I Believe in Santa Claus

By Dr. G. Michael Saunders, Sr.

As a young Pastor in my first church I thought I would bring God's truth to all the sadly uninformed people in my church. Needless to say, I learned very quickly the difference between youth enthusiasm and spiritual arrogance. One way I learned this lesson was through the issue of Santa Claus.

I tried to be very careful not to ruin Christmas for any children in the services or to attack any parents. However for the first 3 or 4 years of my ministry at First Presbyterian Church in Enterprise, Alabama I tried to encourage my people to think correctly about Santa Claus. I tried to help them understand that there should be no lying just because it was a holiday season. Naturally, I made everyone mad every year. But I was convinced of my obligations!

Thankfully, the people of the church loved me and were always very generous to me and my children at Christmas time. We were a small church which means none of us had much money, but the people helped us so much we never really went without anything including presents at Christmas. Many years, people would come to the house with decorations, presents, and food. They were such a blessing to us and so used of God in our lives.

Well, during my fifth Christmas Day at my precious church, my convictions were completely altered. Christmas fell on a Sunday that year, so we would be having worship services that day. At 5:30 in the morning, while our family was all asleep, someone began extremely loud pounding on the side door of my house. They made a huge racket which sacred me half to death! My bedroom was on the other side of the house, and so were my children's rooms but I seemed to be the only one who heard the racket.

I jumped out of bed thinking it was an emergency. Grabbing for my glasses, I dropped them on the floor, and they slid away, and I couldn't find them. So grabbing my robe from the closet (I never wear a robe), I discovered it was three sizes too small (I hadn't put it on in years). So, with my gut hanging out (I am rather portly) and my boxers barely covered, I stumbled and tripped down the hall in the dark, holding on to the walls with one hand (because I couldn't see), trying to hold my robe together with the other hand (because it wasn't covering me very well) to the side door. I looked out the window but couldn't see anything, because I am blind without my glasses, and then I threw open the door ready to confront some terrible news or situation.

But no one was there. Instead, a huge three foot tall Christmas stocking filled with presents fell in on top of me. After taking a hit to the groin from a large Christmas wrapped box and losing my breath for several moments, I looked out the door again, but I could not see anyone nor did I hear anything.

I went to hunt for my glasses and when I finally found them, I returned to the giant stocking in my living room. On top of this beautifully decorated sack of presents for all the members of my family was a note - "Merry Christmas – Love, Santa".

Well, the children got up and we had a wonderful Christmas morning opening all the presents. We made a few inquiries as to who had left the gifts but found no one who would admit to it. After all, they were all busy having Christmas morning with their own families.

When we went to church I made more inquiries with the same results. Now, naturally, as the Pastor of a small church, all the preparations for the service fell to me and so I was very busy until I at last entered the pulpit and stood behind the podium and finally looked into the faces of my parishioners to open the service with the Call to Worship. But all of a sudden I couldn't stop smiling.

ALL the people were sitting there looking at me very attentively, with huge smiles on all their faces! Some grand conspiracy of blessing for their Pastor had taken place and the joy of what they had done filled the sanctuary in a tangible way. Though I was overwhelmed with happiness and smiling my most joyful smile, I did not know exactly what to say. And in that moment the Lord gave me an epiphany - the birth of Jesus was all about God's love for us. This Christmas, God's love had been shown to me through a huge sock full of gifts from hearts that loved God and loved me.

I realized at that moment, by God's grace, that no one was lying when they made Santa a part of their Christmas. So I looked out at the people, my dear friends, and full of their love for me, I proclaimed as joyfully as possible "OK! I believe!"

To this day, some 19 years later - when all my children are grown and now I have grand children - no one has ever confessed to giving my family those wonderful gifts. So I tell you again, when it comes to Santa - I believe!

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