Can you believe it? The head of a baby Jesus statue was knocked off and carried away by vandals. It happened in Wauwatosa, Wis., at Saint Joseph's Catholic Church. The church members understandably are angry and looking to get the statue fixed. If the head is not found, the church will have to replace the entire statue at a cost of $12,000.

Recently, the Cincinnati Enquirer told a story about a man named David Booth who wanted to make an apology. Years earlier in 1969, Booth tried to hijack a Delta flight. During the attempt, he threatened an 18-year-old girl with a knife. The offended girl's sister is certain her sister would have forgiven Booth, but Booth will not be able to experience the freedom and joy of offering an apology and receiving the grace of forgiveness. He learned a valuable lesson. The time to make amends or do anything noble and good is now.

A grandmother was showing her grandchildren one of those pictures of a Pilgrim family going to church on Thanksgiving Day. Thinking she might make a point, she said, "The Pilgrim children really enjoyed going to church with their mothers and fathers and praying to God." Her youngest grandson looked at her and asked, "So, why is their dad carrying that rifle?"

A fourth-grader stood up in his public school class, giving a report concerning the origins of the Thanksgiving holiday. Here's how he began:

Preachers hear a great number of fascinating comments when they stand at the door after the service. One preacher reported the most unusual compliment he ever received: An old, soft-spoken gentleman came out to greet the preacher after the service and said, "Missed my nap today." The preacher took it as a compliment. No doubt that is how the man meant it.

A lady on television was interviewing a woman who starred for many years on the "Lawrence Welk Show" and asked, "What did you learn from Lawrence Welk?" She replied, "To love the audience." If we preach from hostility the listeners will sense it. If we preach from love, they will sense it. We don't have to tell them-they will pick it up in other ways.

In 1902, a huge volcano erupted and killed the 30,000 inhabitants of St. Pierre, Martinique. Only one man survived-a condemned prisoner, convicted of murder, who was protected because of the sturdiness of his prison cell. He witnessed the whole calamity and was blinded by the volcanic ash. Government officials evidently thought he had been punished enough and pardoned him. He was so moved by his second chance that he became a Christian missionary.

In his famous autobiography, Seven Storey Mountain, Thomas Merton wrote of the death of Christ and used three little prases: He was sacrificed for us, by us and with us. We understand that it was for us. We never held a hammer or drove a nail, but we know it was by us. Time means nothing to God. Jesus could die because of our sins before we're even born. The Bible says that when we sin, we do it all over again; we "crucify Him afresh." What does it mean that He was sacrificed with us? The apostle Paul understood it. He said that by the cross "the world is crucified unto me and I unto the world."