There once was a farmer who did not believe in God and never hesitated to say so. His wife, however, had a deep faith and raised their children in the Christian tradition.
One Christmas Eve, she and the children were getting ready to attend the evening service at their small country church. Before leaving, she asked her husband whether he would come with them.
He shook his head.
“Christmas makes no sense to me,” he said. “Why would God lower Himself, become human, and come down to earth? The whole idea is ridiculous.”
His wife did not argue. She simply gathered the children, wished him a peaceful evening, and left for church.
The farmer remained alone in the house.
Outside, the weather quickly grew worse. Snow began falling heavily, and a powerful wind swept across the fields. Soon, a full winter blizzard was raging around the farmhouse.
The farmer settled into his favorite chair beside the fireplace and watched the flames crackle.
Suddenly, he heard a loud thud against the window.
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He worked for twenty straight years, and on the day he was finally ready to leave, his employer offered him a strange choice: take every dollar he had earned, or trade it all for three simple pieces of advice.
His coworkers thought he was out of his mind for even considering it.
Years earlier, the man had left his small hometown to find work and send money back to his wife. Before beginning the job, he made an unusual agreement with his employer.
“Keep my entire paycheck,” he said. “Do not give me any of it until the day I return home.”
So the years passed. He worked from sunrise to sunset, saved every cent, and dreamed of the day he would finally see his wife again.
After twenty years, that day came.
His employer sat him down and said, “I have all the money you earned. But I’m offering you a choice. You can take the cash and leave right now, or I can keep it and give you three loaves of bread for the journey, along with three lessons that may serve you for the rest of your life.”
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