A Candymaker's Witness

A Candymaker in Indiana wanted to make a candy that would be a witness, so he made the Christmas Candy Cane. This candymaker incorporated several symbols for the birth, ministry, and death of Jesus Christ.

He began with a stick of pure white, hard candy. White to symbolize the Virgin Birth and the sinless nature of Jesus, and the hard to symbolize Solid Rock, the foundation of the church, and firmness of the promises of God.

The candymaker made the candy in the form of a "J" to represent the precious name of Jesus, who came to earth as our Savior. It could also represent the staff of the "Good Shepherd" with which He reaches down into the ditches of the world to lift out the fallen lambs who, like all sheep, have gone astray.

Thinking that the candy was somewhat plain, the candymaker stained it with red stripes. He used three small stripes to show the stripes of the scourging Jesus received by which we are healed. The large red stripe was for the blood shed by Christ on the cross so that we could have the promise of eternal life.

Unfortunately, the candy became known as the Candy Cane - a meaningless decoration seen at Christmas. But the true meaning remains for those who "have eyes to see and ears to hear." May this symbol again be used to witness to the Wonder of Jesus and His Great Love that came down at Christmas and remains the ultimate and dominant force inthe universe today.

However, http://www.snopes.com/holidays/christmas/candycane.asp tells a different story. Decide for yourself what you want to believe. Whether the "Christian" version of the story true or not, I don't like candy canes because they are mint - which makes me gag.

In any case, Merry Christmas, everyone.