The spring birds turned to summer flowers and long warm days. Her parents brought her into their church to give her God's gift of baptism. Her new church family smiled as they watched her receive the sign of the Holy Spirit upon her forehead and upon her heart.
The little baby grew and grew. All the while her parents told her they loved her, and that Jesus loved her. But she wasn't perfect. As she grew, so did her free will. Many of her choices pleased her parents, but there were others that did not. Like the time she disobeyed and crossed the street to ride her bike, although she knew that was outside of her "boundaries." Or the time she gave her sister a little shove down a dirt hill. Or the time she lied to her grandparents. She was sorry for all of these choices, and her parents knew of her regret. She received her consequences and was forgiven.
She went to school and learned more and more each day of her Savior. She came to know of Him and His stories as if they were second nature to her. She felt at home in his house, sang in children's choir, and said prayers with her parents each night before bed. She loved her Heavenly Father. But still, she made those bad choices. Amidst all the good, there was still the bad. Those times when she gossiped about a school mate, lied to her parents, glanced at a friend's test, or disobeyed a teacher. She knew the choices were bad, and asked God for forgiveness. Sometimes.
The clock kept ticking, and she grew and grew. She became a young lady, confirmed in Christ. The pastor gave her a special verse on that day, Matthew 28:20, "I am with you always, even unto the end of the age." It stuck with her, and she often remembered it when she was feeling pushed and pulled by a world that didn't show His love. When things were hard and her choice became even harder. As a bigger girl, she had bigger choices…and bigger opportunities for mistakes. Just like when she was a child, she made many good choices. She felt God's love and guiding hand as she steered her way through high school. She still made her bad choices, but she knew her Savior, and was confident in his forgiveness.
She passed through birthdays, driver's tests, college entrance exams, and finally graduation. She knew she someday wanted to be a teacher, so made plans to go to a Lutheran University. She skipped off to school with an absentminded wave to her parents (those same parents who prayed into her soft infant hair and kissed her warm temples) and launched at full speed into her first year of college. And began to make bad choices.
Bad choices about studying. Bad choices about friends. In her heart, she knew that every decision she made would bring her closer or further away from her Father. But it wasn't too convenient to dwell on those facts, so she shut them behind a door and went on her way.
Her parents came to visit, and she visited home. They went to church, but now she felt guilt instead of the overwhelming love and peace she had felt as a child. So she shut that behind the door too, and went on her way.
Her parents and sister prayed for her. Her grandparents prayed for her. The Holy Spirit prayed for her. Her Heavenly Father, the one who promised to be with her wherever she went, kept His promise. He was there with her always, through every bad choice. He did not leave her, could not leave His beautiful daughter that He loved so infinitely much.
Slowly, it seemed to her, she grew and grew. Through the prayers of her family, help of teachers God sent her, friends He put in her path, and finally a young man God placed next to her, she slowly began to see Her Savior again. She opened the door and let Him back in.
Then one day after graduation she was called to serve as a teacher in a Lutheran School, just like the one where she grew up. She was amazed and thankful to God for this gift. She knew how He had stayed next to her in her rough times and was humbled to know He loved her still. She loved that first year of teaching, and felt instantly at home in His house. She sang in the choir, prayed at devotions with her fellow teachers, and stole quiet moments in the chapel.
But still, she didn't make perfect choices. How could she? She was sinful. Time and again, He forgave her.
Another year ticked by and she married that young man God had sent her. All the while their parents prayed for them, their grandparents prayed for them, the Holy Spirit prayed for them. They pleased God with their choices, but also grieved him. They worshiped Him, loved Him and asked His forgiveness. He freely gave it to them.
They grew and grew together. Then one day God blessed them with a baby. They marveled at his perfectness, they looked into his blue eyes and were overwhelmed with love.
She held her baby boy and whispered a prayer of thanks to God into his soft hair, she kissed his warm temples and prayed. In her entire lifetime, there had not been a day that she had not needed her Savior. She knew, as she quietly looked at her tiny miracle, that it would be the same for her little boy. He would always need his Savior. He would make good choices and bad. He would struggle, but his Savior would never leave him. She would never stop praying for him. His father would always pray for him. His grandparents would always pray for him. The Holy Spirit would always pray for him.
Now she looks and listens as her children play. She watches them grow and learn at the same school she taught. She sees their love for their Savior. Her heart overflows. She glances at her Christmas tree as she types, and feels a rush of emotion as she thanks God for the birth of His son. Every day of her life she has needed her Savior. Every day of her children's lives have they needed their Savior. Every time they make a bad decision or a foolish choice, every sin they commit. They need the forgiveness of their Savior.
Here, within the red, the green, the ribbons and bows is the true reason she loves Christmas. The birth of her Savior…and His ultimate sacrifice for her salvation.
She kisses her daughter's ten year old temples, and thanks God for the birth of her Savior. He was born for her, for her husband, for her three beautiful children. Because we all need Him, every single day.
Merry Christmas! May the wonder of Christ's birth, and the amazing gift He gave you fill you all with peace!
