I worked as a warehouse manager in retail for a decade, and every Christmas season a little bit of me died inside. I had to work 60 hour weeks dealing with deadlines and upset customers. Christmas just didn't hold the joy that it once did for me. Fortunately, I now have a different position that doesn't require so much from me at Christmas time, and I'm slowly starting to recover from my jaded attitude. Still, though, I am a cynic, especially when it comes to Christmas.
But this Christmas my faith in the natural goodness of God's children was renewed a bit. While far from enduring the problems most people face, money has been tight this year for my wife and I. I won't go into why, but we've struggled. Well,my wife was doing some last minute Christmas shopping for our kids at Walmart, and the bill came to about how much we had left in our checking account (not very much). Before she could pay, a total stranger swooped in and paid for her items, some $150 worth. It humbled me to know both that God intervened to bless us in our time of need, and there are people who still listen to His Spirit and do good. It reminded me of these lyrics from "I Heard the Bells on Christmas Morning."
Then pealed the bells more loud and deep:
"God is not dead, nor doth He sleep;
"God is not dead, nor doth He sleep;
- The Wrong shall fail,
- The Right prevail,
With peace on earth, good-will to men."
I know it's a week late, but Merry Christmas.
