Advent and Christmas
How often have you looked forward to something happening? Perhaps you were looking forward to your birthday or to going on holiday. We are now in the period of Advent. This means that we are looking forwards to Christmas. I am writing this on December 21st and I know that in 4 days time it will be Christmas Day. In the Old Testament of the Bible we find that the Jews were looking forward to the coming of Jesus 700 years before it actually happened.
There is a made-up story below but you may click one of the buttons below to go straight to the story of the shepherds
We will have a look at what the Bible says about this a little later but here is a story of a boy who was waiting for something to happen.
It was war time. Michael Andrews was lucky because he lived out in the country and there had never been an air aid. But Michael wished and wished that the war would end. His father had gone into the army to fight but from the beginning everything seemed to have gone wrong. He had been captured and he was a prisoner of war in Germany.
Picture of watch towers and wire around prison camp
From time to time he wrote letters home and when a letter arrived Michael read it eagerly. His father would say, "Work hard at school and when I come home I will try to get you a bike."
Picture of Michael with his mother
"When will my Dad get back?" said Michael. "He will be coming home when the war is over." said his mother.
"But when will that be?" said Michael. "No one can say," said his mother, "But we are winning. I think it will be another year at least."
Michael used to turn on the radio and listen to what was going on. He knew that the British army was advancing but everyone still seemed to think that it would be a long time before the war ended and his father was able to come home.
At that time many people did not have a telephone in their house. Michael's house did not have a phone but the lady next door did have one.
One day she knocked at the door and said, " Mrs Andrews, Come to my house because someone is asking to speak to you on the telephone. Bring Micheal because he has asked to speak to him too."
Michael was really excited and wondered who this could be.
His mother spoke into the phone first. "Yes. Who is it? But surely they did not let you telephone home from a prison camp!
Yes. I'll let you speak to Michael. It's your father," she whispered. "Hello." said Michael. "Is it really you."
"Yes, It's me. I managed to escape, along with a friend. We got out through a tunnel"
"Are you coming home now?" said Michael. "Yes, I will be back tomorrow afternoon.
Picture of Michael with his mother and father
Now remember I said I would get you a bike. My friend has one that he used to ride on when he was a boy and he says you can have it. It is not new but it is the best we can do. There are no factories making new bikes while this war is on."
When Michael's father came home next day Michael thought that he was the happiest boy in the world. He spent hours and hours talking to his father and he did not even think about the bike that day. The next day he went out with the bike and his father started teaching him to ride.
Now in the Bible is the book of the Prophet Isaiah who lived over 700 years before Jesus was born. At this time there was a very powerful country called Assyria and the Assyrians were attacking the Jews who were losing the war.
Isaiah told the the Jewish people that God had not forgotten them. He told them that one day God would give them a Great King.
God did not forget his people and for hundreds of years they waited and looked forwards to the birth of the Great King. Parents would tell their children that this would happen one day. When the children grew up they told their children. They all waited and looked forward to the coming of the Great King. It was over 700 years before the Great King was born. That Great King was Jesus.
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