Serving Barnwell County and its neighbors since 1852
The Magi crossed deserts with gifts in their hands,
led by a star and a promise—
not to receive,
but to kneel.
Gold, frankincense, myrrh—
offerings laid before a Child
who owned nothing
yet would give everything.
And Christ, small in the cradle,
taught the first lesson of Christmas:
that heaven bends low to give,
that love pours itself out
long before we ever ask.
His life, His mercy, His cross—
all gifts before we even knew
how to reach for them.
So what are we to do?
We live in a world of
I want, I want, I want,
where the season rings louder
with cash registers than with carols,
where the glow of screens
tries to outshine the glow of the manger.
Christmas has become a list we hand out,
rather than a light we follow.
But the Child still whispers
from the low wooden trough:
Give as I gave.
Serve as I served.
Love as I loved.
Not out of duty,
but devotion.
So let Christmas be less
about what fits in our hands,
and more about what grows in our hearts—
less about getting,
and more about giving
in His name.
May we turn from
the hunger of “give me”
to the holiness of “let me give.”
May we lay our gifts down—
time, kindness, mercy—
as the Magi once did,
and follow His example
back to the true meaning
of the season.
