PROVERBS 19:20

Sunday, November 30, 2008

Jesus is the Reason for the Season

I know it has been a long time since I have posted. I have been pretty busy, and usually only have time to post comments on other blogs. Since the last time I posted, "A" has returned to work and finished his chemo and radiation treatments. He continues to be thankful of all the prayers that have been sent his way over the last months. He continues to get stronger every day and I am thankful that he is back at work with all of us.

I figured I would broach the Christmas topic, like many others will be in the coming weeks, for one main reason: the events of the last week.

This week, I have read the following headlines, and absolutely cringed:

Icelanders demand PM resign during violent protests: Thousands of Icelanders took to the street in violent protests in Rekjavik, demanding the resignation of Prime Minister Geir Haarde and central bank governor David Oddsson in the wake of the country's complete financial collapse.

Throng Of 2,000 Shoppers Bum-Rush L.I. Wal-Mart: Worker, 34, Trampled, Dies; Nassau Cops: Pregnant Woman, 3 Others Injured By Unruly 'Black Friday' Mob

Witnesses: Fatal shooting followed toy store brawl

Mumbai terror rage ends after 60 hours, 195 dead

So, let me get this straight, due to the financial crisis around the world, we have riots in Iceland. Shoppers desperate to get those "great deals" at Wal-Mart, bum rushed the doors and trampled a worker to death and caused a pregnant woman to have a miscarriage. Two women start a fist fight, for unknown reasons, at a Toys R' Us, and the men with them shoot each other similar to a scene from Die Hard. Last, and certainly not least, a bunch of Islamic militants go on a shooting rampage in India, killing at least 195, and probably more.

What a way to start out the Advent season: with a little mayhem. My heart aches for our country, for the world, and it is times like these that I truly understand how fallen man is. Why our Father in heaven sent His only Son...to save us from ourselves.

More so, I wanted to post this to remind everyone what Jesus said about wealth in a time that the world and our country are on the brink of economic ruin and the biggest commercialized holiday of the year.

"Do not lay up for yourselves treasures on earth, where moth and rust destroy and where thieves break in and steal; but lay up for yourselves treasures in heaven, where neither moth nor rust destroys and where thieves do not break in and steal. For where your treasure is, there your heart will be also.

The lamp of the body is the eye. If therefore your eye is good, your whole body will be full of light. But if your eye is bad, your whole body will be full of darkness. If therefore the light that is in you is darkness, how great is that darkness!

No one can serve two masters; for either he will hate the one and love the other, or else he will be loyal to the one and despise the other. You cannot serve God and mammon.

Therefore I say to you, do not worry about your life, what you will eat or what you will drink; nor about your body, what you will put on. Is not life more than food and the body more than clothing? Look at the birds of the air, for they neither sow nor reap nor gather into barns; yet your heavenly Father feeds them. Are you not of more value than they? Which of you by worrying can add one cubit to his stature? So why do you worry about clothing? Consider the lilies of the field, how they grow: they neither toil nor spin; and yet I say to you that even Solomon in all his glory was not arrayed like one of these. Now if God so clothes the grass of the field, which today is, and tomorrow is thrown into the oven, will He not much more clothe you, O you of little faith?

Therefore do not worry, saying, ‘What shall we eat?’ or ‘What shall we drink?’ or ‘What shall we wear?’ For after all these things the Gentiles seek. For your heavenly Father knows that you need all these things. But seek first the kingdom of God and His righteousness, and all these things shall be added to you. Therefore do not worry about tomorrow, for tomorrow will worry about its own things. Sufficient for the day is its own trouble." Matthew 6:19-34 (NKJV)

While many people are looking to the government for the "bail out" answer, I look to scripture. And when it comes to trusting the government, the following quotes are very telling.

"A government big enough to give you everything you want, is strong enough to take everything you have." Gerald Ford

"Well, I’m here to remind you that you’re going to fix the economy because your personal economy is up to you. It's not Washington's job to fix what's going on with you. If you are waiting on Washington to change something, you've got a long wait!

You’re going to give yourself money as a result of your hard work and persistence. Waiting for money to be taken from others and given to you is a spirit of envy, and it's wrong.

I’m not here to tell you who to vote for. But I am here to tell you that the government doesn’t have the capacity to fix your problems. Washington is full of bozos, and I am doing my part to send a lot of them home!

This economic mess is a reality, but we can each only control one thing—our reactions. Does this stuff define you? Only if you let it. The weird thing about the economy is that YOU are the economy! I learned this the hard way. I got my real estate license when I was 18 years old. By the time I was 21, interest rates had risen to 17% fixed-rate … and I still sold houses. How? Because I worked hard." Dave Ramsey (complete comments here)

As we begin Advent, think about challenging yourself to be more than just a Christian in name only. Live it out each day, proudly, on your sleeve. Be different! Be recognizable!

My home church, The Loft, started the Happy Birthday Jesus project last year. Each member is asked to look at their Christmas budget, cut it in half, and give half to Jesus for Christmas. The money is used for our mission project in Costa Rica. If your church is not doing something like this, hop over to The Advent Conspiracy and get plugged in there. Whatever it takes, step away from the commercialism of Christmas and step closer to what Christ challenges us to be every day, Servants.

Christ came for a reason, now that we know Him, let's let the world know Him through us.

UPDATE: The woman mentioned in the article at Wal-Mart suffered a miscarriage.

Labels: Christmas, greed, servants