Giving With Joy This Christmas

“After hearing the king, they went on their way. And there it was—the star they had seen at its rising. It led them until it came and stopped above the place where the child was. When they saw the star, they were overwhelmed with joy. Entering the house, they saw the child with Mary his mother, and falling to their knees, they worshiped him. Then they opened their treasures and presented him with gifts: gold, frankincense, and myrrh.” — Matthew 2:9–11 (CSB)

In Matthew 2:9-11, we are introduced to the wise men in the Christmas story. Did you notice that before the wise men gave their gifts they were overwhelmed with joy? Their giving wasn’t motivated by obligation, social pressure, or the need to impress. It flowed directly from hearts that had found what they’d been searching for. They had traveled hundreds of miles, invested months of their lives, and risked everything—and when they finally encountered Jesus, joy erupted into generosity.

A Pattern Of Giving

This is the pattern God designed for giving. Joy first, then gifts. Worship first, then offering. When we reverse this order—when we give grudgingly or out of duty—we drain the meaning from our generosity and exhaust ourselves in the process. But when giving springs from genuine joy at what God has given us, it becomes worship rather than obligation, delight rather than drudgery.

The wise men “opened their treasures.” They brought their best, most valuable possessions and laid them before a child in a humble house. There was no calculation about whether their gifts would be reciprocated or appreciated in the way they hoped. They gave extravagantly because they had encountered Someone worth extravagant worship.

Giving With Joy

This Christmas, what if we recaptured that connection between joy and giving? Before you buy another gift, pay attention to your heart. Are you giving from a place of delight in what God has done, or from a place of stress and compulsion? The wise men teach us that the value of a gift isn’t measured only in its cost but in the joy that accompanies it.

Perhaps the most radical thing we could do this Christmas is give less but give better—choosing gifts that genuinely reflect worship and joy rather than checking boxes. Maybe it means writing a heartfelt letter alongside a simple present. Maybe it means giving generously to someone who can never repay you. Maybe it means saying no to the exhausting gift exchanges and yes to the few gifts that truly celebrate the people you love. Maybe it is giving to the Church to help make eternal differences in your community 

Conclusion

The wise men gave from their heart and left transformed. When we give with joy, we’re changed too. We discover that the overflow of a grateful heart is the sweetest gift we can offer—both to God and to those He’s placed in our lives.