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Archive for the ‘christmas’ Category

Do You Hear What I Hear?

Posted in christmas, Guest Post, WONDER, tagged 1 kings 19:11-12, busyness, Charles Swindoll, christmas, do you hear what I hear, guest post, Henri J. M. Nouwen, Listen, quiet, sales, season, Shopping on December 2, 2012| 2 Comments »

images As we begin to adjust to the moving of the calendar to December, we can no longer deny that Christmas is coming.

Truly one would have to live as a hermit in the forest to have not been noticing it for weeks already. Our mailbox is stuffed with flyers, our inbox is stuffed with admail, and our grocery stores are stuffed with more than the usual amounts of food that we should only eat in moderation.

Another giveaway of the impending holiday season is that our calendars, daytimers and schedules are packed with activities, parties, concerts and celebrations.

Since way back on the hottest day in July, when shopping at a wholesale store and seeing that Christmas decorations filled one aisle, I have been aware that the Christmas that I celebrate, is not the one that is loudest at this time of year. I sighed, and began the mental preparations for the noises of the season.

My guest post today is one that I have shared before, but the video that holds the message is different.

It arrived in my inbox one day last week, almost drowned from my inbox by the dozens of Black Friday and Cyber Monday sale advertisements. As I hit delete for the twenty-ninth time, I almost didn’t open this message, but decided to check it out.

And here it is, give it a look, no …give it a LISTEN

“… but the Lord was not in the wind:
and after the wind an earthquake;
but the Lord was not in the earthquake:
And after the earthquake a fire;
but the Lord was not in the fire:
and after the fire a still small voice.”
1 Kings 19:11-12

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Black (eye) Friday

Posted in christmas, life, WONDER, tagged 2012, American Thanksgiving, animals, Black Friday, breath of life, dry bones, early morning openings., early openings, Ezekiel 37, human race, November 25, sales, Shopping, trampled on November 21, 2012| 3 Comments »

This coming Friday is Black Friday.

For those of us who are not familiar with this annual, largely American (although spreading all over North America) tradition of Black Friday, it is the Friday following American thanksgiving, which signifies the start of the holiday shopping season. Retailers have traditionally opened their doors earlier than normal, and had specials to attract shoppers to set their alarm clocks for ungodly hours.

I admit, I have never gone shopping on Black Friday, although I have considered it a time or two, but the memories of the news stories of years past has always kept me safe at home.

I was recently speaking with an employee of a large department store about this infamous day. She is a woman working a low paying, thankless job, in order to pay her bills and support her

family. She was a delightful woman, who would appear to work hard, and treat other people well. As we talked it was obvious that she was certainly not excited by the idea that she would need to return to work, on her holiday planned with family, hours earlier than one year ago. For she, and many like her, the day set aside for giving thanks will instead be spent serving many people who walk with an air of expectation and entitlement.

Then she told me a story from the year before. An older woman was waiting patiently in line for a store employee to open up an electronics wall. When the door opened, the crowd surged forward, like starving dogs before a dead carcass, hoping to find a morsel of meat left on the bones. The older lady fell to her knees, and the crowd around her was so ravenous for whatever lifeless thing they were pursuing that they did not even notice her fall. Thankfully, a pair of store staff did notice, and were able to lock up the wall and open the eyes of the crowd to the lady who had fallen.

The comment of the store employee has stuck with me, “people are becoming like animals! They did not care or even notice this poor woman … they could have trampled her to death!”

Indeed, our human race is losing the breath of life that was given to us at the beginning of time, the breath of life that we should be so thankful for. It makes me ask, as was asked by God, in the middle of a valley full of very dry bones, in Ezekiel 37, “son of man, can these bones live?”” I too would respond, “Sovereign Lord, you alone know.”

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A Conspiracy

Posted in christmas, life, WONDER, tagged advent, Advent Conspiracy, Christ Mass, christmas, conspiracy, conspiracy theories, consumerism, International Justice Mission, Living Water International on October 24, 2012| Leave a Comment »

I have to say I love a good conspiracy theory! I truly believe it shows great creativity of mind to think that the way things are may not be how they could be.

There are many conspiracy theories, but my favorite is probably that JFK, Marilyn Monroe and Elvis are all together, alive, in Kalamazoo, Michigan. Maybe Princess Diana is there too!

A conspiracy does not have to be about famous people, or about deaths (or, presumed deaths). A conspiracy is simply a plan to do something out of the norm, strange, unique. For instance, our kids are constantly conspiring to get their dad to say yes to a cat (I, of course, would NEVER be in on that sort of conspiracy 😉 ).

There is a conspiracy that comes up each year about this time. It is a conspiracy to do something different, very different!

Just two short months from now is Christmas Eve, and you don’t have to celebrate it to know that it exists. From now on, every time you go to the mall, the grocery store, listen to the news, or open a newspaper Christmas will be the topic of the day. The only thing is it is not the Christ Mass (communion to celebrate the birth of Christ) that the day (or season) was originally about.

Christmas, as society celebrates it, has little to do with the babe born to the virgin girl, as sacrificial offering for the redemption of our sins. It has more to do with buying, busyness, baking and booze (I love alliteration). This is so far from the celebration mass for the babe in a manger! This is so far from anything that God himself would want for His children.

Advent is the season of anticipation, the season of waiting and preparing for the Messiah. It is a season which culminates in worship.

The following video is one I seek to watch, and inspire myself each Christmas season (for the past five or six). I encourage you, and me, to do Christmas differently … for the sake of ourselves, our families and others (who are so much more needy) around the world.

The Advent Conspiracy works with two organizations:

International Justice Mission in its efforts to bring rescue to victims of slavery (including sexual exploitation), prosecute the perpetrators (under the laws of that local country) and to change the justice system worldwide to protect individuals.

Living Water International seeks to get clean water to some of the 884 million people worldwide who do not have safe drinking water. This absence of clean, safe water means disease and death for so many. Something we take for granted, is so easily available to us, is gold to much of the world.

Consumerism does not equal:
Happiness
Memories
Meaning

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Christmas Break Day 1

Posted in christmas, Nature/Creation, WONDER, tagged Believe, Chrstmas Break, Creation, Crhistmas on December 26, 2011| Leave a Comment »

It is Christmas Break and I am taking this week as a break from blogging (my family is doubtful that I can do it).

So, if you are looking for something to read from me this week, I would suggest one of my favorite blog posts:

Creation Calls Me to Believe

See you in the New Year!

Carole

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The Star in the East

Posted in christmas, WONDER, tagged christmas, The Star, The Star in the East, The Story, The Wise Men on December 21, 2011| Leave a Comment »

Being in the East, where the cities and towns are smaller and less inhabited, I have the opportunity to see the stars in the night sky so much more clearly. The sky here does not have enormous trees, sky scraper buildings and gargantuan mountains to shrink the size of the sky.

My family here gets fatigued of hearing me say, “the sky here is so big … it goes on forever.”

The Bible speaks of the star in the east, leading the way to Bethleham, where Jesus, the Messiah, was born. This star was an astronomical wonder, and it was the unexpected messenger of the so very expected message for the Jews, of their Messiah.

The ‘wise guys’, the Bible tells us, were so captivated by the changes in the sky that they took the most excellent adventure in the Middle East. They were men of science, they were men of books, they were highly ‘crainial’ guys who saw something in their study and measurements of the sky that was so unique, they had to leave their observatory to see what this was about for themselves.

They were not content to wait for the journalists, or market researchers, or social media types to tell them about it, second hand. No, they were knowledgable and wise enough to know that they needed to see it for themselves. They sought out the truth for themselves.

As Christmas is in our thinking, why not research for ourselves? Why not investigate the story of Christmas? Why not see for ourselves the story that is still being taught, more than two thousand years later?

Follow that star … it might lead you to the most beautiful place of wonder, this Christmas season.

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Through the Eyes of a Child

Posted in christmas, FAMILY, WONDER, tagged Amazement, Be Still, Children, christmas, Christmas Lights, Five year old, Psalm 46:10, Wonder on December 20, 2011| 2 Comments »

Being on the East Coast allows me the opportunity to see family I rarely get to see, and I’ve had this privilege twice this year.

This past weekend I got to see my youngest nephew. He is five years old (that is a handful of fingers for those of you who have not had the honor of receiving a reply from a five year old, to the question “how old are you?”). He is cute (as a button … what on earth does that mean?), never sits still ( 🙂 love that part), and totally brilliant (and, if you were to ask his grandparents … do NOT do that … a very long monologue will be in your future … and you are not the one talking).

My favorite part of spending time with him was when he said ‘yellow’ … pronounced ‘Lellow’. Could there be anything more preciously perfect than a child who mispronounces words? I love it! How is it that pronouncing a word wrongly could create such delight in my soul?

Everything is exciting for this little guy (and, by the way, I would NEVER refer to him as a ‘little’ guy to his face … he thinks he is an adult). And he even has future plans … romantically. Apparently he has a girlfriend in daycare who he is planning to marry, and if that doesn’t work out, there are other possibilities. Gotta love a guy with options!

While he was at my parents he eyed a snowman decoration (I’ll Be Home for a White Christmas) that he was more familiar with than me. It was a simple, ~~tacky~~ cute ( 😉 ) beaded snowman. And when Little Mister picked him up, and pushed a button, the snowman lit up, in colors that faded from one to another like the colors of a rainbow.

Then, the real magic began.

Little Mister stood there, delighting in the color changes, and the shining of the beads, for the longest time. It was a moment of joy, amazement and wonder. He was captivated by the simple beauty that he created by pushing the right button. So simple, so beautiful … not the snowman, but the reaction of wonder that it caused. He was still.

What captivates me? What makes me stare in amazement? What causes me to wonder … to really wonder to the point of stopping all that I do to be amazed?

This is the season of wonder. This is the season of amazement and captivation. This is the season of miracles and a gift giving so grand that the celebrations have lasted for a couple of thousand years.

But, do we stop long enough to be captivated in wonder? Can we, like that delightful nephew of mine, be still long enough to see the beauty of the light that came down at Christmas time? That is the challenge.

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I’ll Be Home for (a White) Christmas

Posted in canada, christmas, WONDER, tagged christmas, Christmas Decor, Christmas Tree, East Coast, Home, Mother, Nativity, Snow, Snowman on December 19, 2011| 3 Comments »

Woohoo! I walk out of a quickly filling big box store, just nine sleeps to Christmas day, and snow flakes are starting to fall from the pregnant clouds. I am in the right place!

I have been humming “I’ll be Home for Christmas” since my son and I boarded the plane on the west coast, heading for the east. And now I get to hum “I’m Dreaming of a White Christmas” (okay, confession time, I have been humming that since November first … but, I digress).

It is so good to be here, at the home of my birth, as the Christmas season is in full motion. I get to see my parents, my brothers and their families, other family members, friends and old familiar places.

I am discovering that the one way that my mom and I are not the same is Christmas decor. She LOVES it! I usually twiddle my thumbs all Christmas day, hoping my family will let me take the tree down on Boxing Day (it often comes down around the New Year … sigh).

For instance, there are snowmen EVERYWHERE around her house! They are in every room (the bathroom could be called the snowman room (kind of makes you wonder if that is where snowman ‘poop’ came from. She could have a store, and make a mint, just by selling her snowmen.

Then there are the Christmas dishes (sets, mugs, glasses, serving dishes) that fill her china cabinet. There are not enough family members to utilize all of them.

Then there is the tree … I feel inadequate just sitting in the same room as her Christmas tree. It is … perfect! It looks better than any tree in any store that has been professionally decorated! I would not even post a pick of mine on the internet!

I do love how my mom hangs on to things (some things). My mom has on her refrigerator a nativity that she has been putting on her refrigerator for (we added it up) over thirty-five years. It was on a bag of “Ben’s” bread. Mom used her sharp eyes to cut each piece out perfectly (she is the queen of the line, “if it’s worth doing, it’s worth doing right the first time” … therapy is the only cure for that one … just sayin’). Then she wets each piece and presses it to the fridge, in a perfect line.

All joking aside (otherwise my mom might send me packing for defaming her 😉 ), the time here will go quickly, I am sure. It is such a blessing to be able to be here at this time of year. Nostalgia is reigning in my mind and heart! Now if the snow would just hurry up and show my son what a real snowstorm is!

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Christmas Movie Themes

Posted in christmas, WONDER, tagged A Christmas Carol, christmas, Christmas Movies, Elf, Family Man, How the Grinch Saved Christmas, It's a wonderful life, Love Affair, Movies, Polar Express on December 16, 2011| 1 Comment »

One of my favorite things to do during the Christmas season is watch holiday movies. They generally provide joyful entertainment and a fun thing to do with family and friends. On a free evening in December (if you can find one on your calendar) there is nothing better than making popcorn, popping a movie on and snuggling up with hubby, the kids, or friends (or the beast).

I did a little inventory of our Christmas movie collection, and decided on my favorite ones (in random order)!

Elf

This movie, about Buddy the Elf, can be best summed up with his own words, “the best way to spread Christmas cheer is singing loud for all to hear.” And sing Buddy does! He also loves to eat sugary things (even pre-chewed gum in public places). He was a stow away in Santa’s bag one year, and grew up at the North Pole. This movie is full of humor, sentiment and changes in people’s attitudes that can only be summed up with one word … redemption!

Polar Express

Oh, this movie was a beautiful re-telling of the book by Chris Van Allsburg. The illustrations are the fanciful combination of animation and realism that makes you unsure if you are seeing a real person or an illustration. It is a dream about a boy and the children he meets on a train. This boy (the narrator, as well) has begun to question the belief in Santa. But really, it is not just Santa that he has ceased to believe in, it is also a belief in himself. This movie cries … redemption!

It’s a Wonderful Life

Oh the story of the life of George Baily … a true Christmas classic! George’s life is told just before calamity ensues, and he contemplates suicide as a last resort. He feels that everyone around him would be better off if he were never born. As Clarence the angel shows him what life would indeed be like without him, he grows to understand that his life is, indeed, wonderful. A great story of redemption!

How the Grinch Stole Christmas

“You’re a mean one, Mr. Grinch” … I bet you are trying to remember the words of the next line! Oh how mean old Mr. Grinch is! He is out to ruin the entire Christmas season for all the Whos in Whoville by stealing their gifts, and decorations, and lights, and even their roast beast. In the end, Mr. Grinch gets (emotional) surgery, thanks to Cindy Lou Who, that enlarges his heart three sizes, when he learns that “maybe Christmas doesn’t come from a store, maybe Christmas, perhaps, means a little bit more.” And, you guessed it, his view of Christmas was redeemed!

A Christmas Carol

Now hubby would say there is only one true version of Dickens A Christmas Carol (Alastair Sim, 1951 sans color version), but I am fond of any of them. The story of Ebenezer Scrooge, a wealthy, lonely, cranky, stingy, mean-spirited, hard-hearted, tightfist. He spends his Christmas Eve dreaming of the past, the present and the future. Through his trips down memory (and prophetic) lanes, he realizes what he has been missing out on … life, and being part of the lives of others. He mainly learns that it is not too late to change (redemption).

Family Man

I just watched this one … and it is one I had forgotten how much I love. Jack (Nicholas Cage) is a most successful man on Wall Street, with all of the trimmings that wrap a life of wealth … including a lack of real relationships. Then he meets a man who volunteers him for reality boot camp, and he awakes into a suburban home, complete with drooling dog, diapered son, interesting inlaws, and a job as a tire salesman. In this new life he is married to Kate, the fiance from the past that he never married, because he chose his career advancements over her. Jack goes through amazing transformations, and learns deeply about love … in a redemptive sort of way.

Love Affair (1994 & 1939)/An Affair to Remember (1957)

Last, but definitely not least is the movie that was so good in 1939, that is was re-made two more times. This movie is about Mike and Terry, both engaged, but not in love. When these two meet there is something between them that even chemistry cannot describe. The both make vows to make changes in their lives and meet three months later on top of the Empire State building (if you are thinking Sleepless in Seattle … same idea). But tragedy happens. Then, on Christmas Eve the two have a chance meeting, which reveals the truth of what changed their goal. That is about all I can say, other than … it is my favorite movie of all time! I love it! I laugh, I cry. To know that change can happen when one has the right motivation inspires thoughts of redemption.

There is one more of my favorite movies, but it requires it’s own blog post, so stay tuned next week!

You might have noticed there is a theme …

All of my favorite movies have at least a hint of someone being redeemed, changed, made new. To me redemption means hope, and hope means a future. That is what I want, not just in my Christmas viewing, but throughout all of my year.

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Another Nativity

Posted in christmas, WONDER, tagged Children, christmas, Live Nativity, Nativity, The Christmas Story on December 13, 2011| Leave a Comment »

I have spoken in past blogs (Childish Nativity) (Christmas Decor) about my collection of nativity sets, and how I love them. I have also spoken of how very much a nativity depiction by children is the most meaningful to me. Sure, adults can memorize lines and be where they need to be, as the script demands, but really, the first nativity was played out with only the grand director knowing what would come next.

The above video depicts a beautiful Christmas nativity, live.

Sometimes, my words are too inadequate to tell a story. So, for today, I will just sign off encouraging you, the reader to sit back (for only about four minutes) and capture the wonder and excitement that the children in the video share … just being kids.

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A Baby Unites People

Posted in christmas, WONDER, tagged A Baby Unites, Birth, Charles Wesley, Christ the Lord is Risen Today, christmas, Death, Easter, Redemption, Resurrection, Sacrifice on December 12, 2011| 2 Comments »

A baby …

God sent His son in the same form that we have all entered this world. Helpless, small, and easy to relate to by anyone, from any culture, anywhere around our world, in any time of history. I think God knew what He was doing, when He chose to send His son to us, as we have entered the world.

Songs like ‘Away in a Manger’, ‘Silent Night’, ‘The First Noel’, ‘Oh Holy Night’, ‘What Child is this’, and ‘Mary’s Boy Child’ (hum, memories of Boney M … maybe not this song), can be sung sincerely by those who believe in Jesus as their Messiah, as well as by people who simply feel they are singing a nice song about a historical figure.

A baby … unites people.

Recently I was thinking about the baby Jesus as I was singing a familiar Christmas carol to myself (to myself, because anyone in their right mind would never want to hear me sing out loud). The carol is “Christ the Lord is Born Today”, and the first verse goes like this:

“Christ the Lord is born today, Alleluia!
Sons of men and angels say, Alleluia!
Raise your joys and triumphs high, Alleluia!
Sing, ye heav’ns, and earth, reply, Alleluia!”

When I sought the rest of the lyrics, I realized that I had the lyrics wrong. The song is actually, “Christ the Lord is Risen Today.” I had gotten Christmas confused with Easter, I had gotten birth confused with death and resurrection.

But did I?

This tortured and bloodied man, was drawn into the blueprints before Mary was ‘with child.’ This picture, this messy, bloody, sickening picture, is why the baby was conceived and born. He, the baby we place (and, to be honest, we leave there, from Christmas, to Christmas, to Christmas) in the manger, was our sacrificial lamb, our redeemer. He, that baby in Mary’s arms, was to pay for the sins of the world, for the sins of me.

But, a bloodied man, dying on a cross … divides people.

God knew what He was doing, when He chose to bring the Messiah to us in the form of a baby. He knew that we could never fully grasp the way that we would be redeemed, saved. He knew what He was doing, and He still does.

One of my favorite artists of today, Ron DiCianni, created the painting to the right. To quote it’s description, “Heaven’s Loss dramatically depicts that while mankind was celebrating the birth of a King, the angels were weeping for they knew what man did not. They knew Jesus was not born for Christmas – He was born for Easter.”

Charles Wesley also understood the price paid for his own redemption, when he wrote this hymn nearly two hundred and fifty years ago. Maybe it is not so wrong to sing it as we celebrate the birth of the one who did the loving, redeeming sacrificial act, and not just at Easter.