camsfason
Joined: 10 May 2023
Posts: 858
Location: Arlington, TX
|
 Posted: Mon Dec 19, 2022 3:12 pm Post subject: Christmas Shoes - THE GOLDEN SLIPPERS |
 |
|
Here's one of my favorite Christmas "stories". It has been re-told many ways and even made into a song. Just thought I'd share it with y'all.
THE GOLDEN SLIPPERS
It was only five days before Christmas. The spirit of the season hadn't yet caught up with me, even though cars packed the parking lot of our neighborhood shopping center.
Inside the store, it was worse. Shopping carts and last-minute shoppers jammed the aisles. "Why did I come today," I wondered.
My feet ached almost as much as my head. My list contained the names of several people who claimed they wanted nothing, but I knew their feelings would be hurt if I didn't buy them something. Buying for those who had everything and deploring the high cost of items, I considered gift-buying anything but fun.
Hurriedly, I filled my shopping cart and proceeded to the long checkout lines. I picked the shortest, but it looked as if it would mean at least a 20-minute wait.
In front of me were two small children - a boy of about 10 and a younger girl about five. The boy wore a ragged coat. Enormously large, tattered tennis shoes jutted far out in front of his much too short jeans. He clutched several crumpled dollar bills in his grimy hands. The girl's clothing resembled her brother's. Her head was a matted mass of curly hair. Reminders of an evening meal showed on her small face. She carried a beautiful pair of shiny, gold house slippers.
As the Christmas music sounded in the store's stereo system, the girl hummed along off-key, but happily. When we finally approached the checkout register, the girl carefully placed the shoes on the counter. She treated them as though they were a treasure.
The clerk rang up the bill. "That will be $6.09," she said. The boy laid his crumpled dollars atop the stand while he searched his pockets. He finally came up with $3.12. "I guess we will have to put them back," he bravely said. "We will come back some other time, maybe tomorrow."
With that statement, a soft sob broke from the little girl. "But Jesus would have loved these shoes," she cried. "Well, we'll go home and work some more. Don't cry. We'll come back," he said.
Quickly, I handed three dollars to the cashier. These children had waited in line for a long time. And, after all, it was Christmas. Suddenly, a pair of arms came around me and a small voice said, "Thank you, Sir." Then I asked, "What did you mean when you said Jesus would like the shoes?"
The small boy answered, "Our mommy is sick and going to Heaven. Daddy said she might go before Christmas to be with Jesus." Then the girl spoke, "My Sunday school teacher said the streets in Heaven are shiny gold, just like these shoes. Won't Mommy be beautiful walking on those streets in these shoes?"
My eyes flooded as I looked into her tear-streaked face. "Yes," I answered, "I am sure she will."
Silently, I thanked God for using these children to remind me of the true spirit of giving. Christmas is not about the amount of money paid, nor about the number of gifts purchased, nor about trying to impress friends and relatives. Christmas is about the love in your heart to share with others as Jesus Christ has shared with each of us. Christmas is about the birth of Jesus, whom God sent to show the world how much he really loves us. Please share this love as we think of the upcoming season. May God bless you. Merry Christmas!
_________________
5/7/05 Billy Bob's - Fort Worth
8/20/05 Acoustic - DFW
12/3/05 Billy Bob's - Fort Worth - Holiday delivery!
|
|
[img]