On the Michigan frontier, while the adults disagree over whether there are enough settlers yet to build a church, a young girl tries to recall what church is all about.
As snow drifts higher and higher, the pastor of a small country church worries that no one will attend Christmas Eve services, but soon an unusual congregation gathers and shares the spirit of the season.
Humorous look a what a child who has never been to church before thinks it might be, including hard benches called pews, a preacher who preaches for hours, days, or weeks, not to mention the outrageous Bible stories.
The public image of the charismatic preacher Sister Margaret is peeled away when the husband she left behind years ago turns up sick on her doorstep and her son leaves the church for a more worldly life.
Abby, whose father preaches in a large urban church, sees a homeless old woman searching the trash cans nearby and is inspired to do something for the neighborhood's many street people.
