Christmas in my home always included a Christmas Tree that sat in a corner of our large living room. Decorations were ones that had been passed down from Christmas to Christmas and told the story of our earlier times of celebration as well as welcoming in this year's recognition of that most sacred and holy holiday - Christ was born in Bethlehem, Come to Save The World!
You know, folks, I don't remember ever talking about Santa Claus! Sometimes, Santa would come into a conversation around that time, but he never really played any major part for me or my family. In fact, as I think back over my life, I find that some of these memories were actually played over and over while attending the various churches that I have joined, based upon where I was living... Although, I remember most about the church where I attended as I went to school. We had a lot of relatives living nearby and so family was also there for most events. Sometimes, we would join for services with the nearby church as well.
Christmas was all about the birth of Jesus and being in church, saying small parts we learned by heart, and singing Christmas hymns... All of the children and choir members would participate in a program, routinely put together by our pianist, Dee Sangston and Marcellus Evans, our song leader. Actually, Dee is my sister and Marcel and she would sing together for most events, large or small...
I learned from Dee, when I began to substitute as pianist, to review what the sermon was going to be about, and then select our music to complement that day. I always found this as a wonderful way to share God's Word, as both words and music spotlighted that day's lesson from the pastor.
All of the children in church would participate in the Sunday School program, with the youngest saying something simple, like "Happy Birthday, Jesus..." Indeed, I remember that we always sang Happy Birthday to anybody who had a birthday that week and the individual would go up and put coins into the Sunday School bank to recognize their own birthday. So, when Christmas came, we would sing Happy Birthday to Jesus, and then we would all be asked to give a special gift in honor of his birth...
The older children and teens would memorize short poems or, sometimes, read from the Bible and share how shepherds and wise men came to Bethlehem... directly to the manager where the star led them
The choir and congregation often started the program with Angels We Have Heard on High... and other related hymns...
One of the greatest joys of my life was the times I was involved in the music program, no matter where I lived. I would often sing solo and would memorize most of the hymns we routinely used for each service. At one of the churches, the choir would go caroling and would stop by senior citizen homes. It is a uniquely giving experience to walk where somebody is unable to care for themselves and sing to them. I remember there was a woman who had no way to speak or hear, yet I held her hand and sang... I hope she felt the warmth I wanted to share with her...
On Christmas Eve, we would have a candlelight service and members of the congregation would dress as the various people who were at the manger that night...
I would sing to start the procession... I Wonder As I Wander Out Under the Sky... How Jesus the Savior was Sent for To Die...
And the Wise Men would start walking down the aisle, as they looked on to be with Mary, Joseph, and Baby Jesus who were already waiting at the front of the church...
The Shepherd would follow... And as they came, candles would begin to be lit... and as candles glowed, the overhead lights would be turned off, until the only light was the candles and the light over the piano... And somebody would start to sing Silent Night...and then more and more voices began to sing...
That Service would conclude with a soloist singing O Holy Night...
People would begin to get up and circle around the church so that we would say our final prayer as the song finished and the pastor would bless the evening and then invite everybody to the basement for fellowship...
You know, folks, with all that was happening at church, we never even thought of anything else except that Jesus had been born! Hallelujah!
And the church would have candy or fruit to give to us for Christmas! And, of course, cookies were served with something hot to drink before we would get our coats and leave...
The earliest Christmas I can remember is when we got a set of croquet. All of us knew that Mom worked day and night to feed and clothe us and have a home... We also knew that there would be little money for any type of gifts. So Mom would buy one big gift for all of us to use... I can still remember when we went out to set up the croquet set...and start hitting those little balls... We were thrilled to have a toy, a game for our gift! And, later, as we grew older, gifts would be placed under the tree, from our siblings, our relatives... and, really, if anybody said Santa Claus, I guess I've forgotten that...
Mary... Come to Us... Pray with Us...Celebrate Him
Jehovah... Come to us...Pray with Us...Celebrate Him
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