Merry Christmas!

My eight year old son reads the Christmas story:

Merry Christmas to all!

Warm Christmas Memories

Everyone has those memories of Christmas that warm hearts.

My memory happened when I was a teenager. My mom, dad, and I had just sat down at the table for Christmas dinner when a knock on the door was heard by all. My dad rose to his feet and strode to the door. As he turned the knob to open the door, he let out a hearty, boisterous "MERRY CHRISTMAS!" that would have made St. Nick jealous. The two interlopers clear their throats and muttered an uncomfortable, "Well, uh, yes." The two members of the Jehovah's Witnesses were obviously uncomfortable as my dad engaged them in conversation. My mom was getting upset as the potatoes began to assume room temperature. My dad never shied away from engaging someone on spiritual matters.

How about you? Do you have any warm Christmas memories?

Happy Non-Sectarian, Non-Denominational, Politcally Correct, Non-Offensive, Ultra-Generic Winter Holiday(s)!

So as to be inoffensive to everyone, enjoy:

When I think about it, this video still leaves out Buddhists, Hindus, Shintos, Taoists, Communists, atheists, agnostics, Jehovah's Witnesses, and a multitude of smaller tribal--but no less "valid" in their own beliefs--religions. It does not mention Wiccans and their celebration of the winter solstice.

Lest we forget the real reason for and meaning of the season, the great theologian Linus Van Pelt reminds us:

The Cross as a Christmas Symbol

Several years ago, I was driving around admiring Christmas lights in our town. One house had a cross on the roof. I thought, What a strange thing.

Later, I got to thinking about it. The cross is really a symbol of Christmas. If it was not for the cross, the manger would be meaningless.

Secular commercialism has made Christmas the biggest day of the Christian calendar. We get a couple weeks off of school. We spent way too much money on gifts. Christmas has become the center of the Christian year.

The truth is that Passion Week/Easter is (or should be) the center the Christian year. The cross, not the manger, is the main symbol of Christianity. If Jesus does not die and raise again, we are doing a bunch of meaningless stuff. The virgin birth means nothing without the empty tomb.

We need to celebrate Christmas with one eye on the cross.

The True Meaning of Christmas

Here is the classic. Linus tells us the meaning of Christmas. This is timeless

Celebrating the Birth of Our Savior

I used to think Linus, on the Charlie Brown Christmas Special, went a little overboard when he decried the commercialism that surrounds Christmas. I now think our philosophical, blanket carrying friend was right.

This year, we are confronted with buying the perfect gift for everyone in the family. To top that, my in-laws are taking the family on a cruise for Christmas, which means we will floating around the Caribbean on Christmas Day, so the gifts need to be small. We have to tote them on and off the boat.

The thing that gets me is that we have to spend money to buy the exact gift someone else wants. There is no thought or surprise in gift giving anymore. We have to make sure we buy the right color, size, edition, style, or whatever. It's not enough to say, "I want a shirt for Christmas." We have to say, "I want the blue polo shirt with a white pinstripe, size XL." Ugh.

If we just not buy anyone else exactly what they want, we could buy what we want. I understand the notion of gift-giving at Christmas, but it is out of control. Do we really have to buy anything. If we do not get what the other person wants, they are disappointed. If they do not buy the exact thing we want, we are disappointed. If we leave it to chance, we get a bunch junk we really do not want. (Three years in a row, I received a hooded sweatshirt from the same person. It was a nice gift, but I really only needed one.)

I just want to focus on the birth of the Savior this year without the insanity of the hunt for the perfect gift.

The Meaning of Christmas

I think I've got a little caught up in the commercialism of Christmas. This years we decided we would give the kids a little money to buy their own presents for the family. I was at the mall the other day with my son, and he became very frustrated. He said, "I want to go home," while were looking for mom's gift. The mall was crowded. I found my self nearly saying, "Son, that's what Christmas is all about." Gack. I couldn't believe it. That is not what Christmas is about.

Let's keep a proper perspective this Christmas. It is a celebration of the Savior's birth, not an excuse to spend a bunch of money on a bunch of junk.

Advent Season, not Christmas, yet

This is not the Christmas season, yet. This is advent. "Advent is a season of preparation for the coming of Christ: preparation to celebrate Jesus' birth at Christmas, to receive faithfully the risen Christ who comes to us in the Word and Spirit, and to await with hope Christ's coming in final victory. The word Advent come from the Latin adventus, which means 'coming.' Our greatest challenge is to make Advent a time of expectation for Christ's coming to be with us, not a frantic time of meeting secular demands of the season" (Pat Floyd, comp., The Special Days and Seasons of the Christian Year: How They Came About and How They Are Observed by Christians Today, [Nashville: Abingdon Press, 1998]).

As Christians, we should have anticipation about Jesus' coming. His coming is in three phases. First, we anticipate the celebration of his first coming over 2000 years ago. Second, we anticipate his coming in the here and now into our lives. Third, we anticipate his Second Coming at some point in the future.

As the above quote says, we have to get away from the rushing about that is this time of season. We have parties, concerts, plays, get-togethers. Then we have the hundreds, perhaps thousands, of miles that we have to travel to see loved ones. There is the pressure to buy the "perfect" gift. All of this gets in the way of anticipating the coming of Jesus.

One of the names given to Jesus in the prophetic record is Immanuel. "Therefore the Lord himself will give you a sign: The virgin will be with child and will give birth to a son, and will call him Immanuel" (Isaiah 7:14, NIV). Immanuel means "God with us."

At this time of year, we should be anticipating "God with us."

The traditional Advent song goes, "O come, O come, Emmanuel."

"God, come and be with us."