A is for Advent which just means getting ready for the coming of Jesus.

A is also for Angels who brought the news of the coming babies to Zechariah and Mary.

B is for the Bible where the story is to be found. And Bethlehem where the baby was born

C is for the Census that made Mary and Joseph go to Bethlehem. And C is for Child that God had long promised. The Christ Child!

D is for the donkey that carried Mary to Bethlehem to be registered.

D is also for the Dreams that Joseph had, about the baby and that he was to call him Jesus. And the dream that God used to warn Joseph of the danger of King Herod and to run away to Egypt.

E is for the Emperor who was called Augustus. He insisted that everyone should go to their home town to registered in his census.

F stands for the Frankincense that was brought as a gift to the new born child, to show this was a holy child

G is for the Gold that was given to the child, to signify he was a King.

H is for King Herod who was jealous of the child and saw him as a threat. Because of this Herod killed all the male children of two year old and under in the Bethlehem area.

I is for Isaiah who told about the coming baby 700 years before it happened.

J is for Mary's husband to be; Joseph and the name of the child was to be Jesus, which means "The Lord Saves."

K is for the Kinsfolk that belong to Jesus' family. Remember Elizabeth and Zechariah and John, Jesus' cousin, who became the Baptist.

L is for Love. God's love shown to the world in the gift of his Son. So that all who believe on him can become God's friends and be forgiven.

M is for Mary the Mother of Jesus who was happy to do God's will for her and the world.

M is also for the Myrrh that was presented to show that this child was destined for suffering and death.

N is for the Nine long months that Mary carried her child and Nazareth where Jesus grew up.

O is for Ourselves to whom the message still is real, as we wait for Christmas and Christ to come another year.

P is for Peace on Earth and good will to all men and women.

Q is for Quirinius who was Governor of Syria at the time of the registration.

R is for the Rejection that this child was going to experience, rejected by the inn keeper, by his own family, by his friends; the disciples.

R for Rejected: he was also rejected by the Jews and by the Romans and most of the people.

S is for the Stable where the baby Jesus was born. There was no room in the inn and so he came into the world beside the animals. The baby Jesus was placed in a manger which is an animals feeding box. He was placed on a bed of straw.

S is also for the Shepherds who first heard the news from God's angels. They left their sheep to go and see this special event and told everyone they met about it.

T is for the Time of year; mid winter so we are told. And from that time the years would change and instead of B.C. Before Christ, they would become Anno Domini, 'In the year of our Lord'.

U is for Urgent and it was an urgent escape for Mary and Joseph and the baby Jesus to Egypt and safety from King Herod.

V is for the Victory that the coming of the child would bring. He died to save the world from sin.

W is for the Wise men who travelled far to see the baby Jesus who would be King. Melchior brought the Gold, Caspar the Frankincense as a symbol of holiness and Balthasar gave the Myrrh which stood for suffering and death.

W is also for Worship. The shepherds and wisemen and others came to Worship the child and we must do the same.

X is like the shape of the star that every one wondered about, that the Wise Men followed and that stopped over the place where the baby Jesus was born.

X is also like the Cross on which he was die when he grew up.

Y is for you and what you think of the story so far, is it just a story or is it real to you. If you believe in the baby that grew up to be a man and died. The baby who was God's Son, then this could be the Advent to remember for ever.

Z is the last letter of the Alphabet as you know. And Z was the Zenith or the peak of God's love shown to the world, his world. This was the ultimate gift, the very best from God to his creation. Ever!

Loving God we thank you that we have memories to remember things. We thank you for the season of Advent that helps us get ready for Christmas and to remember the Christmas story.

Help us this Christmas as we enjoy the best of things in life to remember you and your love shown to us in your son Jesus. Help us to remember our families and the love that makes us happy.

Help us also to remember those who will not have a happy Christmas because they are ill of alone, poor or hungry. Loving God help them and those who work so hard to help others who need help at this time of year. For Jesus sake we ask it. Amen.