Brown Bag Christmas- Clay Vice

----- Original Message -----
From: Clay Vice
Subject: Fw: *Brown Bag Christmas* 12/20/08










The following story from about 75 years ago was published by Joe McKeever
and certainly exemplifies the meaning of Christmas.

When I asked our newlywed Sunday School class to share a favorite
Christmas story, Carrie Fuller said, "Our family has one we call the
'brown bag Christmas.'" When she finished, I had to hear more.
Two days later, I called a member of her family for more details.

It was the early 1930s during the Dust Bowl days of Kansas, in the heart of
the Depression. The Canaday family---Mom, Dad, 7 children---were having a
tough time existing, so there would be no luxuries at Christmas that year.

Mom told the children to go outside and find a Christmas tree and decorate
it. After a lengthy search, they returned with a dead branch, the only thing
they had been able to find. They stood it up in a bucket of sand and
decorated it with pieces of paper tied with string. Little Judy, almost
four, did not know how a Christmas tree was supposed to look, but somehow
she knew it was not like that!

As Christmas approached, the Canaday children, like children everywhere,
pestered Mom and Dad about what presents they might get under their "tree."
Dad pointed out that the pantry was bare, that they did not have enough to
live on, and there certainly would be no money for gifts. But Mom was a
woman of faith and told her children, "Say your prayers. Ask God to send us
what He wants us to have." Dad said, "Now, Mother, don't be getting the
children's hopes up. You're just setting them up for a disappointment." Mom
said, "Pray, children. Tell Jesus." And pray they did.

On Christmas Eve, the children watched out the window for visitors, but no
one came. "Blow out the lamp and go to bed", Dad said. "Nobody is going to
come. No one even knows we're out here."

The children turned out the lamp and got in bed, but they were too excited
to sleep. Was this not Christmas? Had they not asked God to send them the
presents He wanted them to have? Did Mom not say God answers prayer?

Very late that night one of the children spotted headlights coming down the
dirt road, everyone jumped out of bed and ran to the window. The commotion
woke up Mom and Dad. "Don't get excited, children," Dad said. "They're
probably not coming here. It's just someone who got lost." The children kept
hoping and the car kept coming.

Then, Dad lit a lamp. They all wanted to rush to the door at the same time,
but Mr. Canaday said, "Stay back. I'll go." Someone got out of the car and
called, "I was wondering if someone here can help me unload these brown
bags." The children dashed out the door to lend a hand. Mom said to her
youngest, "Stay here, Judy, and help open the bags and put up the gifts."

A deacon from the church in town had gone to bed that Christmas Eve, and lay
there tossing and turning, unable to get the Canaday family off his mind.
Later, he said, "I didn't know what kind of shape you folks were in, but I
knew you had all those kids." He had gotten up and dressed and went around
town, rousing people from their sleep to ask for a contribution for the
Canaday family. He filled his car with brown bags of groceries, canned
goods, toys, and clothing. Little Judy got a rag doll which remained her
favorite for years.

With so much food, Dad wanted to have a Christmas feast, to spread it all
out and eat as they had never eaten before. Mom, ever the caretaker, said,
"No, we need to make this last." And it did last, for weeks.

The next Sunday, Mrs. Canaday stood in church and told what the members ---
and one deacon in particular --- had done for her family. There was not a
dry eye in the house.

Years later, the oldest sister Eva wrote up this story about her family for
a school project. Eva said, "We were so thrilled by all the wonderful things
in the brown bags, for a while; we lost sight of the most special gift. The
best gift that Christmas was not in brown bags at all.

It was Mom's faith, as she taught her children to bring their needs to Jesus
and trust Him to meet them. And a Dad's love that wanted only to protect
his children from hurt and disappointment."

When she finished telling her story, she added, "Little Judy is my wonderful
grandmother." Today, Judy Canaday Dryden lives in Sanger, Texas. As she
relived this event from so many years ago over the phone, one could hear the
tear in her voice and feel her pride in being the recipient of such a
precious heritage from her mother and father.


Editor's Note:
Christmas is a time to celebrate praying mothers and caring fathers and
believing children. We give thanks for sensitive deacons and generous
friends and sleepless nights. And we praise God for the hard times that
teach unforgettable lessons --- stories of faithfulness that get told and
retold through the years --- inspiring each new generation to place their
faith in a loving Savior.

Prayer: Father thank you for friends and family and let us never forget that
JESUS IS THE REASON FOR THE SEASON.
In the name of the Lord Jesus Christ.
Amen!

Clayton Howerton Home from 16 days in Cleveland Clinic

I spoke with Clayton a few minutes ago after Bill Meade called and told me of Clayton's new operation at Cleveland Clinic. He had a person coming in then for some consultation on the operation.

He said the previously transplanted heart opf his had a valve problem. He described the valve as an upside down parachute. The chute strings were "broken". The surgeon made a four inch incision below Clayton's heart and put tissues in to replace the strings. After convalescence, I don't know how long, they told Clayton he would be back at 95 %.

Nobody is completely out of the woods until the last tree is closed behind you, but prayers for his full recovery are in order.

Clayton was center on Portsmouth's 1955 football team. Bill called to thank me for the Portsmouth Old-Timers report in my blog from Saturday morning's breakfast. I also spoke with my brother, George, who had also talked with Bill Meade.