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The Man-Child

   Written by on December 21, 2017 at 1:21 pm

logo-crotts-stephenRule #3 of ministry is to never do anything alone. Take a younger man along with you. Let him watch. Let him try his hand at things. That is how you multiply ministry.

So it was this Christmas season decorating my home. For an older man such as myself the hanging of the greens represented a lot of bending and lifting along with 30 or 40 trips up and down the stairs. So I invited my ten-year-old grandson to come over and help. He came for four days, bringing with him his youthful vigor. We fetched and carried all the boxes of lights, ornaments and, of course, the wreaths and the tree. We had Christmas carols playing loudly for the joy of it all. And we laughed and joked together as we worked.

When we began to festoon the tree with ornaments, Henry grew serious. “This is a lovely tree decoration, Papa. Where did you get it?” So we spent the morning remembering.

“This is nearly 50 years old. These are three wise men Gran and I bought the first Christmas of our marriage.” Then we discussed the Magi and all the Bible had to say about them. So it was with other decorations. “This one is from a missionary in New Guinea.”  “A handicapped boy in the church made this one.” “This was for your mother’s first Christmas.”  “This creche comes from Bethlehem, Israel, when I travelled there.”

Oh, there were stories long to tell across the miles of time. And the boy and I relived so many of the tales. When we finished I let the child select one, a gift to take home for his own tree.

Making memories…passing along traditions. Establishing the faith of Jesus in a boy’s heart. The Bible says in the Psalms, “One generation shall laud Thy works to another.” And what better way to do it than for the old man and the man-child to decorate together for Christmas!

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Pastor Crotts may be reached at carolinastudycenter@msn.com.

About Stephen Crotts

The Reverend Stephen Crotts is pastor of Village Presbyterian Church in Charlotte Court House, VA. He is also the director of the Carolina Study Center, Inc., a campus ministry, located in Chapel Hill, NC. Pastor Crotts may be reached at carolinastudycenter@msn.com.

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