“Poor wise men.” Hannah presses her freckled nose against the back window. “I feel sorry for them.”
They have just driven by their church, which is down the street from their home. Every December, the church displays a manger scene with life-size statues. Even the camels are their real size.
“Why in the world do you feel sorry for statues?” Her momma asks.
“Because all they do is follow the bright star.” Hannah answers. “They never reach baby Jesus.”
“It’s okay sweetie.” Her daddy tells her. “They’re not real anyway.”
Hannah’s eight years old and knows the statues aren’t real, but she can’t help the way she feels. “I know; I’ll pray for them.” She closes her eyes and places her clasped hands under her chin. “Dear Jesus, the three wise men should be standing next to your manger. Please help them get to you. Amen.”
“We’re home.” Her momma glances back at her and smiles. “Let’s go inside and have some popcorn and hot chocolate while we watch a Christmas movie together.”
“Okay!” Hannah agrees.
Soon Hannah and her parents are sitting on the couch. After finishing off her hot chocolate, she lays her head on her momma’s shoulder.
Her doggie Roxie is curls up next to her.
Knock! Knock!
Somebody’s knocking at the front door. Standing up, Hannah sees Roxie standing at the door and wagging her tail. Then she looks over to see her parents still asleep. Her daddy’s snoring as usual.
Knock! Knock!
Roxie whines and paws at the door.
Knock! Knock!
Hannah walks to Roxie. “I’m not supposed to open the door to strangers.”
Roxie continues to whine and paw at the door.
Knock! Knock!
“Let me see if it’s somebody I know.” She peers through the side window panel. “I don’t believe it. It’s the three wise men statues from church!” She jerks open the front door. “You’re real!”
“Of course we’re real,” the tallest wise man states. “What else would we be?”
“I don’t know.” Hannah shrugs. “How did you all get here?”
“We followed the only light we could find.” The wise man with curly hair points to the street lamp next to their driveway. “We have never seen a light such as that.”
“Why aren’t you all following the Christmas star behind the manger?” Hannah asks.
“It no longer shines,” the tallest wise man answers.
“What?” Hannah steps out and looks toward the now dark church. “I bet they turned it off for the night.”
“How will we find the New Born King?” The one with the long beard asks.
“We have traversed so far and we are still no closer to finding Him,” The one with curly hair whines. “At times, it feels as though we will never reach Him.”
“That’s what I said.” Hannah crosses her arms. “I even prayed for you all.”
“Surely you can help us?” The one with the long beard pleads.
“Me?” Hannah gasps. “I’m just a little girl.”
“You are more than that.” The tallest one points to her. “God sent us to you because of your prayer.”
Hannah shakes her head. “Okay, I’ll go back with you all to the church and I’m bringing Roxie along too.” She reaches down and scratches Roxie’s head. “Give me a minute to get my coat and flashlight.”
She shuts the door and peers in at her still sleeping parents. Roxie looks up at Hannah and turns her head. “It’s okay. I think this a dream and I am gonna enjoy it.” She retrieves her coat and flashlight.
Stepping out, she shuts the door behind her and Roxie. “Now I need to get my bike.”
“What is a bike?” The tallest one asks.
“It’s something I’ll ride on,” she answers.
“Will my camel suffice?” He extends his right arm to reveal a camel walking up the sidewalk. When it reaches her, it sits down on its legs.
“Wow! I’ve never ridden on a real camel before,” Hannah exclaims.
“Let me help you.” The tallest one helps her climb up and sit down. “Now we are ready.”
At first, Hannah’s afraid of being up so high, but the wise man stays by her side. It’s very different than riding her uncle’s horse with her daddy.
As they travel down the road, Hannah notices no cars driving by. She’s glad since she’s not sure the wise men statues know what cars are.
When they reach the church, Hannah turns on her flashlight and shines it toward the manger. “See, there’s baby Jesus.”
“A true miracle!” The tallest one exclaims. “Now we can worship the New Born King.”
The camel sits down and the tall wise man helps her off. Then the three wise men turn toward Hannah and bow their heads. “Thank you, Hannah. We could not have done this without you.”
“Aww, you’re welcome. Everybody needs to find Jesus,” She answers.
The three wise men walk toward the manger.
“You have done well Hannah.” She turns to see one of the angels from the manger scene standing next to her. “It’s time for you and Roxie to go to sleep.”
“I don’t wanna go to sleep yet.” She yawns and rubs her eyes. Roxie licks her face. Hannah sits up. “I’m in bed.” She looks around her room. “What a dream!”
She jerks her covers off and slips on her puppy house shoes.
“Momma! Daddy!” Hannah calls as she runs down the hallway with Roxie behind her.
“Hey sleepyhead,” her momma greets her. “You went on to bed without us last night?”
“I did?” Hannah sits down at the table. “All I remember is my dream about the three wise men from the church.”
Her daddy lowers his newspaper. “Did you say the wise men from church?”
“Yeah, they knocked at the door because the star quit shining and they couldn’t find baby Jesus. So I got my flashlight and coat. Then Roxie and me walked them to the church and I flashed my light on the manger. Actually, I got to ride on one of their camels.”
Neither her momma nor daddy say anything. They just stare at her with their mouths open.
“What’s wrong?” Hannah asks. “I checked to see who was outside before I answered the door.”
“The church experienced a manger miracle last night.” Her daddy lays his paper down on the table and points to a picture. “The three wise men statues are now kneeling by the manger instead of sitting on their camels at a distance. Even their camels are kneeling.”
Hannah looks at the picture. Yep, the wise men and their camels are kneeling at the manger alright. The hairs on the back of her neck stand up. “It wasn’t a dream. It was real!”
“Sweetie, it couldn’t be real,” her daddy protests.
“Why not? You all heard me pray for them to reach baby Jesus and now they get to worship Him for ever and ever.”
Roxie barks and wags her tail.