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"The giver of every 
good and perfect gift 
has called upon us 
to mimic God's 
giving, by grace, through faith, and this is not of ourselves."
St. Nicholas

let us do good
Nicholas is arguably the most famous saint in the world. He lived in a posture of open-handed generosity and the stories of his charity inspired the legends of Santa Claus!
 
Nicholas was born in the late third century to wealthy parents in what is now Turkey. At the age of 17, he gave away his substantial inheritance and joined a monastery. While still a young man, he was chosen to be the archbishop of Myra – a position which put him in authority over all bishops, priests, and churches in his region and indicated exceptional spiritual maturity and wisdom.
 
As archbishop, he was known for his compassionate care for the poor, joyful delight in children, and zealous defense of the gospel. Nicholas was present at the Council of Nicaea in AD 325 and helped draft the Nicene Creed which is still recited in hundreds of thousands of churches across the globe each Sunday.
 
Every year on December 6th, we celebrate the Feast of St. Nicholas - a day for remembering God's work through Nicholas and praising the Lord for raising up faithful shepherds for his Church. 
Breathe
 
Inhale: let us not grow weary
 
Exhale: of doing good
 
of Hebrews 12:1-2
Pray
O Lord, we pray that your grace may always precede and follow after us, that we may continually be given to good works; through Jesus Christ our Lord, who lives and reigns with you and the Holy Spirit, one God, now and for ever. Amen.
Book of Common Prayer, Proper 17
Sing
Shoes for St. Nick
In one story of his generosity, Nicholas learned of a ruined family who couldn’t provide dowries for their daughters. Wanting to help but not wanting to be identified as the helper, he threw enough gold coins to cover all three dowries down their chimney. Some of these landed in the family’s socks, which were hanging in the hearth to dry. From this story springs the tradition of Christmas stockings and Saint Nicholas Day shoes.
 
Traditionally, on the eve of December 6, families leave out a snack for Saint Nicholas, a carrot for his donkey, and empty shoes. In the morning, the food is gone, and the shoes are filled with treats and toys (you can see the original contours of the Santa Claus* legends in this tradition. Over time, this morphed into reindeer, milk, and cookies). Chocolate coins wrapped in gold foil and oranges (alluding to the round, gold coins) and candy canes (shaped like a Bishop's crozier / shepherd's staff) are common Saint Nicholas Day shoe-fillers.
 
If you’re looking for an additional teaching moment, recite the Nicene Creed together, and thank God for the faithful men and women of previous generations who worked so hard to protect and preserve the church!
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*A Note on Santa: for those who find that “Santa” takes up a little too much space in your children’s hearts on Christmas Day, the Feast of Saint Nicholas may be a perfect way to incorporate “Santa” in the season, but reserve December 25 for Jesus. When Saint Nicholas “comes” on December 6, use it as an opportunity to talk about the historic Nicholas who wanted nothing more than to point people to God with his gift giving. Allow December 6 to become a small taste of Christmas, a reminder that all gifts point us to God’s greatest gift, Jesus!
 
 

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