Hearts Desire by John Monday

Christmas Eve, 1971. The boy was six years old and up much too late. But honestly, what child in his right mind can will himself to sleep when Santa is due? Of course, Mom and Dad wanted him to go to bed, as did his older brother and sister. They had other Christmas obligations as yet unfulfilled. But all he had to do was go to bed.

He knew it was a thin edge, but he’d make it to bed before the jolly old Elf arrived, and if he played his cards right, he might even catch a glimpse – or at least hear him. It was 10:00 pm, and the schedule was clear: Santa comes at midnight. How exactly that important fact came to be known he wasn’t sure, but it was a fact nonetheless.

His sister heard it first, and he thought she was just pulling his leg, but then Mom heard it too. Everyone got very quite and, low and behold, there it was – the sound of sleigh bells. It was high overhead and barely audible, but it was there. SANTA WAS EARLY!

He must be in some kind of circling pattern, perhaps heading to Bermuda then back to Florida. Surely there was still time! Anxiety was building, but the plan was sound, so the boy stuck to it. Then Santa landed! Right outside the house! There was no mistaking the banging and clanging. And as if that weren't proof enough, Dad came flying into the house. He had seen him land! Santa was on his way in!

The gig was up; it looked like all was lost. The boy ran to bed as fast as he could. He didn’t peek, or open the door, or even brush his teeth; he just went to bed. This was much too close a call.

Had he not known that Santa was coming that night, he might have missed it. The sleigh bells could have been mistaken for a distant train. He could have imagined the reindeer landing to be a ladder clanging, or rocks on the roof. But he believed, and it was that belief that gave clarity to the evidence. Not only did he believe . . . he wanted it. As much as a six-year-old can want anything, he wanted Santa.

In the following years, the boy thought he heard Santa a few more times, but never again was the encounter quite so close.

I’ve learned something about the value of “want,” and its effect on faith. We see what we want to see and believe what we want to believe. While some may think this is cynical evidence that the objects of our faith are mere fantasy conjured up in juvenile minds, it’s just the opposite.

The fact that we want love, acceptance, joy, meaning, and forgiveness is powerful proof that fulfillment of these desires exists. The want for these good things is evidence that either there is satisfaction for our deepest desires, or life is a chaotic, meaningless accident. What a cruel and senseless creator; what a cruel and senseless creation – if we’ve been imbued at our deepest level with a desire that cannot be satisfied.

Deep in the heart of every person is a desire – a want – for the good and pure and true. Those desires of our heart are placed there by God that they might drive us to seek Him. For a six-year-old, that want might be personified in a kind and strong man that brings toys and happiness, but there is a deeper answer – a true satisfaction.

God created us to love and to be loved. He loves us so much that he granted us the freedom to turn from him, and we did – every single one of us. But his love was so boundless that, despite our faults, flaws, and self-centered depravity, He reached across eternity to rebuild what we destroyed, to touch that deep desire in us that is a broken reflection of his image. In his wisdom, He didn’t do it through punishment and retribution. He did it through a baby. He became one of us that he might be one with us. He suffered our pain and endured our punishment that we might be eternally restored to him in love, acceptance, joy, meaning, and forgiveness.

There are a thousand good reasons to believe in this God we call Jesus, but today I am focused on this one: There’s no other story that I so desperately want to be true. Of all the myths, stories, and religions, there’s no other that resonates so completely within my soul.

During this Christmas season, I hope you’ll take time to consider this Jesus, this Immanuel, this God with us. Is he the one your heart has been seeking?

John Monday

Extending Christmas by Andy McDonald

What is it that anchors us to the joy and good feelings of Christmas? Okay, I know that for some there is no such anchoring, but for most of us it is the “Hap—happiest season of all!” This year as I’ve been looking at Christmas from a little different angle, it has caused me to wonder what the emotional ties are to this holiday.

Of course, as the pastor, I’m supposed to say Jesus is the reason for the season—and few would argue with that proposition. But whether we recognize it or not, I think the secret to the spirit of Christmas is the simple exercise of giving. For the few weeks surrounding Christmas millions of people are planning and creating and sneaking and wrapping and hiding and finally presenting gifts to people they love.

I can more easily remember gifts given over those received. Receiving a gift is nice and fun – sometimes down right amazing. But Christmas giving is a reminder, one with concrete evidence, that it is more blessed to give than to receive. Just think about a gift you gave. You planned. You thought. Then you carefully acquired, wrapped secretly, and then slipped the gift under the tree. The giver’s anticipation of Christmas morning trumps the hopes of the recipients.

I remember some Christmas mornings when one of our children would be so excited to have us, as parents, open what they were giving. They would be so caught up in their gift-giving that we had to go ahead and open their present to us so we could continue opening gifts.

There is a joy unspeakable and full of glory when we give, and Christmas brings this all to life once a year. So what if we kept it going? What if every day, each week, at least once a month we intentionally thought of someone and gave them a gift? It might be some physical object we make or purchase, or it might be the conscious gift of friendship, a smile, an invitation for lunch, a word of encouragement, or introduction to a new friend. Maybe, just maybe, we could extend the spirit of Christmas to the other 364 days this year just by continuing to give. After all, why stop all those blessings that fill the air at Christmas when we could cash in 24/7 on the reality that it is more blessed to give than to receive? And maybe the spirit of Christmas will follow us through the whole year.

Andy McDonald

Christmas Stories by Richard Hickam

Pastor Andy’s current sermon series is on Christmas stories. I have a Christmas legend that came by way of one of my favorite authors, William Barclay. The story goes like this:

When Joseph, Mary, and the baby Jesus were on their way to Egypt, as evening came they were weary and sought refuge in a cave. It was very cold – so cold that the ground was white with hoar frost. A little spider saw the little baby Jesus, and he wished so much that he could do something to keep him warm in the cold night. He decided to do the only thing he could – spin his web across the entrance of the cave to make, as it were, a curtain there.

Along the path came a detachment of Herod’s solders, seeking for children to kill to carry out Herod’s bloodthirsty order. When they came to the cave, they were about to burst in to search it, but their captain noticed the spider’s web covered with the white hoar frost and stretched right across the entrance to the cave. “Look,” he said, “at the spider’s web there. It is quite unbroken, and there cannot possibly be anyone in the cave, for anyone entering would certainly have torn the web.”

So the soldiers passed on and left the holy family in peace because a little spider had spun his web across the entrance to the cave. And that, so they say, is why to this day we put tinsel on our Christmas trees. The glittering tinsel streamers stand for the spider’s web, white with hoar frost, stretched across the entrance of the cave on the way to Egypt. It is a lovely story, and this much, at least, is true – no gift which Jesus receives is ever forgotten.

As you are in the hustle and bustle of the Christmas season, what gift to do you have for Jesus? A thoughtful gift for Him this season will not be forgotten.

Richard Hickam

Angel Tree by Shae Beery

When I was a child, my family fully embraced the traditions of Christmas. We decorated our home with the most cherished ornaments, lights, and bows. We handmade or purchased gifts with much thought about the receiver. We made plans to go to Grandma’s house for Christmas Eve, and my mother allowed us kids to be a part of the month-long baking of cookies, cakes, and holiday pies. Our home functioned much like every other home in our neighborhood. However, with all that holiday excitement occurring in our house, there was one tradition I looked forward to above all the other activities, and that favorite activity was the day my mother would take me to select a child off of the Salvation Army Angel Tree.

I always selected a girl who was most like myself. Then, with a budget clearly spelled out (Yes, I understood the parameters of a budget at 8 years old and I was a thrifty shopper even then!), my mother and I would purchase one toy, one stuffed animal, one outfit, hygiene products, a bag of candy, and a box of candy canes! I loved rushing home and watching my mom carefully wrap each individual gift with colorful paper and Christmas bows. But before we would seal up the box, I would go to my drawer and pull out my most favorite pair of pajamas. I would select the pair that was most like new, and I would wrap them up myself. My mother told me that I should give something of my own to this child and not just buy everything. And so, every year I would carefully select the perfect pair of pajamas and include them in the box. And I loved it. Of course, later in the week I would forget that my beloved PJ’s were given away and riffle through my clothes for a second in search of something to wear. But then a smile would come to my face as I realized where they had gone.

I haven’t selected a child off of the Salvation Army Angel Tree for many years now, but I’m thankful my mother began this tradition of giving that has lasted my whole life. As I’ve gotten older, the opportunity to give has taken on various forms: visiting nursing home residents, assisting in children’s classes at church, getting involved with groups that help to clean up the devastation of a natural disaster, and even traveling to other countries to build schools, help orphaned children, and give medical attention to those in need.

These experiences have taught me many things, but the greatest one is this: The spirit of giving doesn’t have to be confined to the Christmas season. Additionally, blessings are not only reserved for the receiver but are also poured out to the giver. Don’t be afraid to give of yourself this Christmas and throughout the year—there is no shortage of blessings to be given . . . or received.

Shae Beery

FHC Member and Guest Blogger