The Wonder of Christmas
Our church displays a beautiful wooden nativity set each Christmas. It stands atop a small table at the front of the church and comes out on First Advent. Its large enough that you can see it when sitting in the pews but you only catch the details when you make your way to the front and see it up close.
The figures have such incredible details etched into them. The craftsmanship is truly remarkable. Even the sheep and the creche are wonderfully made… no detail has been spared. Right now, the only missing piece is baby Jesus. He makes his appearance Christmas morning. One young child actually thought our pastor had lost baby Jesus when he went to the front one advent Sunday. Our pastor reassured him that Jesus was not lost but it wasn’t time for him to be a part of the story just yet. His time was coming. That little one was very relieved when Jesus showed up on Christmas Day!
We have families in our midst who know this incredible story but only from the perspective of those in the pews who can see the wooden nativity scene, but are missing the details. They know the idea of Christmas but knowing the idea of Christmas pales in comparison to knowing the actual meaning of Christmas.
Teaching a child the true meaning of Christmas can be a hard battle! We are going up against a jolly man who brings gifts, an elf that gets into mischief, a reindeer that flies and a snowman who comes alive. But none of that glitter compares to the glory of our Lord Jesus Christ.
December is a challenging month - there are school events, family gatherings and even the church program itself that can cause our families to feel the chaos of Christmas. My prayer for you and your entire church family is this - that you all draw nearer to the true meaning of Christmas. Let it wash over you as if you heard it for the very first time. Let the miracle of Christ’s birth be heard as if for the first time. Let us all be earnestly searching for Jesus, just as the child who thought he was missing from our nativity scene.
The blessing of children is that they constantly remind us to remain in the wonder. Blessings to you as you teach these young ones about God’s glory and what Christmas is really all about. And in turn, let those teachings be a blessing to you.
Thank you for your kingdom work. Thank you for loving these children. Thank you for showing Christ’s love to them.
Merry Christmas and many blessings in 2024!