One of our favorite Christmas things is this magnetic Advent Nativity set. The kids take turns each day opening the little door and putting part of the nativity scene on the board. They love it, especially when they get what they think is a really important part like the Wise Men or Mary. It has also given us a chance to discuss the "not-so-important" ones, like the donkey who had the very important job of taking Mary and Joseph to Bethlehem and the sheep, who are like us and tend to wander around and get lost on their own.
The one part that Catherine and I have spent the most time talking about this year though is the star. I can't remember why she was initially so interested in it; I'm thinking maybe because it was the first magnet we put up. But it has given me a chance to reflect on the star too. I guess I'd always thought "God sent them a star....what a nice GPS system." And then all of the sudden one day, I realized why God used the star. Jesus is the Light of the World! So he had to be born in the dark at night so that His light could shine brightly, to show the world how different He is. The whole world is full of sin and darkness, and this sweet little baby came to bring light and to be light. This sounds like a pretty simple thing that may have been obvious to everyone else but me for a long time, but I guess I had just never applied the "light of the world" idea to the Christmas story. I'm thankful that God can use something simple like a magnetic Advent calendar and conversations with my children to reveal His truth to me. And I'll never think about the star in quite the same way.
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