Grandma McLean

This is a picture of my grandmother posing as Mrs. Claus and she is waking up Santa Claus.  My grandmother was a columnist for our local newspaper and the gentleman who posed as Santa Claus was also a reporter and they posed for this picture for the newspaper.  The gentleman who played Santa also dressed up for the families of his colleagues and visited their homes with gifts for their children and grandchildren.  Mr. Giles paid a few visits to our home with gifts for my sister and I that were purchased by my parents.  I have wonderful memories of these times – of my grandmother who loved us deeply and of happy times at Christmas with our family. 

When that bubble was shattered – that Santa wasn’t real and it was only Mr. Giles in a suit who visited our house – I was devastated.  When my Dad told me, I went into the basement on my own and cried my eyes out!  That part of my world was shattered and the innocence of my childhood was over.  A new reality began for me.

As the world around us flocks to the mall and to online stores to buy that perfect gift to put under the tree, Christmas is a time for us to remember that Santa is not our reality.  Jesus is.  Jesus – who came to us as the Word made flesh – was a born as a helpless child to young, inexperienced parents.  He was born in a barn not a palace.  And yet, he is our king. 

The prophet Isaiah tells us about who are our king is – that Jesus, the Messiah, has the spirit of the Lord, the spirit of wisdom and understanding, the spirit of counsel and might, and the spirit of knowledge.  (Isaiah 11:2) And he will bring about justice, righteousness, and peace for those who fear the Lord.  He is the wonderful counselor, mighty God, and everlasting Father.  (Isaiah 9:6)

Isaiah also points us towards the Prince of Peace.  He tells us one day – and what a glorious day it will be! - that the wolf shall live with the lamb, the leopard shall lie down with the kid, the calf and the lion and the fatling together, and a little child shall lead them.  (Isaiah 11:6) Our world is a very broken place that is full of violence and war.  Despair is everywhere.  But there is hope.  And that hope comes from Jesus, the Prince of Peace. 

We need to remember that we worship the Prince of Peace, not just at Christmas time, but each and every day.  We have so much to be thankful for because the gifts that we have been given through God the Father, the Son, and the Holy Spirit, they will never fade or break.  They are more precious than gold or silver.  These gifts include grace, peace, and hope.  We have been given salvation.  And eternal life.  All of these gifts cannot be compared to anything that the world has to offer.  This isn’t something that is easy for a disappointed little girl to understand when she learns that Santa isn’t real, but I certainly understand it now.  Our reality is that God loves us so much that he freely gave all of these gifts – and so much more – to you and me. 

It is my prayer that you may experience the grace, peace, and hope that only the Christ child brings. 

Blessings, Emma.

For I know that my Redeemer lives, and that at the last, he will stand upon the earth.

Job 19:25