The peace and warmth of inspired music just fills our souls. Merry Christmas.

It was December in 1943, and the world was engulfed in World War II.

All were concerned for loved ones on distant shores, and concerns at home were compounded by money and food shortages.

With family resources carefully guarded,

it was astounding to my father, Harold Hillam, then a nine year old boy,

to receive a miraculous Christmas gift: a train set. This is not any old train.

This train moved along the tracks all by itself. No pushing required.

It seemed impossible for such a marvelous gift to be a reality.

Oh, how Harold treasured that train.

A few years later, as Christmas approached,

the world was emerging from war.

Yet economic conditions in little St. Anthony, Idaho, had not improved.

And for my father's family, they had actually worsened.

Harold's father had been gravely ill, almost losing his life.

There would be no gifts for anyone that Christmas,

including Harold and his younger brother, Arnold.

A few days before Christmas,

Harold’s father came to him and quietly asked, “Harold, would you,

would you be willing to give your train to Arnold so he can have a Christmas present this year?” Had he heard his father correctly?

His treasured train? This was the request of all requests.

Christmas morning arrived, and Arnold squealed with delight as he received a train just like Harold's.

Arnold soon noticed that Harold didn't play with his train anymore.

Eventually, Arnold realized his treasured gift was not just like Harold's train. It was Harold's train.

When Arnold understood the significance behind the gift,

that train became priceless.

For me, this family story is itself a gift,

not just because it reminds me of my beloved father and his adored brother.

Even more important, it reminds me of sacrifice—

the sacrifice and love of a beloved Son of God, the one whose birth we celebrate.

Jesus Christ was and is our first and forever gift of Christmas.

I testify of this truth. He was born, He lived, and He died for us.

And He lives still. How blessed we are to be receivers of this joyous gift.

In the words of a beloved Christmas carol, “Joy to the world, the Lord is come; Let earth receive her king!”

Elder Neal A. Maxwell taught, “in view of all God has given to us, we ought to be pretty good at receiving, but we are not.

We who regard ourselves as quite self-sufficient and independent often find receiving awkward, [and] even difficult. …

[Yet] God’s gifts, unlike seasonal gifts, are eternal and imperishable,

constituting a [continual] Christmas which is never over!”

So how do we adequately receive such an exquisite gift?

How do we choose daily the gift of our Savior,

His love and His infinite Atonement?

Let's step away from frosted window panes and painted candy canes and let us learn tonight together from the humble roles of sandalled soles

of the first receivers of the infant Savior. As the birth of the Savior drew near, Mary and Joseph fought their way through the bustle of Bethlehem, but the inns were full.

Did no one have room for them? Would no one give them rest?

Mary knew the gift she was carrying, but no one had room to receive it.

To receive him. We can't truly know what Mary and Joseph felt at this point.

But I have always imagined them moving forward with quiet strength and trust,

heeding the angel’s invitation to fear not.

And now preparing for Jesus’s birth,

they were able to let go of any expectations for comfortable lodging

and instead settle in a quiet, lowly stable.

But what must have felt like a stark setting would not remain so.

The Lord would soon fill the hollowness with holiness.

As Luke 2:7 famously reads, “And she brought forth her firstborn son, and wrapped him in swaddling clothes, and laid him in a manger; because there was no room for them in the inn.”

Our Savior, that glorious gift of life, hope, and promise, had come to

the earth! Can we, can we prepare room in our hearts to receive Christ

and allow His holiness to fill our hollow places?

Like Mary and Joseph, we can trust in Him, even amid sometimes overwhelming circumstances. The guidance, even miracles that come into our lives will probably not be in the hustle and bustle, nor on stages or in stadiums,

but in the quiet places where we live and work, where we go for help.

Wherever our humble needs arise, we can and will receive answers to our whispered prayers.

Isn't it marvelous that some of the first receivers of the Lamb of God were shepherds?

Night blanketed the earth when awestruck shepherds gathered under a brilliant prism of light as heaven and earth collided in the transcendent event of the Savior's birth.

“And the angel said unto them, Fear not: for, behold, I bring you good tidings of great joy, … for unto you is born this day in the city of David a Saviour, which is Christ the Lord.

We love that these devoted shepherds did not delay their receiving,

but hastened to meet their king.

From them we learn that receiving is an action word.

Luke tells us the shepherds “came with haste” and found the baby lying in a manger. Many times our still, small impressions from the Lord may not be received

because they did not fit cleanly into our calendars or plans or our timing.

The Christmas story reminds us to be like those devoted shepherds who did not delay doing what was needed to come to Him and receive their king.

Now, did you notice? Luke tucked into the Christmas account a joyful prompting that receiving Him is sharing Him, explaining, “When they had seen [Jesus], they made known abroad

the saying which was told them concerning this child.”

These shepherds received this message from heaven,

went with haste, and immediately and thereafter became messengers of heaven,

proclaiming their “joy to the world” and invited all to “receive their king.”

Now let's turn our attention to the wise men.

They stand out among the great seekers of Jesus Christ.

They diligently spent their lives watching for the heavenly manifestation,

and when it came, they left behind comforts of home, jobs, family, and friends to follow the star and find their king.

Unlike the shepherds, there was an ongoing journey that took time.

They had to seek, ask, wait, and go,

and then do so again until finally they saw the young child with Mary,

his mother. They offered gifts that were most precious and fell down and worshipped him. I’ve often pondered, in our receiving of Christ, do we diligently seek Him and then allow Him to lead our journey to places and people unknown to us?

How can we express our gratitude through gifts and worship we offer?

So there it is, the grand Christmas story. My dear friends.

Blessed are the receivers.

As beloved as the gift of my father's train and the tender gifts of time and treasures made by families everywhere,

those gifts pale in comparison to receiving the true gift of Christmas, that of Jesus Christ. “For what doth it profit a man if a gift is bestowed upon him, and he receive not the gift?”

Consider that scripture in light of this eternal truth:

“For God so loved the world, that he gave his only begotten Son, that whosoever believeth in him should not perish, but have everlasting life.”

I love the promise that whosoever will truly receive the gift of Christ, given that holy night will have everlasting life.

So we see that through our daily efforts to receive Christ more fully,

we will become as our prophet President Russell M. Nelson

has invited, “a people who are able, ready, and worthy to receive the Lord when He comes again,

a people who have already chosen Jesus Christ.”

How glorious to imagine that day when together we will proclaim again, “Joy to the world, the Lord has come; Let earth,” and each and every one of us, “receive her King.” In the name of Jesus Christ, amen.