Merry Christmas!

For some time now, I've been all about taking the 'X' out of Christmas. I detest Xmas, Happy Holidays, and all of the other ways people avoid saying CHRISTmas. I have made it a point to say, write, email Merry Christmas whenever possible, in defiance of the new traditions most people have during this season.

A few weeks ago, I had the opportunity to hear Gold City sing in Greenwood IN. Their lead singer also issued this same challenge - let's put Christ back in Christmas. Of course I 'Amened!!' But he took it a step farther, issuing a challenge for us to the be the mouth of God, wishing all those we come in contact with a Merry Christmas! The bank teller, the gas station attendant, the wrong number that called your house during your favorite show, anyone! We, as Christians, know why "it's the most wonderful time of the year" - Luke 2:11 "Today in the town of David a Savior has been born to you; he is Christ the Lord."

So, MERRY CHRISTMAS to you!

Car Wash

This is a recent journal entry that I found interesting, written by one of my artists - Betsy Walker. Love the outside of the car vs. inside of the car analogy, with regard to our hearts.

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Have you ever noticed that it's a lot easier to clean the outside of your car than the inside? now granted, i don't clean either very often. in fact, just last week i drove through a car wash for the first time...and after i figured out how to get my tire into the little rail guard thing it was a beautiful experience.But it sure takes a lot longer than that to clean the inside.

Now i don't consider myself a slob by any means, but my car, which doubles as my office, lunch box, cd stand, first aid kit, and tour bus has a tendency to accumulate a lot of items. And because i spend so much time in my car, it also has a tendency to accumulate a lot of trash.For a few weeks i have been telling myself that i'm going to take the time to clean it, but i find that i am too busy or too lazy to make it a priority. So... earlier this week i had the brilliant idea of simply keeping a garbage bag in the back seat of my car so that instead of having to take my trash to the garbage can, i can bring the garbage can to me. so convenient...so beautiful.It's not really smelly garbage and by organizing it in a bag it rarely interferes with my life. I have also found that it is a lot more socially acceptable to hide all your garbage in a white sack then to stuff it under the seats etc. (of course there are still little crumbs and shreds of paper and leaves...but those are too little to mention right now...we've got larger problems to deal with).

So it would seem that i had my trash problem under control...accept today when i was driving to an appointment, i came to the sad realization that while i had compartamentalized/organized my trash, at the end of the day, i still have the same amount of garbage in my car...

and then it hit me like a ton of bricks...perhaps i still have the same amount of garbage in my heart...perhaps i am good at making myself look shiny on the outside, and rearranging my trash so that it isn't really bothering anyone...not even myself...but it's still there taking up space. Hmm...it's just a thought.

"He who wants to keep his garden tidy, doesn't reserve a plot for weeds." - dag hammarskjold
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The Amazing Race

Thanks to my brother and sis-in-law, our family has become a huge fan of the Amazing Race. This season was 'Family Edition' and I was particularly interested in following the Weaver family - a mother and her three children who were outspoken Christians.

After about half of the season, I became really disappointed in the Weavers as they were constantly making fun of other families, they had mean nicknames for all of their competitors, they were bitter, they were sarcastic and they constantly complained about being the outcast family that no one liked. You can call it CBS editing or whatever, but in between all of these - in my mind at the time, sinful - ways, they would manage to show them praying about the next leg of the Race, or about where to go, or strength to meet the next physical challenge. It seemed like every episode, I wanted to come off the couch and scream "Hypocrite!"

Matthew 7:1 "Do not judge, or you too will be judged."

Hmm...didn't see that one coming, God, but I hear You loud and clear.

When I stopped to think about it, am I the same way? Do I sometimes look at people critically - even in my mind - based on appearance or circumstances? Am I rude sometimes? Am I bitter when things don't go my way? And when I am any of these things, don't I still claim to be a Christian?

Activity and Overload

In continuing with my reading of The Overload Syndrome, I just finished a chapter on Activity and Commitment. The author started the chapter by quoting John Charles Cooper, who said "Whenever two people meet today, one or the other is sure to mention how busy he or she is." True? Especially this time of year, isn't it?

It was interesting also that Dr. Swenson talked about busyness as a sign of prestige, or a badge of honor to be worn, to some people. He talked about activities, involvement, and commitments as fundementally good things by themselves. Or in moderation. They are a part of a healthy life. It's when our commitments prevent us from rest, prevent us from spending time with our family, prevent us from building people-relationships, that they become an overload problem.

He offered several prescriptions for overcoming Activity overload, but the last one stuck out to me most: Remember Who it is that gets things done. Amen. Someone said "God can do in twenty minutes what it takes us twenty years to do." We need to lean more on the One that can do all things, than the one (us) who can do few things well.

"Is it busyness that moves mountains...or faith?" The Overload Syndrome