I didn’t care that tomorrow was Christmas Day

Just another night drinking my sorrows away

I sat in an old city bar on Christmas Eve

When a young lady walked in I had never seen

She seemed kind of shy, but had a glow unlike I had seen before

And there, holding her right hand was a little girl, maybe of four

I had nowhere to be so I ordered another beer

The bartender said, hey, no kids are allowed in here

And he said, besides, it’s almost closing time

That’s when she said, I saw your help wanted sign

The bartender, kind of frowned and asked, have you ever worked in a bar?

The young lady said no, but I’m out of options, we’re living in a car

And for once, the bartender was out of words

I could see behind her eyes was a lot of hurt

He said leave me your number and I’ll call your phone

She said, sir, I don’t have a phone, I don’t have a home

The bartender and I had grown bitter in our old age

But when she spoke those words something inside us changed

The bartender remembered how the cold winds blow

And it was predicted we were to get twelve inches of snow

So he said it’s not much but I have a small room in the back

You can spend the night there and she said they would appreciate that

And I pulled out a twenty and bought them something to eat

And then I noticed the holes in their shoes on their feet

The bartender opened the register and gave me all the cash

We both had the same thought to give the little we had

I sprinted out the door to the nearest store

And bought shoes, boots, coats and a little more

I checked out right before they closed

Then the snow started to fall on my nose

I hurried back to the bar with presents in hand

And I thought love, yes love right now is in high demand

Inside the bar, like the snow on my nose, my heart started to melt

And I started to feel something it had been a long time that I had felt

I don’t know if God had sent an angel to me that night

But somehow out of my darkness came a light

And maybe this story is about the young lady and her little girl

How all of us can help each other out, give love, all over the world

Or maybe this story is about how two strangers changed me

All I know is I was a different man after that Christmas Eve

Reach Out by Jason Crabb –

Heaven Everywhere by Francesca Battestelli –

The Christmas Shoes by NewSong –

Somebody’s Angel by Mandisa –

The Christmas Guest by Johnny Cash –

Our elf on the shelf is missing

Last seen on a frozen lake fishing

Maybe he fell in, but I suspect foul play

As a matter of fact, it was just the other day

Our teenager, the suspect, said she no longer believed

At first, I have to admit, I was quite relieved

No more candy wrappers to clean up

No more messes, no more spilled cups

No more having to re-roll the toilet paper

No more misadventure superhero capers

No more Christmas lights to untangle

No more worries he would end up mangled

Then it hit me, she no longer believed

My heart shrunk three sizes as I grieved

Not only had the elf on the shelf disappeared

But she no longer believed in the man with a beard

Would Christmas ever be the same?

Instead of snow, would it always rain?

But then, from upstairs, from my teenager’s room

It started off faint but I knew it was a familiar tune

My ears heard such a wonderful sound

She was singing Santa Claus is coming to town

Then she jumped into Frosty the Snowman

When she finished I held my wife’s hand

Christmas isn’t about Santa or an elf on a shelf

Christmas is about family and about something else

As she started to sing Silent Night

A terrible thing I suddenly realized

That as we looked for the elf all around

Nowhere in our house was Jesus to be found

Jesus was also missing, completely gone

An ancient star the wise men looked upon

A manger for there was no room at the inn

God came to earth to take away our sins

Then a thought went from my heart to my head

I remembered words I long ago had read

Today in the town of David a Savior is born

Born to die, our savior, our Lord

My heart grew three sizes as I remembered the true meaning

I was suddenly okay with Santa and the elf on the shelf leaving

Where’s The Line To See Jesus by Becky Kelley –

Christmas is All About You by Mallory Hope –

I made a batch of Christmas cookies

From some of your old recipes

The smell of them brought back memories

But they didn’t taste the same

I put up the tree and strung the lights

With every ornament hung I cried

Decorating the tree was your favorite night

But the lights didn’t shine the same

I watched It’s A Wonderful Life

I might’ve even watched it twice

But you weren’t there by my side

And Bedford Falls wasn’t the same

We sat around the dinner table

Talked about the baby born in a stable

I laughed and smiled as much as I was able

But my smile didn’t feel the same

I said my goodbyes and drove back home

Tried to listen to more Christmas songs

For a minute I felt like I wasn’t so alone

I knew Christmas would never be the same

Surrounded by family and friends

I didn’t think it would be this hard to pretend

I can’t wait for this day to end

Christmas just isn’t the same

Maybe next year I’ll be better

Maybe I’ll laugh at the ugly Christmas sweaters

Maybe I will enjoy the cold, snowy weather

Yes, Christmas will go on but it will never be the same

Christmas To Me by Jamie O’Neal –