.
“Ariel, why
are you pouting?”
“Christmas is not coming to our house
this year, Grandma.”
“Baby Girl, Christmas comes every
year.”
“Not as long as Mommy is behind
bars. It didn’t come last year or the
year before that.”
For the three years just after
Thanksgiving that was the conversation that I had with my grandmother after my
mother was sentenced to five years in prison. And every Christmas for two years I knew what
I would find under the tree: one outfit
and two toys. I was thankful but sad.
Last year was different though: a stranger knocked on our door and brought me
a fourth gift.
Grandma wasn’t surprised to see her,
and she let her in. The stranger sat
down and said she had something for me. I was shocked.
She handed a wrapped gift to me. When
I looked at the tag, it said, “Ariel, I want you to have the happiest Christmas
possible. Love, Mom.” Tears filled my eyes. This was a Christmas I
would never forget.
And the woman began to explain how
the love of Jesus motivated her to visit me that day and my mom last week in
prison. I wanted to know that love.
That year was the first time I went
to Sunday School, and every Sunday, Grandma, me and my mom have been learning
just how much Jesus loves.
Ariel’s mom
still has several more years in prison
Thanks to Angel
Tree, Christmas
is no longer the worst day of the year for her.
Mary Kay Beard, a former inmate, founded this
organization to make sure children like Ariel feel a parent’s love at Christmas,
and the entire family feels God’s love all year round.
In addition
to providing gifts to children
of inmates at Christmas, Angel Tree connects them to a church family and
their parents to a Bible fellowship while in prison. Both parent and child
learn the love and forgiveness of God as they wait for the parent’s release.
Angel Tree hopes to reach 400,000 children
this year, but there 1.7
million children whose parents are in prison.
With your small donation of $12.58, $50, $75, etc., Angel Tree can reach even
more families, taking the message of God’s love to lonely children and to
parents behind prison walls.
It’s not the gift; it’s the giver that makes
the difference, and when a child receives a gift from an imprisoned parent at
Christmas, a precious journey of hope begins. Help a prisoner parent become a
giving parent at Christmas and spread the love of God to an entire family. Donate
today.
No comments:
Post a Comment