A New Story - 20th Anniversary

This year is the 20th anniversary of the first in a long series of Christmas Eve stories. Christmas Eve, 1989, I decided that instead of a short homily for the Christmas Eve Candle Service I would write a story. The idea came when we took our daughter and a friend to see the movie Prancer. A line jumped out at me about the baby Jesus from the school's nativity scene was lost. I thought, "A Lost Jesus" and a story was begun.

Come Christmas Eve that year I pulled a stool into the center of the chancel while the congregation looked at me as if I had lost my mind. I gave some brief introduction about this being my Christmas gift to them, sat down and told the story. I skipped the next year and then wrote another in 1991- and didn't stop. It became a Christmas Eve tradition. Even non-members mentioned it to me recently when I was back for a funeral.

We moved in 1999 and the tradition continued through 2003. That was the last story when I went into "secular ministry" outside the parish January 1, 2004. So, it has been six years since I last wrote a Christmas Eve story. One kind of started a year or so ago, but it went nowhere. I decided that this year it would. A couple weeks ago I sat down and started to write.

Then I realized that I am preaching this Sunday in Waconia. I was going to take one of the old ones and share it. But why? Here is a new and perfectly good one. Why not?

So a tradition is renewed. I will tell the new story this Sunday. I am kind of surprised by how excited I am by it. I know the people in this congregation have no idea what this would be all about. It's not part of their tradition. But it is mine and I hope that a story can give some new insights.

After all, stories are where dreams and visions can be brought to light. It is where Truth can be experienced and shared in ways that don't have to be limited. I have written here a number of times about the power and importance of stories. I hope that some of that will come through on Sunday.

Maybe someday I will even work on some stories that are not just for Christmas anymore.