* Almost There

No more presents to buy, just two to wrap. Christmas music on, cookies made, six cards without addresses - thanks to the little thief that walked off with my address book. We are almost there. I truly enjoy the Christmas season. So in that vein here is my top ten list of favorite things, in no particular order...

1. Christmas music - classic hymns, instrumental, or contemporary versions, all good. Judah has some jazz versions that are particularly interesting. Sometimes hearing the words in a different way helps you to remember what the song is about in the first place.
2. Evergreen trees and wreaths - evergreens get more press this time but are beautiful all year, it is just now that they are more obvious. :)
3. Spice tea on cold mornings - not necessarily restricted to Christmas but definitely tied together in my mind.
4. Another reason to have turkey and stuffing - none of that silly dressing business - stuffing only!
5. Christmas lights. I am a particular fan of white on the exterior but multi-colored on the tree. My favorite is the glow of the tree late at night, when it is quiet (which must mean when the kids are asleep)
6. Giving gifts - I often get more enjoyment out of giving the perfect gift than in receiving, which I believe is the whole point - since Christ was given as our perfect gift.
7. Hand print decorations - the kids have made some adorable wreaths, trees and reindeer from hand prints. I much prefer these crafts to scribbles, and definitely prefer them over glitter, which is the silliest craft time ever in my opinion. Gets everywhere - blgh.
8. Christmas cards - I get more and more photos each year. I think the pictures are fabulous, but also the borders always speak much to an individuals taste and style. It is fun to get a glimpse into some one's personality.
9. Christmas cookies - sugar cookies with icing in different flavors. I was blessed to have a very crafty mother who taught me to do such things throughout the year. I had some new college students over recently to help with cookies and some of those girls had never rolled dough to cut into shapes or made homemade powdered sugar icing. They were completely blown away by the different flavors you could make. I found a vanilla butter nut flavor this year - awesome! Apparently my traditions are not universal - which makes them even more special.
10. Time with family - sounds kinda gushy, a little fuzzy for me, but I do enjoy the time with the people I like doing something special. I think other than serving others during this time, God is most pleased with family together, doing what families should do. Slowing down, being TOGETHER, and showing love to each other.

May you all have a holiday season full of times of joy and your own version of home-made sugar cookies.

* Overwhelmed Follow-up

• I have successfully washed and hidden the Hello Kitty jeans.
• Laundry is folded and put away (a 1.5 hour process for two adults working continuously - we are blessed so much)
• Dishes done.
• All presents purchased and I am at 90% wrapped.

Still haven't done all those cards though...

Just Boys

I took the day off today. Recently, I have been feeling guilty about not spending a lot of quality time (I really hate that phrase) with my son. So today we spent a lot of time together.

I got a new radio installed in the Jetta. This was my Christmas present from Michelle. The new radio allows me to plug my ipod into it, and the radio controls it. The sound is awesome. My boy loved checking out all the radios, speakers, amplifiers, and DVD players. During the installation, we headed over to Panera Bread to get a cup of coffee and some hot chocolate; just us guys.

Afterward, we went to the paintball store to pick up some ammo. Again, seeing guns, ammo, body armor, etc. from a 7 year old's perspective is amazing. "Dad! look at this one! Dad! check this out!"

On the way home, we stopped and picked up Michelle's Christmas present. He was so exicted when he found the Christmas bag with the alarm on it: "STOP! you are trying to peek into this bag! STOP!" How funny is that? Michelle is not as amused.

Later on, we went to the gym, and I taught my son how to play racket ball. So much fun!

Now, we are sitting at the table, catching up on our homework.

It amazes me how calm and "chilled out" my son gets after a good day of "boy stuff". Its days like this that continually remind me that this was how God designed it: boys, hanging out with their dads on a daily basis. You can see it in his personality when we get too busy, and he and I don't get some one on one time. He gets a little cranky, and starts pushing the rules that he already knows are there.

But this is so hard to do, especially when you work the way that I do, which puts you across the world periodically. Making time for them(kids) is the most important thing we can do as parents. I know its hard, because sometimes we just need a break. But we need to. We need to wrestle. We need to play racket ball. We need to make destroyer ships out of legos and break them apart. We need to just watch Animal Planet and chill sometimes.

Today, was a great reminder of that, and I am very thankful for it.

* Overwhelmed

The things in the back of my mind seem to be pushing forward and disturbing my front burner thoughts - quite annoying. These are the items that are trying to cycle up...

• I still have not bought my brother-in-laws present. Unlike not knowing what I want to get, a completely separate annoyance, I know what I want, but do not yet have it in my possession. We went by the store again today, closed. The last time we went by, closed. They have weird hours and tend to close when they want. My son said they must know when I am coming because they are never closed when Judah wants to go by!
• I have not wrapped ANY gifts!
• I have not addressed any Christmas cards. They have been ready for over a week and I have done nothing more than write the list. I am thinking of cheating this year and just sending them as is, but someone has a voice in the back of my head that tells me how much hand written sentiments are appreciated and I feel compelled to write on them PERSONALLY. (To the voice in my head - you know who you are!!!!)
• I have not taken any continuing education classes this year. My license is up next spring and I need to get my ethics and jurisprudence credits this time. They have some fairly straightforward online courses that would only take me a few hours - but who has a few hours without interruption??
• The dishes need to be done.
• The laundry needs to be folded.
• Should I cook dinner before I take my son to Karate and then reheat quickly after or should I wait to cook until after, which makes us eat rather late?
• My daughter has clearly outgrown her Hello Kitty jeans but keeps finding them in the laundry before I can get them out of site completely...how can I distract her, get them washed and stored without her knowledge?

These are the back burner thoughts for today. :)

"Pagan Christianity"

"Pagan Christianity", by Frank Viola and George Barna has to be one of the best historical accounts of the church that I have read in quite some time. In general, it tries to answer the question, "have you eve wondered why we do what we do in church?" If you have ever asked yourself that question, this is the book for you. You can also check out the website here.

Topics covered are: The Church Building, Order of Worship, Sermons, Pastors, Music, Baptism, Tithing, Christian education, and others. In each topic, the authors give an exhaustive account of the origination, as well as, historical progression to the present day.

My main issue is that the book seems to take on a "holier than thou" approach. Even though the authors are quick to point out that the vast majority of Christians are good, God fearing, compassionate individuals, they still tend to make it feel like if you are not doing it their way (i.e. home church), there is something wrong with you. It should be noted that the authors do differentiate between small groups that meet in homes versus actual home churches. Again, this is an excellent reference book for the history of the church.

Gospel According to Judah....
I am very cautiously of the opinion that a larger body of believers is able to do more good than a much smaller group. Obviously home churches have an advantage in that they do not have to pull from their tithing (sorry giving) to pay a mortgage, pastor, light bill, etc. However, it has been shown historically that getting a vast number together, with a common focus, can have a huge impact on an objective. To me, this is where the current corporate worship settings have a huge advantage. I believe why our congregations' effectiveness are going down hill is mainly due to no accountability with the flock (besides other reasons obviously). Churches allow too much of the pew sitting type to flourish in a congregation. Our focus should be on moving people from "just get them in the door" (evangelism), to "get them involved" (ministry), and finally to "showing others Jesus" (discipleship). Unfortunately, this takes a little bit more accountability than I believe most are willing to answer to.

Problem is, the corporate worship of today is also suffering from an overload of ministries. Churches should cut back on the number of programs and just accept the fact that most of them are not beneficial for their particular congregation. This is very difficult for most to do. Imagine telling an overseas missionary that you are no longer supporting them, so as to allocate resources? Or telling a soup kitchen that since no one has signed up consistently over the last 6 months to volunteer, we will no longer be providing volunteers officially? Stopping a ministry is hard, but no congregation can do all ministries. Churches should take an accurate assessment of what types of ministries the congregation is interested in, as well as, understand the needs of their local community. Volunteer ministries work best when the people that are leading them are passionate about them. This assessment should be done regularly, to see if needs and/or desires have changed.

I think what amazes me is seeing first hand how "different" (new) ministries show their effectiveness, but can not get the proper funding because "their is no room in the budget for it." Other ministries that have been "grandfathered in" tend to get the money, even though they may or may NOT be effective. Again, churches should be regularly assessing their congregation and community, thus adjusting their ministries to fit the needs that are out there. To me, this is a very important purpose of corporate church.

The reality is, a combination of corporate worship where members are expected to be involved, and the use of small groups is an excellent balance. Congregations tend to get the best of both worlds. Churches can distribute money that supports local benevolance, local evangelism, overseas missions, etc. I don't believe anyone can argue the benefits of a corporate worship setting done right. Small groups allow for better spiritual growth forChristians, and an environment that is more favorable for people that Christians are trying to reach out to (non-believers). It is a proven fact that small groups have benefits for both, Christians and non-Christians.

Its blatantly obvious that doing the same thing over and over when it comes to church just isn't bringing non-believers to Christ like it used to. Christians should be looking at new ways to spread God's word, live like Jesus, and worship God in ways that do not go against biblical foundations (Jesus is the son of God, and He died for everyone). We can not be afraid to change.

* Everything is Beautiful

I remember a song from years ago that had the line "everything is beautiful...in its own way." This was not a concept I grasped at the time, and I haven't thought of it in....well a very long time. The notion came upon me the other day when I watched my daughter prance away. She was wearing yet another combination of clothing that caused me mental anguish. (Did I mention that she has climbed up into her closet to retrieve the summer clothes I did not put away high enough? We have now compromised and she is allowed to wear skirts with pants underneath and bathing suit tops only when covered by a long sleeve shirt)

I have learned that she picks out her clothes based on the beauty of the individual items, rather than the combination and overall look. Matching? What is that? Due to this approach we often leave the house in something similar to the following

• Blue jacket
• Light pink long sleeve shirt with a horse, complete with pink stringy tail
• Hot pink Skirt
• black pants/leggings with pink ballet slipper design
• shiny pink "mary jane's" that are neither light pink or hot pink in color

I might also note that not a single pink in that outfit coordinated with any other pink in the outfit. In fact clash comes to mind. She thought she was beautiful. She walked with assurance of her beauty throughout several stores as we did some Christmas shopping. I had to refrain from telling everyone we met that she dressed herself. That I as her mother did provide adequate clothing in matching colors. But as I said I have been practicing my deep breathing and instead told no one, and merely agreed with her that everything was beautiful, that she was beautiful, in her own way.

And she was.

Un-Manly

A couple of days ago MSN had a link to an article entitled, "Top 50 Unmanly Things to Do". From this article, you are conisdered unmanly if you:
49. Shave more than 2 times a week. Really? Most of us have jobs that need for us to look professional, let alone my wife kind of digs that smooth skin!
47. Washing dishes. I think if any of you ask your wives if washing dishes is attractive, they would rank that up there with vaccuuming, and giving the kids a bath!
43. Remember an Anniversary. Seriously? Unmanly?
36. Going to tanning beds. OK, I can see that one.
26. Letting your woman work while you are at home playing the Xbox 360. I agree with this one as well. Being a worthless dirtbag is completely unacceptable.
5. Hitting a woman. Enough said. It is never EVER OK to hit a woman.
And the number 1 thing you ask?
1. Answering anything but" Sure, they look nice honey", when a female asks you if her shoes look cute. Oh, come on. How is this unmanly?

I am sure the article is more for tongue and cheek, but it is a little scary that some would actually believe this junk. Being "manly" requires us guys to do things that usually go against what our culture tends to teach us. Men SHOULD open doors for ladies, and show them all kinds of respect. Men should take care of their ladies in every capacity they (the men) possibly can. Men SHOULD show that they appreciate all that their lady does for them.

Being a man is getting rid of that junk in your head that says things like "I am a man. I don't do dishes." or "Your the wife. The kids are your problem." There ar a litany of others. These comments are nothing more than insecurity issues. To be truthful, they are more on the order of being unmanly than a lot of the things in this list.

Guys, treat your woman right. Make her feel like a woman. Make her feel appreciated. Make her feel loved. And if you have sons, teach them how to do this by treating their moms that way.

* The Beginning of Winter

We have returned from our week long trek into the world of Thanksgiving visits. Both Judah and myself hold fiercely to our family gatherings, so that requires going both places. This is something we used to attempt on Thanksgiving itself until our son was a toddler, when we then switched to going to the second place on Friday, revamping the alternating pattern used by most couples. With Thanksgiving over my brain has decided it is winter, a few weeks before the official date. I also now have permission to decorate the house for Christmas and play holiday music whenever I want.

We began decorating Sunday night and succeeded in getting the trees assembled and lights on. Judah's tree took much less effort since he rejoices in jerking it out of the box in one (three foot) piece and plunking it into the stand - DONE. Both children were very much into helping and staked their respective gender claims, my son took the yellow and black tipped branches and my daughter the red and pink, leaving me the green, white, and brown to place into my larger than three foot tree. When the time for lights came they were both still enthused about decorating and wishing to help. I must now state that I am a bit particular about the storage of our Christmas lights and have repackaged them each year as they originally came so as to not have to untangle anything. It has been a great system. Thirty seconds into the lights my daughter had already removed an unapproved twisty tie and lost it while not moving from her place, something only a three year old can do. She was removed from her post. This may sound harsh but it is the way of things. :) She was not beaten, just demoted. Perhaps she can reapply for the position next year. My son held the post of twisty tie unwrapper beautifully. Not losing one of them through the remainder of the process. His method was unorthodox but effective. As each tie came off he twisted it into a man/alien figure that marched around the dining room table. He proudly took the twisted figure into show Judah in the other room. His father was decidedly reserved since he has known me far longer and has also been demoted from Christmas light twisty tie removal in the past. In a hushed tone Judah asked his son

"Does your mother know you did that?"

Bless them both. :) Admittedly I nearly fell over the first time I saw the figure, but I have been working on my deep breathing, and he definitely wasn't losing any.

We are doing the remainder of the decorating today, ornaments. Pray for us.

On another topic.....

It snowed here yesterday, which in my brain was perfect since it was December 1 and seemed to symbolically agree with my notion that December should be a winter month. Nothing stuck but it was beautiful to behold. The kids came out of karate in the middle of it. My son ran around and stuck out his tongue and generally looked so stereotypical that it was adorable. When we were driving later we turned a corner and hit a larger flurry that took my breath away. Fat fluffy flakes swirling around - perfect. I felt like Elijah in 1 Kings 19"...for the Lord is about to pass by.... and after (all the big stuff like earthquakes and fire)... there came a gentle whisper." I am thankful that God passed us by yesterday.

May He give you eyes to see the same.