In This Issue: THEME: Diamond Forever

Favorite Christmas Carols

Tract Review

"Christmas Gifts"

The Mailbag

Kids' Korner

Volunteer Testimonies

Bulletin Board

Wise Sayings

My favorite Christmas carol would have to be Silent Night. Every year, on Christmas, my home church will have a service, and it always ends with every person getting a candle, one of the elders lighting their candle, the lights being turned off, and the flame shared with other elders and then with each person in the congregation, one by one down each row and pew. As all the candles are being lit, the choir starts to file out singing Silent Night with the congregation joining them in worship. The choir stands at the back of the sanctuary as we finish singing the carol, with the only light coming from the candles that each of us holds.

The unity in worship, the silence at the end of the carol, and the knowledge of the upcoming celebration of Jesus' birth really sets the best mood for celebrating Christmas. The few times I've had to miss the service made it a little harder for me to get in the right frame of mind.

- Nicole Simpson

My favorite Christmas carol is Silent Night , because it is filled with awe and inspiration. The announcement of Jesus' birth and redemption for mankind is a message which still holds true for today as it did 2000 years ago. Praise God!

- Susan Buhler

When I think of the song Mary's Boy Child, it immediately brings out the 'mother heart' in me, and the joy of the births of our two children. I relate to Mary in the sense of joy of giving birth to this dear Baby, Who she undoubtedly loved beyond measure - just like I did ours. Just as God had a perfect plan for our two children's lives, He had an even greater plan for this precious Boy Child, Who, praise the Lord, did not stay a Baby, but became the perfect Sacrifice for the sins of mankind!

Beryl Harbidge

My favorite Christmas carol is O Come All Ye Faithful. There is nothing I enjoy more than praising our wonderful Lord! It is a privilege to come before Him, joyful and triumphant - at Christmas time and at ANY time of year or stage of our lives. He is to be adored above any other person or thing and this song is a reminder to do just that.

- Rick Harbidge

My favorite Christmas carol is Silent Night - a very beautiful carol for its sheer simplicity. It always gave me a very special thrill to sing that when our youth group went carolling at various homes, back when I was just 13 and starting youth group.

Ah, and then another story comes to mind regarding that one: the first year after high school that I had a job. I was working shifts as a telephone operator in Saskatoon, and could finally afford to purchase gifts for my family, instead of the homemade cardboard things all the previous years. For my younger sister, who was musically inclined, I bought a small chord organ with a stool. It came with some Christmas carol books with numbered notes, and I practiced playing Silent Night, the easiest one, in my apartment in the city.

On Christmas Eve, I had to work a shift until midnight, but then I went to my small suite and packed all my gifts and things into my car, and drove home to Hague. I asked our middle sister to make sure the door was unlocked, and about 2:00 a.m., I sneaked in, set up the chord organ and began to softly play Silent Night. You should have seen how fast eveyone came stumbling out of bed!

- Ruth Friesen