Lottie and Anna had had a lovely Christmas Eve, they had: -
Helped Mum stuff a 12lb turkey
Wrapped 11 presents
Helped Dad change 10 Christmas tree lights
Written 9 more cards
Put up 8 paper chains
Played 7 games of charades
Eaten 6 mince pies
Made 5 Yule logs
Hung up 4 stockings
Watched the Snowman video 3 times
Put out two carrots for Rudolf
And a glass of sherry for Santa Clause.
They had said Goodnight to their Mum and Dad who were busy in the kitchen and now it was time for bed. As they walked across the lounge they stopped to look at the Christmas tree with its tinsel, fairy lights and pretty decorations. They wondered what exciting presents they would get the next day, Lottie wanted a doll that walked and talked and cried and wet her nappy just like a real baby, Anna wanted a car racing set with a track that did loops and tight turns.
Then they noticed a large present next to the tree; they hadn't seen it before. It was huge and beautifully wrapped. What could it be? Quietly they crept over to the present to get a closer look. Perhaps there would be a label saying who it was for. They weren't going to open it or even feel it but they couldn't resist getting a closer look.
As they drew near the front of the present swung open. The girls jumped back surprised and a little afraid their mother would think they had touched a present before Christmas morning. They huddled together by a chair and looked at the open present. As they watched two people came out of the present, they looked tired. The woman was carrying a tiny baby carefully in her arms; the man helped her to sit down. Lottie and Anna looked at each other amazed but kept very quiet. Shortly afterwards some shepherds arrived bringing a lamb for the baby, they knelt, quietly adoring Him and then left the way they had come.
Then more people appeared. They were not shepherds, their clothes were beautiful and they wore jewels. They carried gifts that they gave to the baby, then they too knelt before Him for a little while and left.
Lottie and Anna also wanted to give the baby something, but what? They had no baby toys or clothes, they certainly couldn't get a lamb and the gifts the wise men had brought looked very expensive. Then someone else came out of the present; he was dressed in a long white gown, so bright it dazzled them. This visitor did not go to the baby, or his parents, he went straight across to where the girls were hiding. They were afraid but his voice was kind.
"Why are you sad?"
"We wanted to give the baby a gift but don't know what we can give him."
"We don't have anything a baby would want."
"Oh yes you do, this is a very special baby, His name is Jesus, He is the Son of God. He wants your love and he wants you to love each other and all people, at Christmas and throughout the year"
With that the angel left.
Quietly the girls crept out from their hiding place and went over to the baby. They each knelt beside Him and gave Him a gentle kiss on the forehead. The mother smiled at them and they went back to their hiding place. A short while later the man helped his wife to get up with baby Jesus and they returned to the present which swung closed behind them.
The girls wondered whether to tell their parents what they had seen but they knew their parents wouldn't believe them. Hand in hand they went to bed looking forward to Christmas Day, not for the doll or car-racing track, but because they now knew what Christmas was about, love. Love so strong that God sent his son, Jesus, as a tiny baby to live among us so that perhaps we could learn to love each other.
(When we did this it was entirely narrated, except the conversation between the angels and the children. Also we gave people dotted throughout the congregation slips of paper each with one of the "12 things to do before Christmas" and got them to shout them out in order but this didn't work very well! We used the names of the children that were acting the parts and the ideas for their presents came from the Sunday School children. The present was two sides, top and bottom of a large cardboard box (a washing machine box?) put at an angle to the congregation with the door hinge on the front corner so they could see the door open, but not through the box. The only other props were a small sofa and a chair.)