Hank Cochran

“As a child, I lived with my grandparents and we were very poor. Every year I would hear the other kids talking about Christmas trees and presents – and I really didn’t understand why we didn’t have those things.

We talked about Jesus, but His birthday wasn’t a gift-giving occasion at our small home in Mississippi. One year when I was six or seven, I finally got up the nerve to ask my grandmother why we didn’t celebrate Christmas like everyone else. Her answer was, “You just have to believe.”

Well, that was pretty heady thinking for a kid, but I wanted presents like all of the other kids – so I began to concentrate – and believe.

That Christmas Eve, Grandmother reminded me of my promise to believe, and I went to bed that night praying for “Christmas” with all my might.

This post was submitted by Hank Cochran.