The story of Christmas is the story of God becoming a man.  A child is born.  His name is Emmanuel — God with us.

But why did God come to us as a baby?  He could have come to us as an adult — a warrior, philosopher or king.  Could children relate to a warrior?  Simple folks to a philosopher?  Humble persons to a king?  I don’t think so.  No matter our age, education or station in life, we can all relate to a baby.  Isn’t that at the heart of the universal appeal of Christmas?

The child will grow up to be a man.  He will understand completely what it means to be human.

I was reminded of this again on Sunday, when the adult choir and the children presented their Christmas program at church.  As I took a seat, I realized that the camera was at home in the office.  I so wanted to capture an image of the four young girls with halos around their heads.  As the program progressed they started to get restless and began to pick up small pieces of the pillow-fluff clouds in their hands.  They would then blow the pieces back into the clouds.  Eventually one of the halos became a necklace.  I do hope someone managed to capture an image of the action.  This did not distract from the message — at least it didn’t for me.  It only served to show how personal God’s love is for each of us.

Luke 18:16,17 — But Jesus called the children to him and said, “Let the little children come to me, and do not hinder them, for the kingdom of God belongs to such as these. Truly I tell you, anyone who will not receive the kingdom of God like a little child will never enter it.”