The Night Before Christmas: An African Christmas Story (standard:Inspirational stories, 1378 words)
Author: osofoaddo	Added: Dec 23 2010	Views/Reads: 3811/2235	Story vote: 0.00 (0 votes)
A miracle at a devastated African Village on Christmas Eve

Click here to read the first 75 lines of the story

surprise they were not and they did not have guns. They were just 
ordinary travelers. It seemed the bridge over the river near our 
village had been destroyed last April as the soldiers left our village. 
Since it was almost dusk and there were rumors that there were land 
mines on the roads, they did not want to take any chances. Their detour 
had led them straight to our village. When they saw us they were 
shocked and horrified at the suffering and the devastation all around 
us. Many of these travelers began to cry. They confirmed that tonight 
was really Christmas Eve. All of them were on their way to their 
villages to celebrate Christmas with family and friends. Now 
circumstances had brought them to our village at this time on this 
night before Christmas. They shared the little food they had with us. 
They even helped us to build a fire in the center of the marketplace to 
keep us warm. In the middle of all this, my sister became ill and could 
not stand up. A short time after we returned to our village my 
grandmother told me that my oldest sister was expecting a baby. My 
sister had been in a state of shock and speechless since we all escaped 
from the soldiers. 

I was so afraid for my sister because we did not have any medical
supplies and we were not near a hospital. Some of the travelers and the 
villagers removed their shirts and clothes to make a bed for my sister 
to lie near the fire we had made. On that fateful night my sister gave 
birth to a beautiful baby boy. This called for a celebration, war or no 
war, Africans have to dance and we celebrated until the rooster crowed 
at 6 a.m. We sang Christmas songs. Every one sang in his or her own 
language. For the first time all the pain and agony of the past few 
months escaped. When morning finally came my sister was asked, "What 
are you going to name the baby"? Would you believe for the first time 
since our village was burned and all the young girls and boys were 
taken away, she spoke. She said, "His name is Gye Nyame, which means 
except God I fear none." 

And so we celebrated Christmas that night. Christmas really did come to
our village that night, but it did not come in the cars or with the 
travelers. It came in the birth of my nephew in the midst of our 
suffering. We saw hope in what this little child could do. This birth 
turned out to be the universal story of how bad things turned into 
universal hope, the hope we found in the Baby Jesus. A miracle occurred 
that night before Christmas and all of a sudden I knew we were not 
alone any more. Now I knew there was hope and I had learned that 
Christmas comes in spite of all circumstances. Christmas is always 
within us all. Christmas came even to our village that night. 

Rev Peter  E Adotey Addo P O Box 13356,Greensboro NC 27415 336 375 5761 
Fax 336 375 0068 Website: 

http://home.roadrunner.com/~osofo 


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