, isn’t He? 🙂
Alicia, I’ve missed your stories as I’ve had a bit of a blogging break recently, and this is surely a sweet one! 🙂
I love #1900: “A Savior who dares me to live.” Amen!
Sweet Story. In light of Calvary . . . everything pales!