Some years the Christmas story comes to us afresh, unbidden, right off the page and into our hearts. A picture in the newspaper. An overheard remark. A carol sung by a choir.
This year, for me, it was a conversation with a friend. Bob's wife Marilyn died this past year, making him a reluctant Christmas observer. But it was more than that. He didn't want Christmas to come at all, and he was determined to do nothing to invite it in. No tree, no cards, no wreath on the door.
It broke my heart to hear him talk like that. But I had no difficulty understanding his feelings. Christmas without Marilyn would bring no joy at all, nothing but the pain of remembering.
It made me revisit the Christmas story in my mind. Amidst all the frantic shopping, the faux revelry, and the sheer force of the season, was there something in the story itself Bob would miss if he cancelled Christmas, something that might help soothe his broken soul?
Christmas eventually crept into Bob's life this year, but softly, letting itself in through the back door. And when it did, I saw the Christmas story come to life again, both in him and in me. So I wrote it down ... to share with you.
May Christmas come into your own heart this year and may you and those you love know its deep and wondrous blessings once more.
Press Play to hear this special Christmas edition of The Mystic Cave.
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