And a little child will lead them. (Isa. 11:6)
Nine-year-old Rachael asked for just one thing for her birthday: donations to a charity that provides safe drinking water to villages around the world. She hoped to raise $300. And when she died in a tragic car accident shortly before her birthday, her selfless wish touched hearts worldwide, inspiring people to give. In the end, the charity received over $1 million in her name. “And a little child shall lead them.”
Today, we remember another child, Jesus, who, on His birthday came to offer so much more to the world than even little Rachael. He brought wisdom, justice, peace, faithfulness, righteousness, salvation, and God’s Spirit. All that Isaiah promised He would bring. He gave these gifts not only to the world as a whole but to each one of us personally.
While Jesus brought these things (peace, love, justice) in ways and at spiritual levels we humans never can, we can follow His lead and be His instruments to foster such things in the world, even today. On His birthday, as we celebrate the incredible gift of God’s Son, may we seek to give a gift back to God and find a way to bring a little more peace, a little more justice, a little more love. May we seek to emulate the child Jesus and remember all He gave. “And a little child shall lead them.”
Today, on Jesus’ birthday, choose a gift to give the world in His name.
Diane Gardner lives in the San Francisco Bay area with her husband. She enjoys oil painting, theater, music, and church ministry.
