This was sent to me as an email forward. I had to share...even though I am doing so a bit late!
THE CHRISTMAS PAGEANT
My husband and I had been
happily married (most of the time) for five years but hadn't been blessed with
a baby. I decided to do some serious praying and promised God that if he
would give us a child, I would be a perfect mother, love it with all my heart
and raise it with His Word as my guide.
God answered my prayers
and blessed us with a son.
The next year God blessed us with
another son.
The following year, He blessed us with yet another son.
The year after that we were blessed with a daughter.
My husband
thought we'd been blessed right into poverty. We now had four children, and the
oldest was only four years old.
I learned never to ask God
for anything unless I meant it. As a minister once told me,
"If you pray for rain, make sure you carry an umbrella."
I
began reading a few verses of the Bible to the children each day as they lay in
their cribs. I was off to a good start. God had entrusted me with four children
and I didn't want to disappoint Him.
I tried to be patient the
day the children smashed two dozen eggs on the kitchen floor searching for baby
chicks.
I tried to be understanding when they started a hotel for
homeless frogs in the spare bedroom,
although it took me nearly two hours to
catch all twenty-three frogs.
When my daughter poured ketchup all
over herself and rolled up in a blanket to see how it felt to be a hot dog, I
tried to see the humor rather than the mess.
In spite of changing over
twenty-five thousand diapers, never eating a hot meal and never sleeping for
more than thirty minutes at a time, I still thank God daily for my children.
While I couldn't keep my
promise to be a perfect mother - I didn't even come close…. However, I did keep
my promise to raise them in the Word of God.
I knew I was
missing the mark just a little when I told my daughter we were going to church
to worship God, and she wanted to bring a bar of soap along to "wash
up" Jesus, too.
Something was lost in the translation when I
explained that God gave us everlasting life, and my son thought it was generous
of God to give us his "last wife."
My proudest moment came
during the children's Christmas pageant. My daughter was playing Mary, two of
my sons were shepherds and my youngest son was a wise man. This was their
moment to shine.
My five-year-old shepherd had practiced his
line, "We found the babe wrapped in swaddling clothes." But he was
nervous and said, "The baby was wrapped in wrinkled clothes."
My
four-year-old "Mary" said, "That's not 'wrinkled clothes,'
silly. That's dirty, rotten clothes." A wrestling match broke out
between Mary and the shepherd and was stopped by an angel, who bent her halo
and lost her left wing.
I slouched a little lower
in my seat when Mary dropped the doll representing Baby Jesus, and it bounced
down the aisle crying, "Mama-mama." Mary ran out and grabbed
the doll, wrapped it back up and held it tightly as the wise men arrived.
My
other son stepped forward wearing a bathrobe and a paper crown, knelt at the
manger and announced, "We are the three wise men, and we are bringing
gifts of gold, common sense and fur."
The congregation dissolved
into laughter, and the pageant got a standing ovation.
"I've never enjoyed a
Christmas program as much as this one," laughed the pastor, wiping tears
from his eyes. "For the rest of my life, I'll never hear the
Christmas story without thinking of gold common sense and fur."
"My
children are my pride and my joy and my greatest blessing," I said as I
dug through my purse for an aspirin.
Jesus had no servants, yet
they called Him Master. Had no degree, yet they called Him Teacher.
Had no medicines, yet they called Him Healer. Had no army, yet kings
feared Him. He won no military battles, yet He conquered the world. He
committed no crime, yet they crucified Him. He was buried in a tomb, yet
He lives today.
And, just as He promised,
He is coming again!!!!!
HAPPY NEW YEAR!
