"Every good and perfect gift is from above, coming down from the Father of the heavenly lights, who does not change like shifting shadows." James 1:9
Are you a party planner or a party participant? As for me, I delight in planning parties! I find it extremely enjoyable inviting an assortment of friends and relatives together to celebrate a joyous occasion. However, throughout my years of experience, I have also learned that certain aspects of various parties do not always turn out as expected!
One such example occurred many years ago when we were trying to surprise a dear friend for his 40th birthday. Thinking that we were being extremely clever, a group of us decided to throw this party two months early to prevent any suspicions. It was fun inviting his relatives and coworkers that we knew were extremely special to our guest, even though they were totally unknown to us. It was also exciting to think that all of these people would be assembled together to celebrate, with the common link being love for the guest of honor. However... our guest turned the table and ended up surprising us!
As each guest arrived, we quickly escorted them to our backyard and immediately closed the garage door to hide them, just in case the guest of honor arrived early. As all of the guests waited behind our garage, a rusty old truck pulled up and a large black gorilla dismounted from the front seat. As the gorilla approached me waiting in the driveway, he presented me with official work papers explaining that he had been hired for this party. Immediately, I assumed that this unique messenger had been sent by one of our unknown guests, so I allowed the gorilla to enter into the backyard with all the other awaiting guests (as if I would attempt to stop a gorilla!). A few minutes later, the screams from the backyard indicated our worst fears. As the mask was pulled off, there stood our guest of honor!
On December 19th, St. Matthew Lutheran School is hosting a joyous celebration. Every student is encouraged to invite a special guest (or even a gorilla!) to our annual "Special Guest Day". On this day, we look forward to many people gathering together in our building to celebrate the birth of the most important Guest of Honor, and that is Jesus!
Beginning at 8:30 a.m., guests will be served a special breakfast in our gym, featuring our cooks' homemade cinnamon rolls. At 9:15 a.m., guests will be escorted to the church to attend our Grades 1 - 4 Day School Christmas Program entitled, "Candles for Christmas". The day will conclude with guests visiting the classrooms from 10:30 - 11:00 a.m.
Looking forward to a wonderful celebration of Jesus' birth!
Mrs. Palka