Joy to the World!

“The joy of the Lord is your strength.” Nehemiah 8:10 Christmas is a magical time. At the preschool, we are blessed to work with young children who are easily in wonder of things. It’s a gift to witness their awe. And when we allow ourselves to join them in experiencing things in a fresh, new way, we, also, can experience new joys and wonder. This week, visits to the Christmas Train brought bright eyes, imagination, and excitement. The moving train, the people in the village, and the way the town shines when we pretend it is nighttime and turn off the lights in the room. Creating gifts and cards for their parents brought thrills of giving. Ringing jingle bells as we sang Christmas songs lifted spirits and brought us together. At our preschool chapel time, we were gifted with a Christmas sing-along by a group of gifted ukulele musicians. The group arrived in Christmas garb of Santa hats, Christmas sweaters and Christmas glasses and led us in singing Christmas songs. Followed by Pastor Jason dressed as Elf sharing about giving and receiving gifts- and Jesus, the best gift of all. The kids loved it all- and so did the staff. We’ve had some difficult times lately in our preschool staff family. After chapel several teachers commented on the fun music and “Will they be back for tomorrow’s chapel?” And, “Best chapel ever.” It brought joy. Our loads were lightened. We were strengthened. I’m so grateful! I don’t think the ukulele players know what that did for those of us in attendance. Isn’t God so good to work his love and joy into our lives, not just at Christmas, but every day. Many thanks to these talented church members (Greg Kritzer, Jack Guenthard, Nancy Hylbert, Perry and Dick Kurtz, Diane Remick, and Craig Riddle) for sharing joy and your talents. The children and the preschool staff loved this special gift. Wishing you all joy as we celebrate Jesus, our Savior. Blessings Kim Vandergrift, Preschool Director