My subsequent investigation into the historical evidence for Christianity did end up persuading me that the baby in the manger really was the unique Son of God. I tell the story of the Delgados, and the facts that convinced me Christianity is true, in The Case for Christmas. Yet as the Delgados demonstrated, Christmas is more than a compilation of information.

That’s why when churches tell me that they’re giving away free copies of my book to visitors this Christmas season, or encouraging their congregation to give the book to friends and family members, I remind them to make this more than an isolated gift.

If the book is accompanied by a spirit of authentic caring and humble serving, it becomes a much more powerful apologetic for the faith. If the book is shared amidst compassionate words of genuine love and concern, the evidence it contains is amplified in its impact.

The Delgados amazed me by the way they sacrificially reached out to their neighbors with a tangible expression of Christ’s love. What an opportunity for all of us to follow their cue this Christmas season – and to watch as God cracks open the hearts of even the most hard-hearted cynics.

Strobel, educated at Yale Law School, was the award-winning legal editor of the Chicago Tribune and a spiritual skeptic until 1981. He wrote the Gold Medallion-winning books The Case for Christ, The Case for Faith, and The Case for the Creator. A former teaching pastor at two of America’s largest churches, he is a contributing editor and columnist for Outreach magazine.