Early Christmas morning I went for a walk through our farm in Lala, Lanao del Norte. There was a gentle breeze blowing through.
All of a sudden there fell a coconut from above, hitting the ground barely one foot in front of me. If it had dropped on my head it could have cracked my skull and killed me. I stood there for a moment, rooted to the spot and bewildered. I reflected for a moment on what happened and realized that this was Christmas morning.
I experienced personally the mystery of Christmas—God becoming Emmanuel, God with us. Was this a miracle? No, I experienced personally that God was with me, protecting me from danger and death. I realized that my time had not yet come. I got another lease on life.
It occurred to me that there is a great difference between knowing a mystery and experiencing a mystery, personally. That is what I did that early Christmas morning.
—ARNOLD VAN VUGT,
PN Roa Subd., Calaanan,
Canitoan, Cagayan de Oro City