It is that time of year when we gather with family and friends, exchange presents and reflect on the true meaning of Christmas. As we celebrate the most wonderful time of the year, let me simply say from my family to yours, Merry Christmas! I hope your days are peaceful and relaxed as you come together with those who mean the most to you.
Christmas is often a time of reflecting on Christmases past, and I would like to recount my experiences growing up in rural Butler County. The first Christmas I recall was around age 5. Because we were fairly poor, our gifts were not elaborate, usually peanut brittle, shoes and a pair of socks. We had a special Christmas around 10, when my brother and I got BB guns.
We had no indoor plumbing, and we took baths in a No. 3 round wash tub. After getting the water from the well, Grandma heated it in a kettle on a wood stove. The baths went in order of age, with the older kids going first. So I was usually last and by that time you could not even see your hand in the water. This is the origin of the saying “don’t throw the baby out with the bathwater.”
Christmas is a time to appreciate God’s love and to celebrate the birth of Christ. Let us not forget that God sent his only son to us to offer a message of peace, love and hope. And let us also remember that Jesus died for our sins so that we might have salvation. Christmas is a time to remember that we will find joy and peace when we look to God for answers.
My relationship with Jesus began at age 25. When I moved to Poplar Bluff and our children were very small, Jerry Rice and the pastor of New Testament Church would come by and visit my family and me. I did not feel a reason to go to church, but I urged my family to do so and they began attending. When I realized the gentlemen stopped by on Saturdays, I started hunting on that day to avoid them.
On one Saturday morning, I woke up seriously ill. My wife called the church and asked them to pray for me. The pastor and Jerry Rice did not get the message and had decided not to visit me because they thought I was a lost cause. However, no one else was home at the places they stopped and they decided to visit me one more time. They came and told me the plan of salvation, for which I am eternally grateful.
I went in my bedroom, got on my knees, and asked Jesus Christ to forgive my sins and save me. It seemed like everything going wrong in my life turned around, and I was blessed in so many ways.
Instead of wasting my money, I started saving and figured out a way to improve our financial situation. Since then, I have been blessed beyond measure.
At the same time as we celebrate the greatest of holidays, I also ask us to remember those who are less fortunate. They won’t have the luxury of the companionship of family and friends, presents to open, or possibly even a warm meal. Please keep them in your prayers. Christmas is a time of giving and it’s important that we remember that means more than presents. It should also be a time to give of ourselves to help our neighbors.
May God bless and keep you and our great nation.
Hardy Billington represents District 152, which includes parts of Butler and Dunklin counties.