By Karen Y. Stevens

Growing up as a child, I can never remember Santa Claus being real.

You see, I had 4 older siblings that wanted to insure I knew the truth.

But, I did not care if I got a gift from my parents, or from some fictitious man, as long as I got a gift.

I brought my children up with a birthday cake at Christmas time, with Jesus’s name on it, and a candle.

Yes, we had Santa Claus ornaments on the tree, various other Santa Claus decorations, and stockings hung on the fireplace. Santa was part of the decorations, we just did not make Santa Claus the main focal point of Christmas.

Ephesians 2:10 states “For we are God’s handiwork, created in Christ Jesus to do good works, which God prepared in advance for us to do.”

Any, and everything we do, no matter how small for God, is because He prepared us to carry it out. He wants us to encourage people, lead them to Him, to His word, so they can follow His ways. If a child grows up finding out his parents deceived him/her all those years about a fake man, how will the child believe in Jesus?

Santa and Jesus are both invisible to the eye, so when they hear the stories of Jesus, subconsciously they will have doubt.

I can hear a lot of you saying you believed in Santa, and you still believe in Jesus. You plant a seed in all lives you touch, and you can never know the damage, or success, that you have with your words, or actions.

All people react and process information differently, so you can never know.

I was at my Bible study last week, and it was group discussion time.

After my debacle of sharing, one lady said “Karen, I just love you so much”.

It was a genuine statement that made my heart soar! This young woman and I, don’t know each other very well, so it made my day, and she probably has no idea how much she touched me.

I have been on a soul-searching mission for the last few months, and during this journey, I have realized my thinking is, I’m not good enough.

I think back to when David and I, first moved here in 2000. I had left my friends, my church, all that I knew. Even though we were only two hours away, it might as well have been halfway around the world.

That first Christmas, I sat on my back porch on Christmas Eve, Eve, listening to the neighbors have a huge party, wishing so badly that I would have been invited. I barely knew the people, why would they invite me? Yet, I still took it personally. I later learned I could have crashed the party, and they would have been thrilled that I invited myself, but I did not know that when I was in despair.

God made us to need each other. If we don’t find comfort, or encouragement from Christians, then we will find secular friends.

Reach out, and show a stranger Christ love today. You never know how you will change their life, and trust me, you will change them, for good or bad.

 

Karen Y. Stevens is founder of the Orange County Christian Writers Guild