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The Greatest Gift

What is the greatest gift you've ever been given at Christmas time? Maybe it was that new ten-speed bike at age twelve, or a highly prized trinket you received from a special someone that holds special sentimental value. In this video, Santa Claus (the patron saint of snowy holiday consumerism) suggests that the greatest gift of the Christmas season...

The story is old and has been told well many, many times. The story of an inn, a pregnant virgin, a stable, a manger, a star and a king. It's a story that never grows old that Someone with a very creative mind and loving heart planned thousands of years ago when things didn't work out in the garden. It's an unlikely story with humble beginnings.....

"See what you have to look forward to now?" The whisper in my ear made my smile widen. It was Dec. 10th and we were on our first outing with our new baby. She was only 10 days old, but we braved the frigid Yukon winter to attend the Christmas pageant at a small mission church. I knew the service wouldn't be a grand production. The "church"...

Oh, my precious Sara. A girly-girl through and through. Last year she went through a bit of a phase of wearing a leotard (fully loaded with tutu and crown and scepter, I might add) around the house just for kicks. Like, every day, basically. I thought it was cute, until I tried to take her out in public and she refused to put on anything else. Well,...

Centuries ago in Asia Minor (present-day Turkey), a boy named Nicholas loved the story of the Magi, the wise men who traveled from afar to bring gifts to the baby Jesus. He admired that they came and left with no fanfare. Years later, after Nicholas became a priest, he showed the same humility by quietly distributing food and gifts among the poor....

I had always been fortunate in the past. I was a quiet girl and I kept to myself. The sharp-tongued gossips in town had always left me alone. My life was not interesting enough for a discussion in line at the market or over a cool drink in a shady café. I studied, worked hard and spent time with the other girls my age. It was hot where I grew...