This Christmastide, at “A Night of Advent Light” celebration, Mom shared a story from Christmas past. Years ago, she wanted to do something special for her class of children at church. Each year she tried to help them make a gift for parents or loved ones; and this year, she went over and beyond. She found a good deal on ceramic Christmas ornaments shaped like little churches. So, she bought sixteen ornaments, paying for them out of her own pocket – a significant investment for her.

The ornaments were so beautiful that mom hoped to keep one for herself, if possible. And her favorite color of the four colors was red – she would have loved to keep a little red church, signifying the hometown church, once covered in red insulbrick. But it was a full class that day, and each church was spoken for.

Sixteen delicate little churches – four sets of four different colors (so that children in related families could share different colors). Mom instructed the children to give them as gifts to their mothers or grandmothers, or other important loved ones. She also brought tissue paper for wrapping, to protect the fragile ornaments; and to save money, she brought second-handed wrapping paper.

Mom said that the ornaments, as delicate and beautiful as they were, once wrapped, looked almost pitiful. Covered securely with tissue paper, and then wrapped in secondhanded paper, the ornament ended up looking like a mound of nothing. Yet, inside, an exquisite and memorable gift.

The children worked on the wrapping with gusto, and one rascally boy named Ben made the process raucous and frustrating. He enjoyed himself too much! But, little by little, they made it through: Each child now had a gift for special loved one.

Class ended, and one by one, the children trooped out. “Thank you!” “Merry Christmas, Mrs. Mershimer!” “You’re welcome; and Merry Christmas!” But one boy hung back, young Ben. Ben waited until the other children cleared out, and then approached Mom. He handed her the wrapped Christmas ornament, and said, “Mrs. Mershimer, you’re the one I want to have this ornament!” She hugged him and thanked him, receiving it with gratitude. For though the outside of the gift looked nondescript and dull, she knew that the inside contained the very thing she wanted for Christmas that year: An exquisite, finely crafted little red church.

And young Ben? He received a gift also – a gift of shared faith, and ability to follow a higher vision. He followed his calling into professional singing and acting, with years of training and arduous study. He is now a Lindemann Artist with the Metropolitan Opera.

Mom shared that story of Christmas past, and then likened it to the greatest Gift ever given: A Child, wrapped in swaddling clothes. On the outside, it didn’t look like much: Just another peasant child wrapped in secondhanded bands of cloth, in a manger meant for animals. But on the inside! God himself, the Word made flesh, Immanuel, come to save His people from their sins – the Light of heaven, come to release us from dominion of darkness, and transfer us to the kingdom of Light. Alleluia!

In the words of C.S. Lewis, “Once in our world, a lowly stable held something that was larger than the whole world.” And this, friends, is our Gift of Salvation – New Life – if we have a heart to receive it. Merry Christmas!