Angels singing. Mary giving birth in a barn. Shepherds, wise men. Gold, frankincense and myrrh. We’ve all heard the Christmas message many times, and often Christians can run the risk of becoming almost numb to it. But a few weeks ago, at a Viva Christmas Party in Cuba, more than 60 children were so struck by the message that they made the decision to accept Jesus as their personal Saviour.
The party had all the usual components you might expect: food, presents, games, puppets. But everything was centred around helping the 480 children at the party to understand the great truth behind Christmas, the real cause for celebration – that God loved each and every one of them so much that he sent his own child to earth to live, and eventually die, so that they could know God and be loved and forgiven by him.
After the Christmas story was told, and the children were asked if they wanted to talk or pray with someone about becoming a Christian, the first child to run to the front was 9-year-old Luisito. He lives at one of the children’s homes involved with the Cuba network, as no one knows who or where his parents are, and for him the chance to be a part of God’s family was the best and most exciting offer he could think of! Hot on his heels were about 65 other children, all eager to get to know God better.
Each child who came forward was later paired up with another child from within the network, one who is already a strong Christian, so that they can be guided and supported in their faith. They were also given their very own copy of the Bible. After they had received the Bibles they spoke out prayers of thanks, with one child capturing the feelings of the group by saying, “Thank you God for all of the fun at this party, and for the presents and our Bibles, but most of all thank you for the best present which is your love for us at Christmas and all of the year!”
READ OTHER CHRISTMAS PARTIES STORIES FROM THIS YEAR
