Trying to capture and keep all the memories that are actively being made on Christmas Eve is challenging. The flurry of activity goes by so quickly that it is hard to take it all in and lock it away in our hearts and minds. However, one Christmas Eve is thickly written on my heart when we recognized God's plan for our lives, and God's divine wisdom and perfect timing became evident.

After waiting seventeen years to have kids, my husband and I were finally blessed with two wonderful foster children, and it was going to be our first Christmas as a family of four. Our daughter was a cheerful two-year-old who loved decorating the tree, singing "Tingle Bells" and playing with the "graham crackers" (nutcrackers). Our son was a precious two-month-old newborn, and they were (and are) our dream come true.

That year, my friend gave us a copy of Max Lucado's children's book, The Crippled Lamb. I had never heard the fictional story before, and as I read it aloud and the meaning of the tale unfolded, I wept in gratefulness to God.

Spoiler alert: The story stars a little lamb who could not walk well enough to join the flock in the neighbouring fields. He was left behind, feeling abandoned by his shepherd and feeling that he was too broken to be of use to anyone. However, the story reveals that the little crippled lamb had a divine purpose — one that couldn't have been fulfilled without his physical limitations. Because he had been left behind, he was present in the stable when Mary and Joseph arrived. When Jesus was born, the lamb was there to witness the birth of Christ and to give the warmth of his body to the holy Infant.

Trying to keep from shoulder-sobbing as this revelation of God's perfect plan washed over me, I finished the book and looked gratefully at my God-given, beautiful, little family.

What I had recognized in those moments was that there was a reason for our decades of waiting, a purpose in the pain of infertility. Had we not had our physical limitations, we would not have been present for these two children right now. We would have missed the greatest blessing of our lives. The very thing that had caused us to feel left behind had been turned into a divine purpose. God took our pain and our brokenness and used it for His glory and for our good.

The Shepherd has a plan for us all, and just like the crippled lamb, we need to be grateful for our purpose.

Prayer: Dear God, may we trust You to work on the plans for our lives. Help us to see beyond our pain to the greater purpose that You have intended for us. May that revelation wash over us and fill us with gratitude. Amen.

Our young son has been responsible for setting out the Fisher-Price Little People Nativity set at Christmastime since he was a toddler. He loved placing the colourful, chunky people and animals in their places within the Christmas story that was unfolding inside his plastic toy creche.

One year while we were decorating, I noticed that he had added to the scene. All his other Fisher-Price Little People had joined the holy family, shepherds, and wise men. A line had formed, and a motley crew crowded around the baby Jesus: Superman, Wonder Woman, Batman, Joker, a mechanic, a kid with cotton candy, and a clown were among the group. There were people of all ages and colours. There were good guys and so-called "bad guys". All were accepted and welcome at the feet of Jesus. My son thought that everyone should be included and present as the baby King entered the world to save us. I both laughed and cried at the sight of the eclectic mix of visitors that my son had brought to surround the Christ Child. Whimsical in its presentation, it depicted a scene of peace, love, and collective worship among peoples of varied backgrounds.

It was a beautiful reminder that Jesus came for all people, not a select few. I stopped right then and there to pray. I thanked God for the innocent faith of my sweet boy; that even at his young age, he already believed that Jesus is worth lining up for. I prayed that he would grow up in a world like the one that he had created in his playset — a society that recognizes its need for Christ and where everyone realizes they not only can approach Jesus but are invited. I asked God to help us to fulfill this holy purpose of drawing close to Christ and living in peace and love with all our brothers and sisters, and to be as welcoming as my son in introducing others to Jesus.

Taking a cue from my little boy, I invite us to look at things with Christ-centred hearts. Using something as simple as a decorative Christmas toy, my son had unknowingly ministered to me with his unspoken, but faith-filled, message. Drawing upon this type of childlike faith, perhaps add to your décor this season with something that visually shines light on the gospel message. May your Christmas decorations and nativity scenes speak to you and others in different, meaningful ways, and may it remind you of Christ's all-encompassing, unconditional love for all the Little People!

Prayer: Dear God, thank You for the innocent faith of children. May they always believe that Jesus is worth gathering around and that they can approach Jesus just as they are. May we take the children's lead in being humble and welcoming in our divinely given task of bringing all kinds of people to Christ. Amen.

We place several nativity sets in our home, and they range from cute to fancy to wooden to ceramic. I have saved bits and pieces from my mother's set and incorporated them into my own. Therefore, I wound up with multiples of each figurine, so I purposely display a few "extras" for various reasons and reminders. For example, a fourth wise man heads toward Bethlehem to represent the inspirational book by Henry van Dyke, The Other Wise Man, and the movie based on it. I also kept an additional small lamb to lay beside the manger, as written about in Max Lucado's children's book, The Crippled Lamb. I realize that both stories are fictional, but each one contains spiritually based reminders that are meaningful to me in my faith.

This year, I found that one of our "Cherished Teddy" wise men was missing the head from the camel (hobby horse) that he was holding. As I was looking at my broken figurine and considering whether I should order a replacement, I noticed that though the item in his right hand was broken, he was holding (and offering) a patchwork heart in his other hand. A thought immediately came to me that we are all broken in some way or another, but our brokenness does not make us discardable or replaceable. We have value to our God just the way we are. Additionally, we can give Him exactly what He is seeking — our patched hearts! So, I placed the heart-giving, broken wise man back in the nativity scene as another reminder with meaningful, inspirational significance.

Perhaps I have quite a large imagination to see these stories and reminders within our inanimate nativity sets. But if we all look at things with Christ-centred hearts, love, and the innocent faith of a child, we will see reminders, miracles, God-moments, and inspirational reflections all around us.

Prayer: Dear God, may our Christmas decorations and nativity scenes speak to us in different, meaningful ways, and may they remind us of Christ's unequivocal and ever-present love in our lives, as we keep Him at the forefront of our thoughts. In His name, we pray. Amen.

Luke 22:19 – And [Jesus] took bread, and when he had given thanks, he broke it and gave it to them, saying, "This is my body, which is given for you. Do this in remembrance of me." (ESV)

As we visited multiple churches to worship with extended family and friends, my young son had become quite a connoisseur of the sacramental communion elements. He voiced his pleasure or displeasure in loud whispers from the pews. Preferring soft white bread to the crusty loaves, he exclaimed, "Mom, they have King's Hawaiian bread!" Disappointed and shocked in the paper texture of the communion wafers, he asked, "Are we really supposed to eat this?" Or alarmingly realizing that it's not grape juice and declaring, "This is wine!" We just never knew what he would say or do during communion time.

Once, as his favourite soft bread was being passed, he pulled off two big chunks of bread, one for each hand. Double-fisted. I suppose I could have been embarrassed by it and shrunk down in the seat with my hand on my forehead. I also could have thwarted his excitement and corrected him to immediately return the second piece. (But then again who wants communion bread that has been put back by a child's hand?) I decided that I'd explain it to him later and chose just to smile and enjoy the pure innocence and exuberance of my son in the moment.

Did he understand the complexities of holy communion? The forgiveness? The sacrifice? The reverence? The poignancy? The symbolism of body and blood? Of course not. He only knew that it had something to do with Jesus' love for him … and that it was tasty, soft bread. Is it enough that his only perspective was that God provides us all our needs through Jesus, and right now, He is supplying physical food of a couple of handfuls of delicious, sweet bread? In my opinion, it is more than enough at his age. He associates church and communion with a doting church family, loving parents, good food, and a divine man named Jesus Who loves him unconditionally.

As he grows and continues to partake of this holy sacrament, his knowledge and his faith will grow. One day, he will be excited that it is the King's Bread (not King's Hawaiian). But until his own understanding matures, his act of double-fisted exuberance ministered to me and hopefully to those around us. It whispered to me that we should all grab hold of the gospel message assuredly with two hands! In the innocence and whole-hearted delight of a child, may we be spiritually and physically fed by the bread of life and bask in the double-handed generosity of Christ the Saviour!

Prayer: Thank You, God, for letting us partake of Your holy meal. Whether we are holding on to You by a thread or grabbing hold with two hands, thank You for Your extravagantly generous, sacrificial, and merciful love. Amen.