ES - Christmas Love

Adam_Edwards at tiginsurance.com Adam_Edwards at tiginsurance.com
Wed Dec 20 09:43:17 PST 2000


Whether the Bible is the Word or not is up for debate for a lot of folks
but whether you read it as a fiction or as a message from your Maker this
rings true.


                                CHRISTMAS LOVE
     _________________________

Each December, I vowed to make Christmas a calm and peaceful experience.
I had cut back on nonessential obligations -- extensive card writing,
endless baking, decorating, and even overspending. Yet still, I found
myself exhausted, unable to appreciate the precious family moments, and of
course, the true meaning of Christmas.
My son, Nicholas, was in kindergarten that year. It was an exciting season
for a six year old. For weeks, he'd been memorizing songs for his school's
"Winter Pageant." I didn't have the heart to tell him I'd be working the
night of the production. Unwilling to miss his shining moment, I spoke with
his teacher. She assured me there'd be a dress rehearsal the morning of the
presentation. All parents unable to attend that evening were welcome to
come then. Fortunately, Nicholas seemed happy with the compromise. So, the
morning of the dress rehearsal, I filed in 10 minutes early, found a spot
on the cafeteria floor and sat down. Around the room, I saw several other
parents quietly scampering to their seats. As I waited, the students were
led into the room. Each class, accompanied by their teacher, sat
cross-legged on the floor. Then, each group, one by one, rose to perform
their song. Because the public school system had long stopped referring to
the holiday as "Christmas", I didn't expect anything other than fun,
commercial entertainment -- songs of reindeer, Santa Claus, snowflakes and
good cheer. So, when my son's class rose to sing, "Christmas Love", I was
slightly taken aback by its bold title. Nicholas was aglow, as were all of
his classmates, adorned in fuzzy mittens, red sweaters, and bright snowcaps
upon their heads. Those in the front row -- center stage -- held up large
letters, one by one, to spell out the title of the song. As the class would
sing, "C is for Christmas", a child would hold up the letter C. Then, "H is
for Happy", and on and on, until each child holding up his portion had
presented the complete message, "Christmas Love".
The performance was going smoothly, until suddenly, we noticed her -- a
small, quiet, girl in the front row holding the letter "M" upside down --
totally unaware her letter "M" appeared as a "W". The audience of 1st
through 6th graders snickered at this little one's mistake. But she had no
idea they were laughing at her, so she stood tall, proudly holding her "W".
Although many teachers tried to shush the children, the laughter continued
until the last letter was raised, and we all saw it together. A hush came
over the audience and eyes began to widen. In that instant, we understood
-- the reason we were there, why we celebrated the holiday in the first
place, why even in the chaos, there was a purpose for our festivities. For
when the last letter was held high, the message read loud and clear: CHRIST
WAS LOVE.
And, I believe, He still is.



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