DECEMBER, FULL OF FUN

So many great things come in December: vacation, snow, Christmas lights, being in a Christmas pageant at church, presents on Christmas Day, the end of one year and the beginning of a new one.

Of course, we're really celebrating Jesus' birthday on Christmas, and that's the best part of all! Our celebration is because Jesus came to Earth as a person just like us, born on Christmas Day. This week's Gospel (John 1:6-8,19-28) is about Jesus' coming.

When it's December and exciting things are happening, you feel excited yourself. It can even be a little scary to think about Santa delivering presents and how you're going to play an angel in the Christmas pageant in front of everyone at church!

Like you, the people in the Gospel were excited and scared. John the Baptist was going around saying God was coming, and they didn't know what to think! Some of them thought HE was God; some worried that if God was coming to Earth, it meant they were in trouble.

Even when the excitement of December makes you nervous, it's a good excitement. You know the Christmas pageant will turn out fine and you'll have a present or two on Christmas morning.

John wanted people to be excited, too. That's why he told them Jesus was really God -- so they'd be excited and impressed, and get ready! For them, it was like Christmas every day.