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Guaranteed Joy: The Twelve Blessings of Christmas
It is one thing to *want* to focus more on giving time and gifts of love to Jesus and others at Christmas. It is another to actually resist the cultural gravitational pull of manic celebrations, %50 off sales and pouring all our energy into producing our own family Christmas. I like the *idea* of spending less on things we don’t need and focusing on lavishing unexpected kindness on others, especially the least of these, but the actual reality? That’s not so much what my track record tells me. This year has afforded a new opportunity to actually DO something. In the ten days still left before Christmas—here are some…
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A Grace-Filled Gift
Something happens to a child in need when they receive an unexpected Christmas gift. The sparkle of glittering wrapping paper distracts the hardness of life even if it’s just for a little while. The satin bow adds hope and laughter. Smiles replace hopelessness and joy comes like the first snow in winter. Forget opening the gift. Holding it means someone loves you! I should know, because it happened to me. One of my favorite Christmases of all times involves strangers, lots of gifts and a turkey. To this day, I don’t know the folks responsible for the presents, the cans of yams and the big ‘ole turkey.…
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Plan Now for Calmer Holidays
I know it’s not even Thanksgiving yet, and I promise I’m not one of those people who starts decorating for Christmas the day after Halloween. But the first Sunday in advent falls on November 30 this year, so I don’t want us to get broadsided by the insane pace, the mega-debt, and the uber-insanity. So that means planning ahead a bit. Here are my five suggestions: Decide to make Christ your focus. Pray for wisdom and ask God to help you honor him during this holy season. Set aside ten minutes this week to decide what reading plan you want to use for spiritual reflection. Do you need to order…
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Does Sponsoring a Child Do Any Good?
Recently, I wrote about child sponsorship as one way to help end child trafficking. But, how do we know thought that child sponsorship makes any impact or does any good? Christianity Today answered this in their June 2013 cover story about a study done on Compassion International and it's impacts. It turns out that it actually does an amazing amount of good when you sponsor a child. Why? Because you bring them something greater than your $35 per month. You bring them hope. I can remember dreaming as a child what I'd want to be when I grew up. I'm sure most of us reading this can remember…
