Petersen: 'Behold, I bring you good tidings of great joy'

A young boy had to say just one line at his church’s Christmas program. It was the angel’s announcement of the birth of Jesus: “Behold, I bring you good tidings of great joy.” For weeks the boy worked on learning his part.

The big night finally arrived. Just before he was to begin the program, the boy repeated those words to himself one last time. But when he went on the stage and saw that so many people had come, the few words he had to say were lost from his memory.

But then the boy raised his arms high and said in a loud voice that rang throughout the sanctuary, “Boy, have I got good news f...