My dad is a very special man. Quiet, calm, steady and consistent. Since my childhood, his wardrobe has changed very little. He has not seen the need to modernize his clothing style, and his clothes are carefully selected for the work that he does, including his socks.
Dad’s extra-long work socks are nothing impressive. In fact, some may look at those well-worn, clearly well-used socks, wrinkle their nose, shrug their shoulders, and turn away in disinterest. Few would understand or appreciate the significance Dad’s work socks had for his little girl.
Every Christmas, Dad’s socks turned into a treasure. Christmas Eve night, after my brother and I were fast asleep, Mom would select two socks from Dad’s drawer, one for me and one for my brother. Into those socks were stuffed the largest orange and the largest apple in town. Hidden in the toes were unshelled nuts and a small bag of home-dried fruit. An extra-large candy cane stick was somehow squeezed in. And just like that, those common socks became one of my most treasured childhood Christmas memories.
Perhaps it was the fact that this was something of my dad’s. Or perhaps it was how big the orange and apple appeared; I was convinced those fruits were bigger than my face, and they may have been! Or perhaps it was the fact that large, beautiful fruits were not readily available throughout the year in our home; my parents planned carefully throughout the year to afford those large pieces of fruit, nuts and candy.
Year after year, Dad’s work socks became our Christmas stockings for one day. Christmas after Christmas the contents did not change. Yet my pleasure at seeing Dad’s old socks, stuffed and lumpy, carefully stashed under the mostly bare Christmas tree never waned.
I did not know as a child that we were poor. I assumed that most children had the same lifestyle as my own, with similar Christmas traditions and financial limitations. For me, my Christmas stocking was a treasure that I cherished . . . and still do!
Isn’t it amazing how simple things that would not be appreciated by some are highly valued by those who do not receive them on a regular basis? This makes me think of our unreached friends around the world where the simplest gospel truths are not readily available, truths that, to us, might be well-worn and perhaps a bit under-appreciated from years of repeatedly hearing them. But to our unreached friends, these same truths become highly valued treasures that make all the difference to one whose heart is eager to hear for the first time what we have always known.
This Christmas season, join us in filling unreached hearts with the greatest Treasure of all. Your year-end financial gifts are one way to ensure that our unreached friends have the opportunity to know Jesus Christ as their Savior. To make your year-end gift, please visit afmonline.org/unreached or call 1-800-937-4236.
