Up the Sunbeam

-- I don't ever remember not believing in Jesus. I always knew the stories in my storybook Bible were different than stories in other storybooks--these stories were really true. I knew that Jesus was real and Santa was . . . well . . . real in a different way, and that Santa loved Jesus too. There was no "wink, wink, this is a fun game we're playing" expression when we talked about Jesus. I knew that God created everything in six days . . . six evening-and-morning days . . . and on the seventh day He rested. I knew that when the Bible said that God saved Noah and his family and the animals from the flood, protecting them in Noah's ark, it was really true that the whole earth was flooded. Story after story came alive for me, and I really did know the difference between fairy tales and the truth.  I was abundantly blessed with parents who faithfully read these stories to me, explained them with love and reverence, and lived the truth of them every day in...