Noel of The Sinner.

By: Rocky Magana.

Part I

The following letter was written by Mr. Samuel White, to his Grandson David White on the day of December 20th.

To my dearest Grandson, Merry Christmas.How are things for you there; I pray that although you are

incarcerated, you are still able to find it in yourself to be thankful during this beautiful holiday season. Take heart; many good men have in their day found themselves in the exact same spot you find yourself in now. Even the apostle Paul was in jail from time to time.

I have written you this letter today for many reasons; the first one being that as you have already probably realized, this will be my last Christmas here on earth; the doctors have informed me that I have stopped responding to treatment, and that the cancer is too wide spread and I'm too weak to survive surgery. I'm left with no choice but to accept my fate and prepare my soul for its savior.

I will not live to see the day when you are released from jail; but it is my greatest hope that I will live to see the day you are free.

I have spoken to your mother, and she has told me all about your addictions and involvement in selling drugs... I will admit I do not know much about drugs, other than the

fact that they have robbed your life from you, and kept you from those who truly love you.

I know it has been hard since your father died, and you feel lost, I too feel lost sometimes when I think about the fact that I had to bury own son... I think to myself, it's not supposed to be this way, he wasn't supposed to die at age 32 and leave you behind to fend for yourself at such a young age. Sometimes I think that he should still be here and I should be the one in the ground.

But David we cannot change the past, we can only decide how we react to it, and trust that the same God who was smart enough and loved us enough to create the world we live in, is the same God who maps out our steps and cares for us even now. That he is the same God whose birth we celebrate this Christmas, the savior who came into the worlds to save us, so that when our days are at their end, we might move forward to eternal life; where there is no pain of disease or tragedy.

This is why I have written you today, I cannot leave this world in good conscience without first telling you a story... it is the story of a foolish boy and a naive girl, it is also the story of how your father came into the world, but most importantly of all, it is a story of true friendship and salvation.

It was January of 1942 and the whole country was buzzing with patriotic excitement after the U.S. had joined the war upon the bombing of Pearl Harbor only a month beforehand. Young men and boys were lining up by the bundles to sign up to go over and fight for their country. I was one of those boys. Just barely 18, I told myself it was my duty to go over and serve my country, but in all actuality, I only

did it because I wanted to get away from my father, your great grandfather, who was an abusive drunk to me and my mother.

I was a cocky kid who put up a real tough front to hide the pain and betrayal I felt on the inside. I had a lot of anger in me back in those days, and I told myself that I would go over to Europe and that I'd use that anger against my enemies, and that it would help me. Except there was one problem, my anger was out of control, and it got me into a lot of trouble. I was always getting into fights with other guys in my platoon, and my commanding officers hated me.

Before long I was on the verge of being kicked out of the military, before ever even getting to go over and fight. It was then that I met your Grandmother Anne, she was the most beautiful thing I'd ever seen. Her hair shined in the sunlight like gold, and she had a perfect smile, the kind that could light up a whole room. We met at a party one night that some fellas were throwing at their cousins house off base. She was wearing a white dress with strawberries on it, I still remember that dress even now... She was standing next to the punch bowl and I walked up and introduced myself, we hit it off instantly, and I knew that night that she was the one I was going to marry.

We began seeing each other pretty regularly over the next month or so, and then one night we decided to make love, I will not lie to you and say that it was terrible, but what was terrible was my timing for that was the night that she became pregnant with your father.

Unaware that she was pregnant I left her behind and shipped out for Europe a week later...

PART II

I was on a ship destined for France, and the days dragged on; there was not much to do on the ship other than count down the days to when we would be fighting and try to make friends with the other guys on the ship. Two of these guys that I met were brothers named David and William; they were from Montana and spent all day with their noses buried in their Bibles. They were so annoying, all they did was pray and talk to people about Jesus. Thinking I was tough I asked them if they were soldiers or preachers? And they replied both.

At the time I didn't understand what they were talking about and I mocked them mercilessly for it. As I made fun of them another guy who they had recently talked with Jesus about; his name was George I think, stood up and punched me in the face. I was infuriated, and I exploded in a fit of rage, I swung back cracking the guy on his jaw, I jumped on him and started punching him over and over again until my anger finally subsided, when I realized what I had done, I jumped up off of him and walked away; but as I walked away with my back turned, this fella George pulled a knife out of his boot and came at me trying to kill me. I never saw him coming and I would have died there on the ship with a knife in my back if William and David had not seen what was

going on and rushed to tackle the guy and calm him down.I was in shocked. Here are these two guys who I have

been making fun of and they put themselves in danger to save me. At the time I was too proud to say anything, but later on that night I approached them and asked them why it was that they didn't just let the guy stab me?

They replied that if they did that, that they would be just as bad as I was; and that Romans 12:14 commands to bless those who persecute you... Now this was the most foreign idea that I had ever heard in my entire life, that we are supposed to bless those who persecute us?

I greatly respected them from that day on, not because I believed any of the Bible stuff they were always preaching, but because they had saved my life. In time I became very close friends with them to the point that the three of us were almost inseparable; and every day they would beg me, Samuel please just listen to us, you need to accept Christ as your savior, and then they would quote John 3:16 to me, that because God so loved the world that he gave his one and only son that whosoever believes in him will not perish but have eternal life. They would say, as soldiers, we never know when our card might get called, you have to be ready.

But I was so hardened towards God back in those days, where had he been all of those years when my Father beat me and my mother? No I didn't want anything to do with God; but they were persistent, and as the time passed, and the battles grew worse and more violent, and friends started dying all around, ideas started to pop up in my head, like what if I don't survive, what do I really have to lose by saying

a prayer? It's like a insurance policy for my soul.But God doesn't work that way, he doesn't want to be

your insurance policy he wants to be your God, and friend, and lover; he wants all of you, and he wants to give you all of him, and he wants you to want all of him; and anything less is just you trying to outsmart God, which if your not aware of is impossible for he knows your every thought and intention.

However that still did not stop me from trying to outsmart him anyway, like I said I was a cocky kid, and the hate and pride inside of me was too great for me to get on my knees for anyone. And so I went on fighting and testing my luck, never knowing if I was the next to die, and William and David went on praying for me, and begging me to accept Christ...

PART III

Then came Christmas Eve 1942, that morning the brothers had led the whole platoon in a reading of the Christmas story before we headed out for the day; they read from the book of Luke chapter one where the angel Gabriel came to Mary saying,

Do not be afraid, Mary,for you have found favor with God.

Now listen:You will conceive and give birth to a son,

And you will call his name Jesus.He will be great

and will be calledthe Son of the Most High,

and the Lord God will give Himthe throne of his father David.He will reign over the house

of Jacob forever,And his kingdom will have no end.

And then they read all the way through to where Jesus is born and the angels appear to the shepherds who were watching their flocks, and rejoice,

Glory to God in the highest heaven,and peace on earth to people he favors.

And then we went off to fight for the day. That afternoon turned out to be the best and one of the worst days of my life.

We found ourselves in an especially heated battle with the German's and things did not look good. They had over taken us on our left flank and were bearing down on us with machine gun and mortar fire. I was separated from my platoon and had taken cover in a muddy ditch about 30 yards in the wrong direction; bullets were flying by all around me and for the first time in my life, I was really, truly honestly scared. I thought for sure that my time had come. As the bullets whizzed through the fog like little streaks of fire, I called out to my friends, William, David, are you there?

I couldn't see them, the gun blasts and explosions were so loud, that I couldn't hear anything else, and I was sure that they couldn't hear me. I peaked over the ridge looking for any sign of my platoon, but what I saw instead made my stomach sink into the bottom of my gut; there running right for me was an entire company of German soldiers only 150 yards or so away. I was a goner for sure; there was no way I was shooting my way out of this one. It was then as I faced my death head on and out of hearing range of my friends that I decided to call out to the only person who I knew would be able to hear me... I cried out as loud as I could God help me please!

More bullets flew by, more earth exploded and flew in my face, filling my mouth with mud. I was ready to just give up and put a bullet in my head to keep myself from dying at

the hands of my enemies, when out of the fog I saw two figures sprint out of the fog like deer in the morning; it was my best friends David and William, they fought their way across the field, dodge enemy fire the whole way, putting their lives on the line to get to me. My eyes filled with tears at the sight of them, I couldn't believe it. I called out once more David, William, is that you?

Hold tight Samuel we're on our way! William called back.

Soon they were right by me in the ditch yelling come on buddy, lets get you out of here!

Together the three of us turned and fired on the approaching German's and for the moment, fought them back just enough for us to make our full sprint toward safety, but just we were nearing the safety of our defenses, a mortar blast went off right beside us, throwing both me and William ten feet in the air. David was unharmed but my leg was full of shrapnel, and William's foot was missing.

The German's in the meantime had regrouped and we charging towards us once more, David doubled back, for us, there would only be time for him to save one of us, and... he came back for me. Leaving his brother to die on the battlefield, David came back for me and dragged me to safety...

The last thing I remember hearing that Christmas eve was William's voice calling out into the fog as the German's overran him and filled his body with bullets, he was saying,

Glory to God in the highest heaven,

and peace on earth to people he favors!

PART IV

That night David came and visited me in the medical tent. His eyes were red from crying, as were mine. He came and sat next to my bed, and I could hardly look at him. I felt so guilty, it was because of me that his brother was dead; that for all intents and purposes my brother was dead. He had his Bible with him, I said I said how can you even think about preaching right now, William is dead!

He didn't respond, he simply opened his Bible and began reading there is no greater lover than this, that one would lay down his life for his friends. I couldn't hold back my tears any longer, and burst into full heaving sobs, as if you cannot tell by the tears stains on this letter I am doing even now as I write this. We both sat together crying in silence for a very long time, both of us afraid to break the silence; but in time, I finally spoke up and said why did you do it? I mean why did you choose me over William? He was your brother, your flesh and blood.

To that, David flipped to another passage in the Bible and read Who is my mother, and who are my brothers? and stretching out His hand to His disciples He said, Here are my mother... and then David pointed at me and said and my brother! For whoever does the will of my father in heaven, that person is my brother sister and mother. Closing the Bible David scooted his chair closer to my bedside, he looked up at

the clock on the wall, and it struck midnight. A slight smile crossed David's face, and then it went away and he began speaking in as serious of a tone as I have ever heard Samuel, I chose you because I know where William is now, and it's not in pieces out there on a German battlefield... He is walking and dancing and singing with his Savior; even now as we speak he is bathed in the Holy light of Christ Jesus who was born on this day in a manger, so that all who are without hope would find hope, so that all who are without life might have it and have it abundantly... I chose you because I couldn't let you die without knowing your purpose for being here on earth, without you knowing the beautiful love that Christ has for you, and without you accepting His love and living for Him... I chose to let my brother die so that you might be saved from hell.

And with those words David stood up and exited my tent. I laid there that early Christmas morning, thinking about everything David had said to me, and it was then that it I at last came to terms, and humbled myself before Christ and asked him into my heart and life.

Soon me and my bum leg were shipped back stateside, where I quickly married your grandmother in a shotgun wedding just before your father was born. When your father was born and it came time to name him, it only seemed appropriate that we name him William in honor of the man who died so that I might live to see my son grown up and have a family of his own. This is also where you get your name from, your father thought that he should honor the man who gave him his father, and so he named you David.

I am here today, and have lived long enough to write this letter because a man you never knew, died for me many years ago, and he died for me because Someone else died for both of us far before either of us were born.

I will be gone by the time you're released, but I beg you to accept Christ today so that I can pass into Paradise at peace knowing my only grandson, they joy of my life will join me there some day.

This is the time that we celebrate Christ's birth, this is the time that we celebrate that true life coming into the world!

I love you with all of my heart, Merry Christmas,

Samuel D. White.