My Favorite Christmas Gift

After the holidays, returning to my usual weekly routine, I settled in looking ahead to spring and summer and all of the mammoth events that are avalanched upon me: Spring tea, lockins, banquets, mission projects, VBS, Children's Camp, etc. One can really lose their focus buried under all the planning, recruiting, and promoting all the ways we try to minister to and witness to the children in our church and community.

Thinking about how to dive into the new year, I was interrupted by our Education Minister, "Have you checked your email this morning?"
"No," I replied, "Email is not what I check first in the morning; the coffee pot is what I check first thing in the morning," smiling as I pour myself a warm cup of caffeine.

So, I sit down with my coffee and open an email sent from a church member who works in our school district. The day prior, a teacher had handed her an essay written by one of her students, a child who attends our church.
This particular child does not have family that professes to know Christ as their Savior. He is the only Christian in his family. What a task for such a young person! We have several children in our church that are the spiritual leaders in their families as they are the ones sharing God's love with parents instead of the reverse.
To add to this task, when it comes to being spiritual leaders in the classroom, it seems that it again falls to the children. Many school employees are prevented from publicly sharing their faith and can not even display spiritual messages in their classroom, but the children can find a way.

When our church member received a copy of the essay from the teacher, tears of joy stained her face as she read the heart felt words from a young boy. The essay was entitled, "My Favorite Christmas Gift." Written in his own words, spelling mistakes and all here is what he said:

Did you know that God's love is invincable? My favorite gift is God's love for me. The reasons that God's love for me is my favorite gift are, it never leaves, it will triumph over evil, and it is eternal. That is why these resons represent God's love for me. What is your favorite gift?

My 1st reason is it never leaves. It will stik to me. It rubs off on me and helps me remember bible verses and storys. It protects me becaus it can't be defeted. Where I go, it will be there no matter what happens. As you can see God's love is like a super hero in blinding armor that is twinkling and sparkling. That is just one of the reasons that God's love is my favorite gift.

My second reason is it will triumph over evil. It will protect me agenst the devil. The devil is so weak agenst God's love for me. He can't lift a small eraser. It macks me so happy becaus God protects me. God's love is so amzeing and he is so powerful. God's love is like a imens sheald. That is another reason about it.

Now last but not least the ultamit reason is it is eternal! It can't be destroyed. It is lik a black hole. No matter what it will portct me. It is also like a gardyen angel loaded with tuns and tuns of wepons and sheelds. It is lik a big bang in a small packeg. When I say small packeg I mean a microskopick packeg. It is so amazeing, and powerful diskribs the love that God has for me. John 3:16 says, So God shal love the world. That he gave his one and only son. That whum shall ever bealev in him shall not perish but have eternal life. So God shall love the world, love the world, he gave his only son to save us. God's love is not a toy it is a hero. God's love is my hero becaus of his love. that is the last reason about my favorit gift.

As you can see God's love is the ultomint gift becaus it is eternal, it will triumph over evil, and it never leavs me. God loves you and me, we are his prizd criashon, the apple of his eye. God gave his only son. He wouldn't have done this if he did not love us. When I lerned that God loved me, I took it to hart and that is how I was changed. After reading this I hope you learned something. Do you know God as your Lord and Savyor?

Upon finishing the essay, I began to wonder what I think of God's love for me. Could I be able to express it so innocently and bravely as this child has? My goals for the next year have taken a turn, I found my focus: "God loves me and you. Do you know God as your Lord and Savior?" I put my coffee cup down and began to pray.