by the Rev. Shelby Larsen
At our 5;00 Family Service, usually attended by around 200 people, with high proportion of children, I write my sermon as a poem, in the style of Dr. Seuss. (so this is my work, and is protected by copyright)
For 2008, I wrote the following thoughts, and read the same poem again on Christmas Eve, 2009.
The Baby
Do you know what I heard?
I heard it today.
There's a baby that's coming!
It's coming our way.
A baby! A baby! A baby! Oh No!
A baby! A baby! Oh, say it's not so!
"Cause a baby, it's awful, a baby, it's drear!
A baby, a baby, it's the thing I most fear.
A baby--they fuss, and they cry and they cry.
They cry and they fuss, sometimes hours go by.
They make noise, they make problems,
They make smells--sometimes bad!
They squirm and they holler. They just make me mad!
So why do we want one? Why should we care?
Why have a baby? It just isn't fair.
Why should a baby come near us tonight?
All the noise, all the fuss, well, it just isn't right.
I MEAN. . .
I've got presents to open, I've got cookies to eat.
I've stockings to hang up, I've people to greet.
And Santa is coming with goodies galore.
Santa and presents--that's what I'm waiting for/
So what's with this baby? What's all the fuss?
Why is this baby important to us?
He doesn't bring cookies, no gifts, not a tree.
he doesn't bring toys, so what's it to me?
Why should I care if a baby is born?
Why should I care if he's here in the morn?
You see I've got Christmas, I've been to the store
And yet, something tells me, there's possibly more.
That Christmas is not just all about me.
That Christmas has meaning--something elementary.
Something for everyone, something God's done.
Something so special, so consequential
That goodness for all will be self-evidential.
And you know in this night--
In the dark, without light,
I wonder, I wonder, they just may be right.
For I feel that there's something that's just out of sight.
Something that's special, that's not just for me.
Oh what, do I wonder, O what can it be?
I've heard talk of miracles, of God breaking through--
Coming into our lives-do you think that is true?
Does Christmas have miracles for me and for you?
BECAUSE . . . .
How will I know if a miracle I see?
"Cuz all that I know is that little baby--
That baby that's coming! That baby--Oh no!
That baby's the miracle--say it's not so!
A miracle is something, large, something bit!
It shouldn't be something that squeals like apig!
But I guess it won't hurt if I just go and see--
You know, take a peek at the little baby.
How can I find him? Is he near or far?
What's that? To find him, I follow a star?
Are you sure? I'm sorry, that seems very odd.
A strange way to locate a gift from God.
But what do you know? As I look to the east,
And I check all the stars from the greatest to least.
There's one over there, there's one that is new,
A star that is different, a star that shines through.
And under that star--a baby, so dear . . .
I suddenly realize --it all becomes clear.
The baby's the miracle, the baby, this child.
The baby's the miracle, isn't that wild?
This baby, so little, so tiny, so new,
This baby's the way for God to break through.
And now I don't care about the mess and the fuss,
Because this baby--well, he's God with us.
This baby, you see him, and then you can tell
That he is the savior: He's Emman-u-el.
It's just amazing that someone so small
Is really the great one, the I AM, the All.
This little child, now with animals sleeping
Has already taken my cares in his keeping.
And now that I see him, it's now I know more,
Christmas, it just can't be bought in a store.
Christmas is this one, the child God has given.
Christmas is Jesus, he's our gift from heaven.
Jesus, the baby who gives us new life
in the long hoped for kingdom of no war and strife.
To find the miracle, we need to see.
We need to look further than games and TV
Beyond what we think of, beyond what we know,
To look for the special gifts God can bestow.
To look beyond crying and fussing and sighing
All of the little things we find so trying,
To see the baby, in the manger lying.
AND SO . . .
If we look and we listen,
See stars as they glisten
We'll find hope and find love
In the child from above.
And just as that baby brings all that is true
All that is possible, all that is new,
We can see that reflected around us tonight.
It's here in our children, in their smiles so bright.
Our gifts are here, they are found in this church
It's not very far that we have to search.
They're all around us, they're with us tonight
The gifts are our children, with their smiles so bright.
And so with only a slight trepidation--
I give you our future--The First Pres Nation!
This was followed by a video slideshow presentation of all of our activities throughout the year , emphasizing our families and children.
