Mary’s robe was a little lopsided, and she giggled as the sheep next to her nudged her leg. Joseph sat on a hay bale, or rather squirmed on a hay bale. Three dads stood behind Mary and Joseph, and I supposed they were the wise men. A goat stood at the side, eating the grass of our church lawn. Each year my church puts on a live Nativity on the evening of our choir’s Christmas program. Grown-ups and children portray the parts of the characters. The scene is complete with real, live animals. It makes a picture for people to stop and view for a few minutes before they step inside the church building for the choir program. Last year one of my Mission Friends was Mary, and she smiled and waved to me from the scene. Each year, there is always something that makes me think about the events of the real Christmas story. Last year, I wondered if Mary was an outgoing young woman who waved to people she knew as they passed by the stable.

I woke up in the morning with the hymn “More Love to Thee, O Christ” running through my head. The song is such a sweet prayer to God, and is one of desiring more devotion to God.

While walking in my neighborhood, I passed by a rock on the curb. I stopped and went back a couple steps to pick it up. It definitely looked like a heart shape. The next day at our office building, there was a table of squishy hearts to take one as a free giveaway. I also found a woven paper heart in the closet with our art supplies. These are a few different objects that are heart-shaped, but they look quite different from one another. The squishy heart is smooth and soft, and it is easy to hold in your hand and squeeze. The paper heart is cleverly made by weaving two colors of paper together. The rock is rough and dusty with lines and jagged edges.

She is a petite woman who wears the cutest shoes, so how did she come to share about Jesus with a big rig truck driver? Linda Cooper, national WMU president, tells the most amazing stories about opportunities she has had in sharing the gospel with others. Once on a flight home from an overseas missions trip, a refugee family sat next to her on the plane. They were coming to the United States to be resettled. Though they spoke no English, by the end of the flight Linda had befriended them and they understood that she knew Jesus. Another time as she parked her car and started into the dental office where she works as a dental hygienist, she noticed a semi-truck was broken down in the parking lot. She spoke to the driver to offer help, though she did not know what she could possibly do to help out. Through their conversations that day, she shared the gospel with the driver and told him about Jesus’ love.