There were two villages in a far off land.  One was in a valley and one was on a mountain top.  The people of the mountain village wanted to give each person in the valley village a special gift for Christmas. The people in the valley were having difficult times, but those in the mountain village were doing fairly well.

 

Sometimes when we are the ones on the mountain top. We, too, can help those people who are going through a valley in their lives.  That is what the people of the mountain decided to do. 

 

So a committee was formed of the townspeople to see if someone would be able to think of something special.  Money was limited, and so each gift had to be of equal value to each person. 

 

After much time, discussion and consideration, a decision was finally reached.  An elderly gentleman, who had loved Jesus for many years and was well respected and loved, came up with the idea of
the Christmas Candy Cane. 

 

"Now," you may be thinking to yourself, "What is so special about a Candy Cane, and how can it ever be tied in with Christmas?" 

 

So, here is what was going through the mind of the elderly gentleman when he thought of the idea of the Candy Cane.

1.

The Candy Cane is in the shape of a shepherd's staff.  Jesus is our
Shepherd and we are His flock.  A sheep follows his own shepherd, knows his voice, trusts him and knows that he is totally safe with him.  A sheep will follow no other shepherd but his own.  This is how we are to be with Jesus if we truly follow Him. 

(John 10:11, Psalm 23:1, Isaiah 40:11)

2.

Upside down, the  Candy Cane is a "J. '

This, of course, is the first letter of Jesus' name.

(Luke 1:31)

3.

The wide red stripes represent the blood He shed on the cross for
each one of us, so that we can have eternal life through Him. 

He redeems us and cleanses us with His shed blood, which is the only thing that can wash our sins away. 

(Luke 22:20)

4.

The white stripe represents the sinlessness and purity of our Lord. 
He is the only human being who ever lived on this earth who never
committed one single sin.  Even though He was tempted just as we are, He never sinned.

(Peter 2:22)

5.

The narrow red stripes symbolizes that by His stripes or wounds we
are healed.  Before the crucifixion, Jesus was beaten.

The crown of thorns was placed on His head.

His back was raw from the whip. 

We are healed by those wounds. 

He bore our sorrows and by His tripes we are healed. 

(Isaiah 53:3)

6.

The flavoring in the Candy Cane is peppermint, which is similar to
hyssop.  Hyssop is of the mint family and was used in the  Old Testament for purification and sacrifice. 

(John 29:29, Psalm 51:7)

7.

When we break our Candy Cane, it reminds us that Jesus' body was
broken for us.  When we have Communion, this is our reminder of what He did for us

(1 Corinthians 11:24)

8.

And if we share our Candy Cane, and give some to someone wise in
LOVE, because we want to, it represents that same love of Jesus because He is to be shared with one another in love.