It is dark. A switch is flicked. A house is illuminated with hundreds of lights of different colors.
An old woman struggles to carry her possessions into the passenger car of a train. Suddenly the friendly face of a stranger appears, and the warm invitation is heard, “May I help you?”.
An old woman sits in her wheel chair in the hallway of a nursing home. It is the Christmas season but she is all alone. A family who is visiting their loved one enters the hallway. She is not their loved one, but they have said “Hello” to her many times. Today she receives a Christmas fern with a little red stocking on it. The plant is offered with the words, “We have a gift for you. Merry Christmas”. Tears appear in her eyes. Her heart is lighter.
A child dwells in his poverty stricken home in his high-crime neighborhood. He does not expect anything for Christmas because he doesn’t expect anything for dinner. To his wonder, he receives gifts through the Angel-tree ministry. His dad who he loves remains confined behind bars, but the child’s heart has become more free. He wonders, “Who is this Jesus in whose name these gifts have come?” Perhaps the street won’t claim him . . .
Do you have your stories? Have you seen more smiles? Have you witnessed more acts of kindness that have been inspired by reflections of the baby born in a manger? Have you looked upon generous gestures, because God is a god of grace? Has the world seemed just a little warmer, because the love of a Savior has been poured out?
“Again Jesus spoke to them, saying, “I am the light of the world. Whoever follows me will not walk in darkness, but will have the light of life.”
Perhaps you thought in today’s cynical and often faithless society that there would be no light that could penetrate the coldness of people’s hearts. Not true. The light of Jesus Christ is still at work. . . in a Christmas display . . . in a helping hand . . . in a friendly greeting . . . in the offering of a plant . . . in an unexpected wrapped gift. I’m sure you have your stories . . .
Merry Christmas,