Daily Devotions from Lutheran Hour
Ministries by Pastor Ken Klaus, Speaker Emeritus of the Lutheran Hour - "
The Favorite Holiday" - Wednesday, 27 November
2013
(Jesus said) "Truly, I say to you,
whoever does not receive the kingdom of God like a child shall not enter
it." And He took them in His arms and blessed them, laying His hands on
them.(Mark 10:15-16)
A few weeks ago I shared a Daily Devotion
that asked, "How low can a person go?" It is a topic you probably
will see again in the future. This week the scale is balanced with a new category:
"How good can we get?"
The story centers on Port Clinton, Ohio.
Port Clinton, situated on Lake Erie somewhere between Toledo and Cleveland, has
about 6,000 residents: 6,000 very special residents. They are special because
they have special hearts. At least they had special hearts for 13-year-old
Devin Kohlman.
To understand Port Clinton you need to
know a bit about Devin. Devin loved playing sports, but that stopped in the
summer of 2012 when he was diagnosed with brain cancer. Devin, his family, and
his doctors fought that cancer, but it was a losing battle.
When the doctors said, "He doesn't
have long," the family brought Devin home for his last days. At the time
Devin said he hoped he might be around to celebrate one more Christmas with his
family. Christmas, you see, was Devin's favorite holiday.
Devin's physicians said, "That's not
going to happen. His time is numbered in days, not weeks." All I can say
is this, those doctors knew Devin's physical condition, but they didn't know
the hearts of the folks in Port Clinton.
And this, my friends, is where it gets
good. Even though it was late at night, when Devin came home, the folks of Port
Clinton showed their support by standing along the route of his police escort.
Then they put up and decorated a Christmas tree outside of Devin's window; then
they brought in mountains of "snow" out of shaved ice and put it in
his yard; then hundreds of them sang Christmas carols outside his home; then
Santa Claus showed up on a Harley; then Devin's friends came to visit him.
(Each was given a teddy bear from the gazillion teddy bears which had been sent
to him.)
How good can we get? The folks of Port
Clinton have set the bar pretty high in helping a boy with cancer celebrate his
favorite holiday: his Savior's birth.
Well, the folks of Port Clinton, the
doctors, Devin's parents all did their best. Sadly, their best wasn't good
enough to keep him around until the calendar turned December 25. Devin died a
few weeks ago. And, for many folks, that means this beautiful story has a sad
ending.
Don't you believe it. Don't you believe
it for a second. You see, when the doctors and the parents and the beautiful
folks of Port Clinton had done all they could ... Jesus picked up. When death entered
Devin's room, the Lord of life was there and took that boy home. And this year,
while we try to celebrate Christmas, Devin will be with the Christ.
And that never-ending celebration of the
Savior will be his favorite holiday of all.
THE PRAYER: Dear Lord Jesus, may we who
know and celebrate Your love and sacrifice show it to others whenever we can
and in whatever way we can. In Your Name. Amen.
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In Christ I remain His servant and yours,
Pastor Ken Klaus
Speaker Emeritus of The Lutheran Hour®
Lutheran Hour Ministries
660 Mason Ridge Center Dr.
St. Louis, MO 63141
1-800-876-9880
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