gift of grace

I was listening to the radio earlier today while driving and during a commercial break the station was announcing the rules ("fine print") for all of their radio station contests.  As they ran through their list of qualifications, they stated "no exchanges of prizes or winnings allowed".  Really?  Do people do that?  Win a contest, receive a gift, complain about the one they got, and then ask for a different one.  Really?  In the culture that we live in today, the concept of a true "gift" is so foreign to us.  We create bridal and baby gift registries so that if someone is thinking of giving us a gift we can make sure it's a gift we really want.  We give gift cards and gift certificates so the recipient can pick out their own gift.  Sometimes, we may actually go out and buy a gift we think someone will like.  Don't worry though.  We made sure to get a gift receipt just in case they don't like it.  And, the best yet, we "re-gift" gifts we received that we don't really want.  We have kind of a backwards view of gifts.  No wonder we have trouble with accepting God's provisions or gifts in life.  We grumble and complain when He doesn't give to us as we think He should.    No wonder we have such a hard time understanding the concept of God's gift of grace.  He gives to us on His own terms and not on our own.  He gives to us as He sees fit and not as we think He should give.