Originally Posted December 8, 2006
My husband and I had felt the Lord calling us back to our hometown area to start a boys ranch after working at one in Missouri for a year and a half. We moved back in March of 1992, the ranch become a non profit corporation in July 92 and we were living by faith trusting God for everything. A couple weeks before Christmas that year, we had no boys yet at the ranch, we sat our 3 children down ages 5 – 8 1/2 and told them since mommy and daddy were trying to get this ranch started to help trouble boys, we didn’t have any money to get Christmas presents this year. The older two were just kind of quiet and accepting, then all the sudden, our youngest one says, mommy, all I want is just one present, I just want a violin, that’s all. Wow, just a violin, that’s all! We had to explain that he probably wasn’t going to get that or anything. They finally understood and were okay with it. A couple days later we recieved a phone call from an individual who had no idea about our conversation with our children. This individual told my husband to come over because she had a gift for us for the ranch. When my husband came back home he had tears in his eyes, with a check for the ranch for $10,000.00 and and personal check for Christmas of $5,000.00. Our son did receive that violin that Christmas, and the presents under the tree that year, said from: GOD! That is probably the Christmas I will never forget. Let us especially not forget the most important Christmas when Jesus came! Let us remember to keep Him in the center of our life, even during the busy schedules, shopping, and family gatherings. After all, He is the Reason for the Season!
Jesus, Take my baton! 