Rainy Tuesday

I'm blogging from Modoc's Market in downtown Wabash, Indiana (I'm here preaching in a Revival Meeting with the Church of Christ at Wabash). This place has an interesting history. The Market's location was once Bradley Brothers Drugstore and in 1942 a circus came to town. At some point an elephant escaped and made a beeline for downtown and the drugstore specifically. The elephant seemed to know what he was after because his destination was the store's peanut roaster. Modoc, the elephant, became an instant legend. The current market capitalizes on that legend with lots of pacaderm paraphernalia. The store has a espresso bar, a small grocery store, and offers free WiFi.



Yesterday I took a trip to nearby Peru, Indiana to visit Summit Theological Seminary. George Faull, one of my mentors in the faith, greeted me and gave me the grand tour of the place. Over the past 20 years, I have probably learned more about the Bible from this man than from anyone else. Thanks George for taking the time to teach and encourage me.

Revival Time

Tonight I'm headed to the Harlan Church of Christ to hear Evangelist Ed Bousman preach. Brother Bousman is a legend among the conservative churches of our Movement. 88 years old and still preaching! (Ed is the one on the left -- standing with Bob Stacy and Lloyd Pelfrey).

Tomorrow morning I'll leave for the Wabash Church of Christ in Wabash, Indiana. I will be preaching there through Wednesday night. I appreciate your prayers.

A Visit with the Church Doctor

This morning I joined about 18 other ministers for a visit with the Church Doctor. I first became familiar with Dr. Kent Hunter a number of years ago through John Maxwell's ministry. The session was very informal. It was called a "Roundtable Discussion" in which we could ask any question that was on or minds. There were several good questions asked about staffing, breaking through growth barriers, worship styles, and postmodernism.

The man knows his stuff (and does anybody agree with me that he looks a lot like a younger Ken Howard -- aka The White Shadow)?

Sweet Six?

Only six of my NCAA tournament teams remain. Good thing I'm not a betting man, eh? The good news is that three of my Final Four picks are still alive (Florida, Kansas, and Ohio State).

Probably will watch a lot of hoops this weekend (Tracy and the kids will be out-of-town). Then I will head to Wabash, Indiana on Sunday morning to preach in a Revival Meeting there.

Saturday

My NCAA bracket continues to get pummeled, so perhaps it's a good thing that I'll be distracted a bit on Saturday. The day begins with teaching at the 6:30am Men's Breakfast at Cedar Creek. Then I will head north to the Stroh Church of Christ. I will be speaking at its Men's Retreat (along with Gerald Moreland).

Brackets Busted

Why did I pick Texas Tech to make it to the Elite Eight? What was I thinking? It must have something to do with living in Indiana. Somehow it makes you think that Bobby Knight will always win. We're having a March Madness contest among the staff here. CBSsportsline makes it easy. Probably the person who will win is the one guy on our staff who knows nothing about sports.

March Madness

I've got my brackets filled out. Final Four of Florida, Kansas, Texas, and Ohio State, with Ohio State over Florida in the Championship Game.

How 'bout you?

24 -- Hour Two

I'm fired up about preaching this week.

It's week two of the 24 series: Witness -- Living My Faith

By the way, it’s not true that we’re going to pass out WWJD bracelets – What Would Jack Do? This is all about Jesus.

Christ’s
Tactical
Unit

That’s the church!

I love what Paul Coughlin writes in his book No More Christian Nice Guy, which has as its premise that being a Christian man doesn’t mean that you have to become a spineless, effeminate wimp: “The Gospel includes dirty feet, stinky hair, fish guts, bugs between its teeth, dirt under its nails – its entrenched in life’s day-to-day. Smell the adrenaline, feel your heart pound, taste the locust that lingers on your lips. God is on the loose. Hunting us down. Warring to liberate us from anything and everything that seeks to diminish who he made us to be.”

You Gotta Be Kidding Me

It has been around for a few years now, but I recently heard about a product called Spray-On-Mud. It's for SUV drivers who have never been off-road. It gives your vehicle a look that says, "Yeah buddy, I'm a real 4x4 person." But it's FAKE!

I heard Chris Seidman preach a message recently in which he said, "We have all had experience with people who have plenty of Christian products in their lives, but not much Christian produce hanging off the tree of their life."

I think that will fit into my 24 series. This week's message is: Witness: Living My Faith.

What's on you? Fake "spray-on" faith or the real deal?

Sunday's Service

I'm still pumped up about yesterday's worship services. It seemed like everything clicked. The people worshipped with energy and they responded very well to the new message series.


Closed the message with The Fellowhip of the Unashamed.
It never gets old.

I am a part of the fellowship of the Unashamed.
I have the Holy Spirit Power.
The die has been cast. I have stepped over the line.
The decision has been made.
I am a disciple of Jesus Christ.
I won't look back, let up, slow down, back away, or be still.
My past is redeemed, my present makes sense, and my future is secure.

I am finished and done with low living, sight walking, small planning, smooth knees, colorless dreams, tame visions, mundane talking, chintzy giving, and dwarfed goals.
I no longer need preeminence, prosperity, position, promotions, plaudits, or popularity.
I don't have to be right, first, tops, recognized, praised, regarded, or rewarded.
I now live by presence, learn by faith, love by patience, lift by prayer, and labor by power.

My pace is set, my gait is fast, my goal is Heaven, my road is narrow, myway is rough, my companions few, my Guide is reliable, my mission is clear.I cannot be bought, compromised, deterred, lured away, turned back, diluted, or delayed.

I will not flinch in the face of sacrifice, hesitate in the presence of adversity, negotiate at the table of the enemy, ponder at the pool of popularity, or meander in the maze of mediocrity.

I won't give up, back up, let up, or shut up until I've preached up, prayed up, paid up, stored up, and stayed up for the cause of Christ.

I am a disciple of Jesus Christ. I must go until He returns, give until I drop, preach until all know, and work until He comes.And when He comes to get His own, He will have no problem recognizing me. My colors will be clear for "I am not ashamed of the Gospel, because it is the power of God for the salvation of everyone who believes."

A Trial Run

This Sunday's message is about living a life of worship/devotion to God 24 hours a day rather than one hour a week.

Here's a snippet:

Paul Campos is a law professor at the University of Colorado. I don’t know if you happened to catch his editorial in Thursday’s Journal-Gazette. He was writing about how a person’s belief/religion plays into politics (voting for President):

I believe (that) genuine atheism, like genuine orthodox religious belief, is actually quite rare…How many people, at least among the social classes that produce presidential candidates, believe in the orthodox doctrines of Christianity with the same degree of confidence that they believe in, say, the existence of Antarctica?

It’s considered rude to press people on such matters, but in my experience, most supposedly orthodox religious belief, on closer examination, melts away into a vague sense of an ultimate moral order, supervised by an even more vaguely conceptualized divinity.

My initial response? “What a liberal nutburger!”
But upon further reflection, I realized that he’s right.
Why are American churches filled with nominal believers living tame lives, affecting virtually no impact upon a pagan culture that desperately needs God?

Because members of those churches, yes perhaps even some who are part of this church DO NOT BELIEVE IN GOD.

They would object vehemently to that assertion, “What? Of course I believe in God”

But it’s a god created in their own image, not the God of the Bible!

For too long friends, the acceptable level of devotion and commitment to Christ has been so sub-normal, that normal seems abnormal.

Jack Facts

In doing some deeply spiritual research for my new 24 series, I came across the following:

• If everyone on "24" followed Jack Bauer's instructions, it would be called "12"


• When Jack Bauer goes to the airport and the metal detector doesn't go off, security gives him a gun


• Nobody says 'hit me' when Jack Bauer deals Blackjack


• If you wake up in the morning, it's because Jack Bauer spared your life


• Jack Bauer is the leading cause of death in Middle Eastern men


• Jack Bauer removed the "Escape" button from his keyboard. Jack Bauer never needs to escape
• If you're holding a gun to Jack Bauer's head, don't count to three before you shoot. Count to 10. That way, you get to live 7 seconds longer


• Jack Bauer doesn't miss. If he didn't hit you it's because he was shooting at another terrorist twelve miles away


• Jack Bauer once arm wrestled Superman. The stipulations were the loser had to wear his underwear on the outside of his pants


• When President Palmer quit to start doing Allstate commercials, it took him 43 takes before he could stop saying, "You're in good hands with Jack Bauer"


• Jack Bauer is allowed to leave his phone on during a movie


• Jack Bauer can get McDonald's breakfast after 10:30


• Jack Bauer got Hellen Keller to talk


• If Jack Bauer was in a room with Hitler, Stalin, and Nina Meyers, and he had a gun with 2 bullets, he'd shoot Nina twice.


• Upon hearing that he was played by Kiefer Sutherland, Jack Bauer killed Sutherland. Jack Bauer gets played by no man.


• Jack Bauers calendar goes from March 31st to April 2nd, no one fools Jack Bauer.


• Jack Bauer played Russian Roulette with a fully loaded gun and won.


• Jack Bauer once won a game of Connect 4 in 3 moves.


• Jack Bauer was never addicted to heroin. Heroin was addicted to Jack Bauer.

Hope Springs Eternal

I was listening to Tony Kornheiser the other day and he mentioned that the Cubs are entering the 99th year of their rebuilding program. Ouch. But Tony and Mike Wilbon interviewed new skipper Lou Piniella, and Lou has high hopes for the Cubs this year. I fear that I'm being sucked into that Spring Training hope that, "this year might be, could be, THE year." Time will tell. Everybody is good in March, right?

Burying a Friend Today

I'm preaching the funeral of an old friend today. Ray Sickmiller was an elder in my first ministry in White Pigeon, Michigan. He and his family have been great encouragers to Tracy and me over the years. After many years of living in different states, God brought us back to the same town. What a privilege and blessing it is to be able to share the promises from God's Word regarding Ray's eternity. He finished well.

New Message Series -- 24

Regular readers of this blog (all three of you) know that I'm a big fan of the show 24. I got to thinking, "What if every believer lived a totally intense, sold-out-for-God life? What would it look like?" When Jesus called us to follow Him, His call was one of total commitment – 24 hours a day, 7 days a week, 365 days a year. He taught us that the greatest commandment is, “Love the Lord your God with all your heart and with all your soul and with all your mind” and the second is like it, “Love your neighbor as yourself” (Matthew 22:37-39).

What if, 24 hours a day, you lived like God wants you to live? Every hour. Every second. Every moment. Every heartbeat. Every breath. What an incredible difference it would make in your life and in the lives of others.

I’m staring a new sermon series this Sunday:
March 4 Worship – Loving My God
March 11 Witness – Living My Faith
March 18 Work – Learning My Role

Say It Ain't So!

The Cubs are going to allow ads on the outfield wall at Wrigley. Ugh.

That Saved and Set Me Free?

Keith Drury has a wonderful post about how some of our church songs are being edited to take the "edge" off. Ick! I need to be reminded of my wretchedness and worminess without Christ. It's what makes His grace all that more amazing!

Date Night

Going on a belated Valentine's Date with my Sweetie. Mrs. Soren was under the weather on Feb. 14, so we're making up for it tonight. Probably will catch a movie, then get some ice cream (yeah, we really live on the edge).

Have a great weekend everybody!

Valentine's Day

Dude, I got a Dell! Mrs. Soren stunned me with a gift of a laptop. Is she awesome or what? (for the record, she was awesome before she gave the gift). But wow. Kinda makes the John Mayer CD that I got for her pale by comparison. Maybe I'd better buy some chocolate too, eh?

Snow is Coming!

Weatherman says that we are going to get hammered overnight. I've heard that snowfall amounts will be anywhere from 4 to 10 inches. It will be the first shovelable (is that a word?) snow of the season.

Sweetheart Banquet

Tonight Cedar Creek is hosting a Sweetheart Banquet. Mrs. Soren (and others) have put much work into ensuring that it is a wonderful evening. A catered meal, romantic music, video clips, and a great speaker.

Congrats to the Super Bowl Champions!

Great job by the Colts. Truly a team effort. And is there a classier coach than Tony Dungy? This state has gone "Colts Crazy." It's a nice diversion during a bitterly cold winter.

My friend Dave Willis has an interesting post for the people who are jumping on the "Dump Rex (Grossman)" bandwagon in Chicago.

The Weekend

Kids are going to Winter Jam with the Youth Group tonight. Mrs. Soren and I are making it a date night -- a nice dinner and maybe a movie.

It's supposed to turn really cold this weekend. A high temp on Sunday of 2 (yes that's 30 degrees below freezing) and a low of -11.

Culture Shift

I'm reading the book Culture Shift by Wayne Cordeiro. He has a chapter about identifying your church's culture. He uses the analogy of a totem pole -- "this is who we are, this is our culture." He also asks some painfully blunt questions:

Are our church cultures transforming the broader culture, or mimicking it?

Are we too susceptible to the latest plug-and-play church program or a pattern of quick fixes?

Do we care more about doing the next event than about the transference of values?

Will we one day find ourselves filing our mission statement away in a drawer rather than living it?

Are we stuck mimicking the best practices from others rather than finding out God's best for our church?

Brrrr!

It's really cold here today. It was 2 degrees when I left the house. You read that right. Not windchill, but actual temp (the windchill is about 10 below).

Oops!

Story here. (thanks Fess!)

Are You Still Cool?

Click here to find out.

Men's Retreat

Our men's retreat this past weekend was great. Our speaker, my good friend Mark Christian, spoke to our guys in a way that really connected with them. He is the king of dropping those little nuggets/zingers at just the right time. He really has a gift. We've known each other since the fourth grade, but at one of the breaks, I said to him, "Who ARE you?" Wow. God really did something this weekend. Not sure what it is yet, but He is working.

Mark and I bunked in the same room together with no one else there. We stayed up late reminiscing and being stupid. I haven't laughed that hard in years.

My Weekend

Leaving tomorrow for Lansing, MI. I have a Trustees' meeting at my alma mater. Tomorrow night I will be joining a bunch of guys from our church at our annual men's retreat. My good friend Mark Christian will be the speaker.



Y'all have a great weekend!

Book Recommendation

I might be a little late to the dance on this one, but I wanted to share a book recommendation with you guys. 360 Degree Preaching by Michael J. Quicke (yes, I'm sure his junior high years were brutal). It was Preaching magazine's "Book of the Year" in 2003. I hope it will cause you to become "fired up" for preaching. It has re-ignited my passion. I stumbled upon the book when someone gave me a copy of Quicke's 360 Degree Leadership (the premise of which is that preaching and leadership are inseparable) -- he refers frequently to his first book, the preaching book. I think y'all will enjoy both books.

Super Bowl

The Colts and Da Bears are going to the Super Bowl. Folks around these parts are pretty happy about it. Lots of Colts and/or Bears fans in this area. Even Coach Dungy said, "Hey we ought to play this game in Fort Wayne." The Colts/Pats game was exciting. When the Pats were up 21-3, I thought, "Oh no, here we go again." But they fought back and won it in the end. I hope the Super Bowl is a good game.

Hey, does anyone besides me get a little uncomfortable when the announcers start talking about how the coaches are African American? Stupid questions like, "Hey, how does it feel to be the first African American coach in the Super Bowl?" Mrs. Soren said to me last night, "Are we ever going to get past that kind of stuff." It's like they are saying, "Um, coach, I noticed that you're black." I thought we weren't supposed to see color. Coach Dungy had enough class to basically ignore the question.

It was funny when Shannon Sharpe said, "These are the first black coaches, I mean, African American coaches to reach this level." Even the black guys don't know what they are supposed to call the black guys. Ya gotta love political correctness.

And did you notice that Jim Plunkett, when presenting the trophy to the Colts' owner, almost said "Baltimore Colts"? His lips were forming a "B", then he caught himself. That would have been quite the faux pas.

Testosterone Night

Mrs. Soren won tickets today from a local radio station for BooKoo Arenacross. So I get to take my son and one of his friends to the Coliseum tonight for some cool father-son bonding (you can't go wrong with gasoline powered death machines, eh?). We're both looking forward to it.

Flooded Basement

You never really appreciate the lowly sump pump...that is, until it stops working. I found about 4 inches of water in my basement last night. Ugh! We don't have a lot of stuff down there, but I'm afraid to see what the damage is. My plumber friend installed a new sump pump late last night (thanks Mark!). Now the clean-up begins.

Jack is Back!

The new season of 24 began last night. Awesome!

The ongoing lesson of this show: Don't mess with Jack Bauer.

Have a Great Weekend Everybody!

Northmen

The winter update has been posted on The Northmen website. For those who do not know, The Northmen is an annual campmeeting for men & boys in Northern Michigan. It is a great time of fellowship. It is very primitive. We camp in the middle of a state forest, miles from the nearest town. This summer will be my third time preaching there. It is a wonderful privilege, especially for a Michigan guy. The theme is The Parables.

I'll always remember a few years ago when I preached with my father-in-law and brother-in-law (it was a father/son theme that year) -- Ray Merritt (my wife's father) was on the platform and he asked, "Really fellas, is preaching at the Northmen any more exciting than preaching somewhere else. Is there any reason why it should be more of a thrill?" As the guys quietly contemplated that one, suddenly Ray (who was in his mid-60's at the time) leaped into the air and shouted, "Youbetcha! Yahoooo! I'm preaching at the Northmen! Can you believe it?" Mike Steere (and everyone else) loved that. Amen Ray, I couldn't have said it better.

The Well

After a break for the holidays, tonight we resume our Wednesday at The Well program at Cedar Creek.

During the fall semester, the people really seemed to enjoy it. We begin with a delicious prepared meal. Then, we have several classes for children and youth. And the adults will be meeting for worship, prayer, and a time of "deeper" biblical teaching. I will be preaching from the book of Hebrews this time around. I'm looking forward to a great time of fellowship and learning.

Welcome to the Hall

Tony Gwynn and Cal Ripken, Jr. were elected to the Baseball Hall of Fame yesterday. I'm hard pressed to think of two more deserving players. I still remember watching the game when Cal broke the Iron Man record for most consecutive games played. The crowd went crazy as he did a lap around the ballpark. Big Mac might have joined them had he not supersized himself.

Congrats guys!

Gator Feeding Frenzy

What a game last night, eh? I wasn't surprised by the score, but I thought it would be reversed. I guess I bought into the Ohio State hype. 41-14 -- a great score if you're dyslexic. The Buckeye fans around here are looking a bit glum today.

Arrgh!

So my Irish were exposed as the posers they really are. Can you say "over-rated"? All three ranked teams that they played (Michigan, USC, LSU) gave them a good ol' fashioned butt-whuppin'. Nine bowl losses in a row. Ugh.

Jesus Freak

I picked up Dc Talk's 10th Anniversary edition of Jesus Freak. It contains all of the songs from the original album, plus a bonus disc with some remixes and some live versions. They rock!

Happy 2007!

Happy New Year everybody! We started 2007 by attending/officiating a wedding for some friends just after midnight. We had been enjoying some fellowship with our Northampton friends & family -- then we all went into the auditorium to celebrate Michael & Karen Pattison's marriage.

Today will include lots of football and just hanging out. Early tomorrow we will head back to Indiana.

Virginia

We're spending a few days in our old stomping grounds of Virginia. We're visiting friends and family and I'm perfoming a wedding for a couple of friends who are getting married just after midnight on New Years Eve. I'm preaching on Sunday at the church I served for twelve years. Looking forward to seeing everyone again.

Merry Christmas!

Merry Christmas to all the readers of Soren's Blog. I know that your numbers are few, but I'm glad that you humor me by visiting my blog once in a while. Good tidings I send to you and your kin, good tidings for Christmas and a happy new year!

Christmas Shopping

I thought I might get an early start on my Christmas shopping, so I will head out into the fray this evening. Will give a report tomorrow.

As Dave Barry once observed, "We find ourselves enmeshed in the Holiday Season, that very special time of year when we join with our loved ones in sharing centuries-old traditions such as trying to find a parking space at the mall. We traditionally do this in my family by driving around the parking lot until we see a shopper emerge from the mall, then we follow her, in very much the same spirit as the Three Wise Men, who 2,000 years ago followed a star, week after week, until it led them to a parking space."

24

Fox has been running previews for the upcoming season of 24.

It looks intense (as one would expect).

Captain Obvious

Today I preached about the Nativity Story: The Cast. I'm doing a series this month based on the biblical texts surrounding the birth of Christ.

After the service one of the guys told me that when I said, "Most Bible scholars believe that Joseph died at some point", his son leaned over and remarked, "Um, I don't think it takes a Bible scholar to figure that one out." Ha!

Tonight is the second performance of our dessert theatre. We attended on Friday night and it was fantastic. Everything was done first-class. The drama, the music, and the dessert -- yummy! I'm here tonight welcoming people and doing a wrap-up at the end. As I was doing the "Welcome to Cedar Creek" bit, I stepped forward and sort of stumbled off the tiny temporary stage (thankfully it's only about 10 inches off the ground). "Welcome to Cedar Creeeeeeeeeek" (regaining composure like I meant to do that). Some things never change :-)

Botox Boy -- the Board Game

My friend John Dobbs had this little gem on his blog. Unbelievable.

And while you’re buying gifts and you’re looking for that one unique present that’s going to set you apart, please pass up the Your Best Life Now - The Game. Lest you think this is some kind of joke or urban legend, check out snopes.com all you want, it’s real! It is available at Target.com. I know some of you will think you’ll make a good impression with this new offering, but I promise you will never be invited to that party again. Unless you’re doing gag gifts. What happens if you lose? You get a crummy life? The worst thing that could happen is the astounded recipient might break out the game and force you to play it. I’m sorry if you are a Joel Osteen fan and are offended by this little humor …. but … you gotta admit this is Christian marketing gone nuts.

Amen Brother!

Bob and Doug McKenzie

Today I heard Bob and Doug McKenzie's version of The 12 Days of Christmas. It was a blast from the past, reminding me of my high school days. And yes, I actually owned this album.

Take off, eh?

12 Days of Christmas

On the first day of Christmas, my true love gave to me, Jingle Bell antlers for everyone to see.

Awful Christmas Songs

This time of year, I usually tune my radio to one of the stations playing Christmas music 24/7 (when I'm not listening to ESPNradio or right-wing talk radio). I know that the stations want to have a variety, but some of the songs drive me crazy. (I know I blogged about some of these last year, but I've added a few more.) And have you noticed how the radio stations play them constantly?

Jingle Bells Boogie by Jingle Dogs
Whoever thought it would be amusing to make a recording of dogs barking to the tune of "Jingle Bells" must have been drinking too much spiked egg nog.

Feliz Navidad by Jose Feliciano
It’s not that this song is so especially horrible, but it gets stuck in my head and I can’t get it out.

Do They Know It's Christmas? by Band Aid
No there won't be snow in Africa, Bob. It's AFRICA! And do we need to be reminded of the 1984 famine, every year?

Santa Baby by Eartha Kitt
Ewwww!

Simply Having a Wonderful Christmastime by Paul McCartney
Shadduppppp!

I Like the Sleigh Ride (I don't know who wrote or performs this, but it must be McCartney inspired because it just repeats the same five words over & over)

So This is Christmas (War is Over) by John Lennon
Ugh. No wonder someone shot you.

Same Old Lang Syne by Dan Fogelberg
I always hear this song played on the Christmas music station. Doesn’t anybody realize that it’s not really a Christmas song? And did this guy ever do a song that didn't want to make you kill yourself?

The Christmas Shoes by NewSong
I agree with the guy who wrote this: "What a heavy-handed, depressing piece of shlock this is. If you haven’t heard it, it’s a song about a boy who’s scraping together money to buy a pretty pair of shoes for his mom, who’s dying. He wants to buy them because “I want her to look beautiful if Mama meets Jesus tonight.” Oy. The only way to make the song even remotely tolerable is to imagine the kid is a grifter, his mom is waiting in the car, and they’ve been pulling this scam at every store in town, with plans to return the shoes for cash two days after Christmas."

Santa Claus is Coming to Town by Bruce Springsteen
I liked this version when it first came out in the 80's, but it has been played to death.

This guy's rant is pretty good too (be sure to scroll down to see the comments/opinions)

What song gets your vote as the most awful Christmas song ever?

Kjergaard Open House

Yesterday we had our annual Open House for our church family and friends. We have been doing this for about 18 years. And when I say "we", I really mean Tracy. She outdoes herself each year. My job is to set up table and chairs and stay out of her way as she cooks, bakes, decorates, etc. It's our gift to the congregation. They seem to appreciate it. About 70 showed up yesterday (not all at once!). It's a tradition that we look forward to each year. And I look forward to all the goodies that are left over. Yummy!

Merry Ramahanukkwanzzmas!

Maybe it’s just me. And I don’t want you to think I’m nuts (or un-American, or quasi-Christian, or liberal), but if I get one more email that bemoans the fact that some retailers are instructing their employees to say, “Happy Holidays” instead of “Merry Christmas”, I’m going to scream. Is this really something worthy of getting all up in arms about? Aren’t there better ways to spend our time, energy, and resources, rather than getting upset about what some minimum-wage-earning-pimply-faced-checkout-girl says to us as we leave Best Buy?

I’m a HUGE fan of Christmas and I am a committed follower of Jesus Christ. But here are a few facts:

1. Christmas, as a holiday, was never celebrated or mentioned in Scripture.
2. The phrase “Happy Holidays” can be interpreted as including Thanksgiving, Christmas, and New Years (as well as the multicultural holidays).
3. Retailers are in business to make money. They are not making religious/political statements. In their minds, a Christian’s money is just as good as a Jew’s money which spends just as well as a Muslim’s money, which is as profitable as an Atheist’s money.
4. The average person, when he hears the phrase, “Merry Christmas”, does not think, “Wow! Isn’t it awesome that Wal-Mart reminded me to remember Jesus?”
5. It is the job of THE CHURCH to exalt, promote, preach, and share the name of Christ.

So when people get their shorts in a wad about this issue, they are once again making Christians look like a bunch of idiotic, reactionary, clueless dipsticks. Just shut up already!

The Nativity Story

On Friday, my family and I went to see the new movie The Nativity Story. I know that many of you have included that as part of your holiday plans.

I thought the filmmakers did a great job depicting the reality of what it must have been like for Mary & Joseph living in that time. Much of the dialogue was taken directly from the biblical texts. Sure, there were a few “Hollywood edits” (for example, the wise men showing up at the stable). I recommend it. Maybe not for very young children. It is not your typical sterile, magical, Disney-esque version of Jesus’ birth. But it is a great reminder of how it all started.