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Christmas
Heaven
When I was a boy, one of my favorite
things to do at Christmas was go
to my grandmother's house. It was a tiny, barely put together farm house
next to a train track just at the edge of town. In the house later as an
adult, I had a hard time imagining how we all fit at Christmas. It really
was tiny. But we all did fit! Aunts and uncles, cousins, nieces, nephews,
the new spouses, and a few strays. The place was packed front to back.
The men mostly sat in the living room with
Papaw. He would “chaw” his "tobacky" and they would chaw with each other
and glance at the game or Christmas program on the little black and white
TV in the corner, warmed by the giant coal furnace that took up half the
room! Mamaw and the women held their annual Christmas confab in the
kitchen, warmed by the never-off oven and stove.
What a treasure room the kitchen was!
We'd never see as much or as wide a variety of food the whole rest of the
year. The smells of freshly baked pies and bread, and turkey and ham
roasting in the oven were heavenly! Everyone brought something, but Mamaw
by far prepared the bulk of it. Everything tasted as delicious as it
smelled.
While waiting for the latecomers to
arrive and the turkey to get just right brown, we, the kids, played.
Indoors and outdoors, no matter the weather. We chased through the tiny
house, hootin' and a hollerin' and a carryin' on. At least that's how
Mamaw would describe it when she'd tell us, with a mischievous grin, to "hesh
up and settle down a bit."
Of course, we didn't get too rowdy. We
didn’t want to make Mamaw really upset for fear we'd miss the special
gift. Every year, she always gave us kids the special gift. It was one
thing we looked forward to as much as anything else at Christmas.
Until there were too many of us for her
budget, Mamaw always gave every grandkid a silver dollar! You'd have
thought she'd handed us bars of pure gold the way we held those coins.
Once in our hands, you’d practically have to pry them loose with a
crowbar. They were magical, special, and ours.
It wouldn’t have made any difference how
loud we might have whooped it up, she would have still given us the silver
dollars. She loved us unconditionally. In a very real sense, we belonged
to her and she would not have forsaken any of us.
Every year as we move steadily closer to
the 25th of December, there is a question we hear over and over: "What
would you like to get this year?" In fact, in our family, written lists of
our Christmas wishes are mandatory. Once produced, they are put on the
refrigerator door so all can refer to them.
All of us wants something at Christmas,
even if we say otherwise. There's something soul affirming in receiving a
gift given in love, even if it's not deserved or wasn't expected.
There's no greater gift we can receive
than the gift of Jesus Christ and his salvation: "… the gift of God is
eternal life in Christ Jesus our Lord" (Romans 6:23b).
What's more, once you accept this gift,
it's yours forever. The Lord said, "Never will I leave you; never will I
forsake you" (Hebrews 13:5). You are His child.
My silver dollars? Sadly, they're gone.
Lost after several house moves. But what has never been lost is the love I
felt when I received those coins. My grandmother's love was genuine and
true. She lives in heaven, but her love lives in my heart even today. Her
love is a forever gift worth more than all the silver and gold in the
world.
So is the love and mercy of Christ. As
long as you walk with Him and grow in grace, you will one day spend
Christmas in heaven with my grandmother. And she might just give you a
silver dollar!
“’Today in the town of David a Savior
has been born to you; he is Christ the Lord. This will be a sign to you:
You will find a baby wrapped in cloths and lying in a manger.’ Suddenly
a great company of the heavenly host appeared with the angel, praising
God and saying, ‘Glory to God in the highest, and on earth peace to men
on whom his favor rests’” (Luke 2:11-14).
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