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The children of St. Paul’s Church in Auckland, New Zealand, imagine what was going on in heaven immediately prior to the birth of Jesus. Entitled “An Unexpected Christmas”, this video begins with God sitting in the midst of heaven’s fluffy clouds peering down on earth through a telescope and sighing over what is taking place. The child playing the role of God says, “It’s hard to be friends with people when you don’t like what they are doing. I think it’s time.”
The script is based on the book "An Unexpected Christmas" by Simone Graham, whose kids are also in the film.
Have you ever wondered what we might see if we could pull back the curtain of time to that very First Christmas? If we could, I imagine the story began in Heaven, something like this…
God was looking over Heaven’s balcony one day, shaking His head at all the wrong things people were doing down on Earth.
- Oh man, this isn’t quite what I had in mind when I created earth – I feel so far away from my kids down there.
- Why??
- It’s just hard to be friends with people when you don’t like what they’re doing. I think it’s time.
- Time for what, Lord?
- Time for us to step in.
- Shall we ready the army, Lord? Teach them a lesson?
- No, I don’t think we should send an army. Maybe just one person.
- One person???
- Brilliant! They won’t be expecting that.
- Lord, if you’re sending just one person, it’ll have to be someone very powerful and very strong, ‘cause there’s tons of people down there.
- No, they don’t have to be strong. They’ll be going as a new-born baby.
- A new-born baby???
- Brilliant! They won’t be expecting that!
- Lord, this plan is rather risky. A new-born human baby is small and weak. This baby must be born to people who will protect Him – maybe a Great Ruler or a Mighty King?
- Actually, I was thinking I could send Him to a peasant girl, whose heart is beautiful and full of courage.
- A peasant girl???
- Brilliant! They won’t be expecting that.
- My Lord, I see You are planning to take Earth by surprise. No-one will be expecting a new-born baby born to a humble villager. But what good can a baby do?
- This will not be just any baby; I’m sending in the Prince of Heaven in disguise.
- The Prince of Heaven?
Our Prince?
Your Son?
- Brilliant! They won’t be expecting that.
- Lord! This is too risky! Sending the Prince in disguise as a tiny baby, born not to Kings but to humble villagers? Surely our Prince cannot be born in a cottage. He must be born in a Palace!
- You’re right; he shouldn’t be born in a cottage.
- Whew!
- He’ll be born in a stable!
- A stable??
Surrounded by animals?
Filled with hay?
Filled with poop??
- Brilliant! They won’t be expecting that.
- Lord? How will all the people know He’s there? What if they don’t notice?
- Those who are looking will find Him, and His mission will bring all people closer to me, even if they do something really wrong. When the Prince is done, nothing will get between them and my love.
- Can we leave some clues for the people looking? Like in the stars?
- Clues in the Stars? Sure, why not. We can make one huge one that points to Him.
- Can we sing for Him?
- Yes, can we sing?
Sing to welcome Him?
Please say we can sing!
God looked at their hopeful faces and His heart was touched by their love for the Prince.
- Alright, you can sing.
- Yay!
- But not in front of the whole world, that would just be weird. And no Kings or Rulers…
- How about if we sing for some shepherds? That’s a lonely job. Those blokes could do with some cheering up.
- Brilliant! They won’t be expecting that…
You know the rest of the story.
An Angel visited a humble girl with a courageous heart, and told her the Good News; she would have a baby and He will be the Prince of Heaven who would help Earth to be close to God again.
As planned, the baby was born in a stable – about as far from a Palace as you could get.
A group of Wise Men noticed some strange clues in the stars. They packed their belongings and followed the Star, right to a baby.
And, of course, a bunch of lonely Shepherds were guarding their sheep when all of a sudden the sky was lit up by thousands of angels singing.
Nobody would ever expect that.
SHAKING HIS HEAD= If you shake your head, you move it repeatedly from side to side to show disapproval, meaning "No" (the opposite is "to nod", which is to move it up and down repeatedly meaning "Yes").
OH MAN!= A colloquial expression used to show surprise or annoyance (similar to "Oh my God!").
WHAT I HAD IN MIND= What I was thinking; what I was planning.
MY KIDS= (coll.) My children, my sons and daughters.
TO STEP IN= This literally means "to enter by walking", but as an expression it means: to take action, to start doing something about it, to intervene.
SHALL WE...?= An expression used to make a suggestion, to propose an idea.
READY= As a verb, to ready means "to prepare", "to make ready".
TEACH THEM A LESSON= (menacing expression) If you teach somebody a lesson, you make them learn or realise something by using force or any other nasty way. If you say "I'll teach you a lesson", that means you are ready to hit them or hurt them in some way.
BRILLIANT= (BrE) Great! cool! fantastic; Excellent idea!
THEY WON'T BE EXPECTING THAT= They (people on earth) can never imagine that something like that is going to happen (it will take them by surprise).
LORD= A common way to address God (in Christianity and many other religions).
IT'LL= /ɪtəl/ It'll have to be...= it must be (but thinking of a future situation).
'CAUSE= (coll.) Because.
TONS OF= (coll.) /tʌnz əv/ lots and lots and lots of..., many many.
THEY= Here, they are talking about "just one person" and still, God uses "they". In this case, "they" means "he or she". The pronoun "They" has no gender, it may be used for men, women or both, so in modern English we sometimes use it not only meaning "he and she", but also "he or she" (singular meaning), especially if we are talking about "somebody" indefinite. A bit later they will start using "he/him", so then we know they are talking about a boy/man.
A NEW-BORN BABY= A baby who has just been born, a few minutes, hours or even days ago.
RATHER= /rɑ:ðə*/ Quite.
RULER= Someone who rules a country or area (a king, governor, president, etc.)
MIGHTY= Powerful.
ACTUALLY= In fact.
PEASANT= /pezənt/ A country person; a rustic (usually poor people of no importance).
COURAGE= /kʌrɪdʒ/ Bravery, the quality of mind that lets somebody face problems or dangers.
TO TAKE EARTH BY SURPRISE= If you take a place by surprise (or by storm), you conquer or control a place quickly and when nobody is expecting it or prepared for your intervention.
HUMBLE= Poor, unimportant, powerless.
VILLAGER= A person who lives in a village.
WHAT GOOD CAN A BABY DO?= (talking about results) What good can this do?= can we get the desired result with this? (so here "good" is not about good-bad, but about being useful or not).
IN DISGUISE= Under a different appearance, so nobody will recognise him.
RISKY= Dangerous (because it can fail or harm you)
TINY= /taɪnɪ/ Very little.
BORN TO= If you are born to Susan, that means that Susan is your mother.
SURELY= With no doubt, with certainty.
COTTAGE= A rural house in the country.
WHEW!= An expression of relief.
STABLE= A place to keep domestic animals, especially horses.
HAY= Straw (dried grass) for feeding animals.
POOP= (child language, also "Pooh") Excrements.
WHEN THE PRINCE IS DONE= When the Prince finishes. To be done is To finish:
- Are you done?
- Not yet. Wait a second. Ok, now I'm done.
CLUES= Something (a visual sign or an idea) that serves to guide or direct in the solution of a problem or mystery.
LIKE= (coll.) For example.
- You must eat fruit, like bananas, oranges and apples.
SURE= (coll.) Of course.
HUGE= Enormous, very very big.
HOPEFUL= Having or expressing hope, wishful.
TOUCHED= Moved. If something touches you (or moves you), you feel a strong emotion in your heart.
- I was touched by her welcome present.
- That beautiful song touched me (also: touched my heart)
YAY!= /jeɪ/ An expression of happiness.
THE WHOLE WORLD= All the world, all the people on earth. Everybody.
WEIRD= /wɪə*d/ Strange.
HOW ABOUT IF...?= We use this expression to introduce a suggestion.
SHEPHERDS= /ʃepə*dz/ A shepherd is a man herding sheep (guiding and taking care of them). Feminine: shepherdess.
LONELY= Solitary.
BLOKES= (BrE, coll.) Guys, men, people, folk.
COULD DO WITH= If you could do with something, you need or want it:
- I could do with some rest now, I'm so tired.
- Oh, I think you could do with a good dinner, you look hungry.
COURAGEOUS= /kəreɪdʒəs/ Having or showing courage (see above).
CLOSE TO GOD= Near God.
AS PLANNED= According to plan.
PACKED= If you pack your things, you put them into a bag or suitcase so you can travel and take them with you.
THEIR BELONGINGS= The things they possess.
RIGHT TO A BABY= Exactly to the place where a baby was.
A BUNCH OF= A group of, a few.
GUARDING= /gɑ:*dɪŋ/ watching over, protecting.
ALL OF A SUDDEN= Suddenly.
LIT UP= If you light something up, you illuminate it (light-lit-lit).
Official → Cool
