There’s something special about a baby

It was just hours before Christmas. The store parking lots were packed, and the cashiers were working non-stop, trying to check people out and get them on their way.I was shopping with my mother, my sister Treasa, and my baby niece.

Everyone in the store was busy and preoccupied, eyes glazed over with mental lists of tasks that needed to be checked off before Christmas. Yet, as we made our way through the aisles, the other customers would stop just to talk to the baby.

They would push their carts to the side and walk over to peek into her stroller. They would crouch down or lean over, murmuring their hellos—their voices rising in excitement and pleasure to see her. They were eager to engage with her. They wanted to see this baby girl wriggle and smile.

They must have been busy themselves—no one would choose to do last-minute shopping for fun—but they had all the time in the world to interact with this little one. And they wanted to know everything about her.

How old is she?

What’s her name?

Isn’t she cute?

She’s 6 months old now, and she’s just a little bundle of sweetness.

We finished our shopping and headed on our way. And Christmas has come. Jesus has been born to all of us, to this fallen world, to show us how to live and to love—and to save us.

And I find myself thinking about the Baby in the manger. God knows what we need better than we do ourselves. He knows that there’s something special, something extraordinary about a tiny baby. He knows how the Infant Jesus will capture our attention—if we just let Him.

This Christmas season, I’m thinking of those who are frantic last-minute Christmas shoppers who paused with everything they had to do just to admire my baby niece. In the busyness of this time of year, I hope each of us can find moments to stop and gaze at the Infant Jesus and feel grateful just to be near Him.

O come let us adore Him.

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