Once Upon a Time, In a Faraway Land, there lived a king and queen and their daughter, Princess Isabella. The King and Queen tried their best to teach Isabella Christian values. They helped the poor and prayed often. Before every meal, they would say this prayer: “Lord Jesus, come and be our guest at this time.” Since the family said that prayer ever night, Isabella couldn’t understand why Jesus would never come. So, one day, she confronted her mother about her thoughts.
“Mama,” Isabella said to the queen, “Even though every night we ask Jesus to come, he never does! Will He ever come?”
The Queen replied to her daughter, “Of course He will!”
“Will He come soon?” The little princess asked.
“Yes, my darling. He may even come tonight!”
“Oh Mama! May I set a chair for Him? Please?”
“Yes, my angel. Of course you may.”
So Isabella ran to the dining room and set up an extra chair next to her own. Right after they had said grace, they heard a knock on their door. The king got up from the table to answer it. A minute later, the king ushered a poor woman into the dining room and put her in the empty chair next to Isabella. All during dinner, Isabella was trying to figure out why her father had put the poor woman in Jesus’ chair. While her father put the woman to bed, Isabella figured out why the woman had come and sat in the chair.
The little girl rushed to her mother crying, “Mama! Mama!” After the queen had given the little princess her attention, the girl said:
“Now I understand why the woman sat in Jesus’ chair! He was busy tonight, so he sent the poor woman in his place!”