Category Archives: Christianity

A Christmas Carol by Emily Dickinson

Nativity Wallpaper

Welcome, sweet Christmas, blest be the morn
That Christ our Saviour was born!
Earth’s Redeemer, to save us from all danger,
And, as the Holy Record tells, born in a manger.

Then ring, ring, Christmas bells,
Till your sweet music o’er the kingdom swells,
To warn the people to respect the morn
That Christ their Saviour was born.

The snow was on the ground when Christ was born,
And the Virgin Mary His mother felt very forlorn
As she lay in a horse’s stall at a roadside inn,
Till Christ our Saviour was born to free us from sin.

Oh! think of the Virgin Mary as she lay
In a lowly stable on a bed of hay,
And angels watching O’er her till Christ was born,
Therefore all the people should respect Christmas morn.

The way to respect Christmas time
Is not by drinking whisky or wine,
But to sing praises to God on Christmas morn,
The time that Jesus Christ His Son was born;

Whom He sent into the world to save sinners from hell
And by believing in Him in heaven we’ll dwell;
Then blest be the morn that Christ was born,
Who can save us from hell, death, and scorn.

Then he warned, and respect the Saviour dear,
And treat with less respect the New Year,
And respect always the blessed morn
That Christ our Saviour was born.

For each new morn to the Christian is dear,
As well as the morn of the New Year,
And he thanks God for the light of each new morn.
Especially the morn that Christ was born.

Therefore, good people, be warned in time,
And on Christmas morn don’t get drunk with wine
But praise God above on Christmas morn,
Who sent His Son to save us from hell and scorn.

There the heavenly babe He lay
In a stall among a lot of hay,
While the Angel Host by Bethlehem
Sang a beautiful and heavenly anthem.

Christmas time ought to be held most dear,
Much more so than the New Year,
Because that’s the time that Christ was born,
Therefore respect Christmas morn.

And let the rich be kind to the poor,
And think of the hardships they do endure,
Who are neither clothed nor fed,
And Many without a blanket to their bed.

What if the “Mindless philosophy” was of an evil mind?

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“It is a mindless philosophy that assumes that one’s private beliefs have nothing to do with public office. Does it make sense to entrust those who are immoral in private with the power to determine the nation’s moral issues and, indeed, its destiny? …. The duplicitous soul of a leader can only make a nation more sophisticated in evil.”

Dr. Ravi Zacharias

[Dr. Zacharias is of course one of the greatest minds of the past 100 years. This quote made we wonder what the policies of a State would be if it was guided by a religion of hate? A religion that felt that everyone who was a nonbeliever must be murdered. Would the State then manifest its religion into its actions? What if the two weren’t separated at all? But in actuality there was NO separation of church and State. What if everyone had blinders on about this State Religion and wouldn’t call this evil out for what it was? What kind of hell on earth would be unleashed if this hate were to spread unabated?]

“A Charlie Brown Christmas for 50 years and counting”

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Patrick Ryan for USA Today had a fun little piece about my favorite Christmas special. The music, the animation, the voices, it all came together for a wonderful bit of nostalgia. Ryan notes that:

“An overt religious message from the blanket-carrying Linus, who quotes the Bible…”

I was taken aback by that line. Christmas concerns the birth of Jesus. That “birthed” Christianity, so I would imagine there would be an overtly religious message. Christmas is a religious holiday, or more precisely, a Christian holiday. Putting Christ in Christmas so to speak. Secondly, it therefore follows that “quoting from the bible” would be a good fit as the bible is the revealing of God, Jesus and the Holy Spirit, to man. The bible tells us what He is thinking. And, through Christmas, God revealed himself to us in person for 33 years. In fact, I would be so bold as to say the Charlie Brown Christmas, is the only special that does convey that message.

The better question might be, shouldn’t the other specials be called “holiday” specials?

 

“Holiday Gift Guide”

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This morning’s (Thanksgiving Day) Des Moines Register had an interesting insert, the “Holiday Gift Guide!” Really? What “holiday” is that Register? The ads, which make this Thursday paper a little bigger than the Sunday paper, keep referencing an event tomorrow called “Black Friday”. A rather ominous name for an unspecified festive holiday. There seems to be a marketing disconnect there.

Aside from the idea your ad revenues spike this time of year and you are able to reap enormous profits celebrating a “holiday” you won’t name. That holiday for the deaf, dumb, and journalist, is  Christmas. The date chosen to celebrate the birth of Jesus. The name that rankles the secular humanist to no end. The eternal conundrum, making money off of someone, but not acknowledging who He is. What to do, what to do…

Let me gaze into my crystal ball. I predict that on the local news tomorrow morning,  we will see footage of the mayhem, madness, and assaults that take place at the malls in the quest for Chinese plastic and clothing. I can’t help but feel there is some perversion of the Wise men bearing gifts to the newborn Savior taking place.  Otherwise this tradition of early morning mall raids and the opportunity to spend oneself into oblivion, arose for no reason at all.

The Register is at least being more honest than the Hallmark Channel. I’m watching The Walton’s one night  at the end of October when a crawl comes across the screen: “We are suspending The Walton’s until after Christmas so we may show you 24 hours of Christmas movies until then!” Which is ironic, as I have previously noted, Hallmark’s holiday movies have absolutely nothing to do with Christmas, the birth of Jesus. Yet they insist on calling them the wrong name.

It was fun to watch the misplaced outrage this fall aimed at Starbucks and their snowflake free mugs. Then there is the sect of Christians futilely trying to warn us that December 25 is not the actual birthdate of the Savior!  This was a pagan holiday! (We know that.) Don’t even get them started on the Easter Bunny!

 

 

 

Everyone?

“God’’s readiness to give and forgive is now public. Salvation’’s available for everyone!”            Titus 2:11

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Evidently, God wants everyone to know Jesus. This is confusing though with the whole, “predestination” thing. I can’t help but feel this, and, “Knock and the door shall be opened”, trumps predestination.  

Peter Hitchens, brother to acerbic atheist Christopher, came back to Christ

One of the differences is comparing temporary death with eternal death. This is serious stuff.

Pilgrim Dispatch's avatarMustard Seed Budget

peter and christopher hitchens

To inaugurate his atheism, 15-year-old Peter Hitchens burned his Bible outside his Cambridge boarding school in 1967 in front of a group of curious and enthusiastic fellow students.

The desecration turned out to be anti-climatic. The Bible didn’t catch fire in the hoped-for dramatic fashion. As a matter of fact, the thick stack of paper pages were poor kindling and the wind put it out. Only with much coaxing and much patience did it partially burn. His friends, eager to gawk at the anti-God defiance, lost interest and drifted away.

Today, Peter Hitchens, has come full circle. After enlisting with Troskty communists and championing atheist causes, he is now back to Christianity. His older brother Christopher, a media darling and atheistic provocateur with a best-seller God is Not Great, never came back to faith.

Peter-HitchensThe brothers faced-off in a 2008 debate in Grand Rapids over the existence of God. Peter…

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When we take our eyes off Jesus we begin to sink

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“When we take our eyes off Jesus we begin to sink.  And yet, often when we are sinking, we don’’t have the wisdom to cry out, “Lord save me!””  –  Daily Inspiration

How true is that?? We know better. We know we should give thanks. We know we should ask for help. We know we should work God’s will. We know we should ask God to bless others and ourselves. We know we should ask for forgiveness. How easy it is to take our eye off the ball?