A Great Idea for Christmas

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Gather the kids and read the Christmas story.

Here it is in chronological order.
If you have young listeners be sure to choose an easier to understand version like The New International Version or New Living Translation. If you have really small, or impatient listeners, read only the sections listed in bold.

A tradition we enjoyed when the children were small was to have them use the pieces of a non-breakable nativity set to act out the action while Dad read. (See the video below to see that this does not have to be some high and holy experience.  Have fun with it.)
Print this out and store it with your decorations and you’ll be ready to do it again next year.

Have fun and a Merry Christmas.

THE BIRTH OF THE SAVIOR
John 1:1- 5, 14 (Eternal Word made flesh)
Luke 1:5-25 (Zechariah’s vision)
Luke 1:26-56 (Mary’s vision and trip)
Matthew 1:18-25 (Joseph’s first dream)
Luke 2:1-20 (Bethlehem & Shepherds)
Matthew 2:1-12 (Magi)
Matthew 2:13-23 (To Egypt and Nazareth)

Want to see how this works?
Jonathan dug up an old home movie of one of our Christmas readings while we lived in Guatemala, Central America.
Check it out here.

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What is wrong with my church?

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Someone asked me why their church seems to continually go through conflict and tension among the members.  After asking a few questions I explained that their problem is that they are in a “Laodicean church”.

Most folks think of Laodicea, in Revelation 3, as being the “lukewarm” church but the very name of the church reveals a more foundational problem. Laodicea comes from two Greek words. The first one means “the people” – where we get our word “laity”. The second word can mean justice or vengeance or, rulership. In other words, Laodicea is a church ruled by the people – a democracy. Continue reading →

Don’t be a smarty pants.

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2 Peter 1:5
For this very reason, make every effort to add to your faith goodness; and to goodness, knowledge;
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Had we written this we probably would have said, “add to your faith knowledge” because in Western culture and the church we value amassing knowledge about God. Our services are built around an instruction time. We have Bible STUDIES, Sunday SCHOOLS and even Bible COLLEGES. We tend to believe knowledge is the answer – knowledge about goodness will lead to goodness. A person who is not good simply needs more instruction. Continue reading →

Shopping hints for husbands

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This post is for the guys but,

Ladies: Click here to find out what your husband most wants to find under his tree.

It’s the most wonderful time of the year – unless you are like me and really lousy at picking gifts. I thought I would offer some advice, based on experience, as to what you can get your wife to brighten her holidays. First, some things not to give:

1. A Bathroom scale
Jana won’t let me forget this one.  She had been saying she wanted one so I thought, “Aha.  A sure winner”.  It was not.  Even though it was digital (back then that was really cool) and even told her what percentage of body fat she had. I can’t imagine why any woman would not want to know her body fat percentage.  Strike 1!

W.O.W. – women are very body conscious and anything (work out DVDs, gym memberships, calorie counting cookbooks, etc) that we get them that suggests they are out of shape (hey, round is a shape) just adds to the insecurity they already feel.
Continue reading →

Stop a charging elephant

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Proverbs 22:7
The rich rule over the poor, and the borrower is slave to the lender.
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How do you stop a charging elephant? You take away his credit card.

Someone was commenting on the deal they got on a new car because of “good financing”. Instead of minding my own business I let them know I think we should view the term “good financing” as an oxymoron. How can anything that makes us a slave to another be “good”?

At this time of year when it is so easy to go into debt to demonstrate our love, or more likely, just to fulfill what we feel are our obligations to give a gift, it is a good time to meditate on the warning of Proverbs 22:7. Continue reading →

What fool wouldn’t want this job?

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Colossians 3:23, 24
And whatsoever ye do, do it heartily, as to the Lord, and not unto men; Knowing that of the Lord ye shall receive the reward of the inheritance: for ye serve the Lord Christ.
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If you work in a grocery store, you don’t get paid by the hospital down the street. It is the guy you work for who pays you. Most of us see ourselves working for an individual, maybe even ourselves, or for a company. That individual pays us.

But this passage says that as a believer whatever I do I should do it as though the Lord is my employer. It also promises that if I do that I can be assured He will “reward” me. My paycheck will not just come from the earthly boss but I will also be compensated by the Heavenly boss whom, in my heart, I am truly serving. Continue reading →

I’d kill for Jesus!

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John 18:10
Then Simon Peter, who had a sword, drew it and struck the high priest’s servant, cutting off his right ear. (The servant’s name was Malchus.)
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Some time earlier, during their last meal together, Peter boasted that even though the other disciples might all abandon Jesus, he was willing to die for Him. Evidently he was sincere. Here we see Peter was certainly willing to kill for Him. (Remember, Peter was a fisherman, not a swordsman. Certainly he was attempting to kill the man but was only able to clip an ear.) But the disciples were outnumbered and out armed so Peter’s attack could have led to his death, too. Apparently Peter was willing to die for Jesus.

But Jesus put a stop to Peter’s attack. The Lord was more interested in Peter living for Him than Peter dying for Him. Peter failed the ‘living’ test though and denied the Lord three times. Continue reading →

How to get into ministry

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Colossians 3:23
And whatsoever ye do, do it heartily, as to the Lord, and not unto men;
Knowing that of the Lord ye shall receive the reward of the inheritance: for ye serve the Lord Christ.
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“Whatsoever you do.” What sort of things would be included in that “whatsoever”? In the previous five verses Paul references four areas of our lives where we are to work “heartily as to the Lord and not unto men” – in our role as a wife or husband (vs 18,19), children and parents (vs 20, 21) and in our role as employees (vs 22).

How would my marriage be different if “whatsoever I did” I did for the Lord and not for my spouse? Would I respond differently if I were doing it for the Lord, not for my wife or not just to keep peace? Would I be more loving, understanding, go the extra mile, if I were doing it “heartily” – with all my heart? Continue reading →

Arm Wrestling Your Wife

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1 Peter 3:7
Husbands, in the same way be considerate as you live with your wives, and treat them with respect as the weaker partner and as heirs with you of the gracious gift of life, so that nothing will hinder your prayers.
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Men, when Paul speaks of a wife being “weaker” he is not referring to the fact that you can (probably) beat her at arm wrestling nor saying that she is somehow flawed. “Weaker” speaks of more finely tuned, more intricate in her workings and, therefore, in need of extra attention.

When finished using your hammer you can toss it in the tool box but you wouldn’t do that with a guitar. It gets carefully placed into a padded case. The guitar is not faulty or second rate but it gets treated with “respect as the weaker” item. The hammer is built to take the abuse but your wife, like a finely tuned instrument, is not. She is easily “knocked out of tune” and, therefore, needs extra care. Continue reading →

Not sure I believe this. Do you?

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John 15:5 “I am the vine, you are the branches; he who abides in Me and I in him, he bears much fruit, for apart from Me you can do nothing.
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Apart from Jesus I can do nothing? I’m not sure I believe this verse. At least I often don’t act like I do. I act more like I believe “I can do this but if God blesses it it will be so much better.”  So I ask for His help.

When I “help” someone they do most of the work and I just provide the little extra to put them over the top. When I ask God to help me or bless what I am doing, at least in my mind, there is an implied “I can and am going to do this but, God, it will be wonderful if You give it that little extra to put it over the top and make it great.”  God becomes the icing on the cake rather than the essential vine. Continue reading →