Santa's Place at Christmas

Leatrice Ann Eng, is a 58 year old teacher at George W. Miller Elementary School in Nanuet, NY. During a recent class discussion about the North Pole, one of her second graders pointed out that the North Pole was where Santa Clause lives. Teacher Eng quickly replied that not only does Santa NOT live at the North Pole ... but he is NOT real and it was parents who placed Christmas gifts under the tree! Ouch! In the days following her remarks, Eng was overwhelmed with calls and emails from angry parents. To make amends, Eng called each of her student's parents to apologize for her statements. I guess she'll go down in the history of that town as "The Eng who stole Christmas!"  


All of this brings to mind the matter of Santa's place in Christmas tradition. Christians differ markedly concerning the "Santa issue."  Some exclude him entirely. In their view, Santa has usurped the place of Jesus and has become an idol of the Holiday Season. Other Christians go right along with the flow and tell their children that Santa is real ... and go on to do the full blown "Santa Thing."  However, I believe there is a better approach than either of these. 


The Santa tradition is actually based on figure from history, St. Nicholas of Myra. Here is an excerpt of an article from gotquestions.org. 

"Although Santa Claus is a mythical figure, his creation is based in part on a great Christian man named Saint Nicholas of Myra, who lived in the 4th century. Nicholas was born to Christian parents who left him an inheritance when they died, which he distributed to the poor. He became a priest at a young age and was well-known for his compassion and generosity. He had a reputation for giving gifts anonymously, and he would throw bags of money into people's homes (and sometimes down their chimneys) under the cover of night to avoid being spotted.

Nicholas passed away on December 6 sometime around the 340s or 350s AD, and the day of his death became an annual feast in which children would put out food for Nicholas and straw for his donkey. It was said that the saint would come down from heaven during the night and replace the offerings with toys and treats—but only for the good boys and girls. There are many different versions of the legend of Saint Nicholas, but all are the inspiration for the jolly, red-suited gift-giver that we now know as Santa Claus."

When our kids were little, we chose to include Santa in our Christmas tradition. But we did so by telling them the story of the real Nicholas of Myra. We emphasized his compassion and generosity as examples to imitate in our own lives. And of course, we told them that the fact that Santa Clause was not real would be "our secret." We didn't want them to be the one's to "spill the beans" for their little friends who believed in Santa's existence. 

Thanks for stopping by . . . 

pj 

3 Advent Quotes to Chew On!

Below are quotes from three giants of The Faith. Christmas is certainly a time to say "Wow!" 

"He became what we are that he might make us what he is."  Athanasius (4th century Bishop of Alexandria) 

"God became man to turn creatures into sons: not simply to produce better men of the old kind but to produce a new kind of man."   C.S. Lewis (20th century writer and apologist)

"The mystery of Christ, that He sunk Himself into our flesh, is beyond all human understanding." Martin Luther ("Father" of the Protestant Reformation) 

Thanks for stopping by . . . pj

Thursday A La Carte

Here are this week's offerings ... enjoy!

1. Ray Ortland shares Elizabeth Elliot's six ways she has found help in the midst of loss and suffering. 


2. With all the hubbub over Herman Cain and the accusations of sexual harassment and infidelity that have been lodged against him ... we are forced to consider the question, what role does a candidate's private life play when it comes to whom we elect for public office? Al Mohler gives some insight!


3. Regrets. We all have them. But how do we live with them. Ed Welch of CCEF writes on this topic. 


4. Here is a pretty cool video (4:57) of a flash mob singing a song for the season! 


Thanks for stopping by . . .
pj

An Advent Thought

John 1:1, 14  "In the beginning was the Word, and the Word was with God, and the Word was God. And the Word became flesh and dwelt among us, and we have seen his glory, glory as of the only Son from the Father, full of grace and truth." 


I get "blown away" every time I try to wrap my mind around the reality John expresses in these words above. The Eternal Word, God Himself, became flesh! God took on human DNA. His little body grew and developed just like any other baby's inside his mother's womb. Consider the following journey of the Christ-Child as he developed within Mary's womb (descriptions gleaned from pregnancy.org):

At five weeks, his heart begins to beat. His lungs, brain and other vital organs begin to appear. At seven weeks, his eyes, nose, fingers, and teeth (below the gum line) start to form. By week 10, his fingerprints already are evident. At 12 weeks, his vocal cords begin to take shape, and his liver and pancreas begin to function. By week 14 he may have learned to suck his thumb! By week 16 his heart is pumping as much as 6 gallons of blood per day and he has learned how to breathe! At week 19 his scalp hair is beginning to grow. At 23 weeks, he is able to hear sounds. He begins to open his eyes and blink at 26 weeks. At 30 weeks, his toenails are almost fully formed and he is capable of shedding tears. He begins to dream (about what, I would not know!) at week 32. By week 34 his eyes are open when awake and closed when asleep. At 36 weeks, the only organs that still must mature are his lungs. His skin is growing increasingly "baby soft." By week 39, he may have a full head of hair. And by 40 weeks, he should have made his grand entrance into our world!

Wow! To think God the Son left the glories of heaven to go through all of this! And why did He choose to do so?  In his own words:

Luke 19:10  "For the Son of Man came to seek and to save the lost."


Take a moment and thank God for the Son's willingness to take on human flesh so that we might take on his righteousness!

Thanks for stopping by . . .
pj

Do Babies Who Die Go to Heaven?

This is a question that many a parent has asked when they have lost a little one .... whether it be before birth ... or after. And it is no doubt a question that needs answered - and not with some sentimental response that has no foundation in Scripture. But the light of God's Word needs to be shone on this troubling question.

So ... is there any biblical rationale for believing what we would all like to believe - that YES, infants who die go to heaven? You might be surprised to find out that there is. Below I have listed some links to articles ... and one book that will help you find understanding on this issue. I encourage you to take the time to check these out. And if you know of a friend or family member who has recently lost a little one, you just might want to point them in the direction of these helps.

- John Piper, What happens to infants who die? 


- Al Mohler and Dan Atkin, Why we believe children who die go to heaven.

- From Truthsaves.org, Infants and salvation.


- John MacArthur's book, Safe in the Arms of God: Truth from Heaven about the Death of a Child.

Thanks for stopping by . . .
pj

Just What I Want to Eat!

The headline in this morning's paper caught my eye. It read, "Horses could soon be slaughtered for meat." My first thought was the meat would be for pets (dog food, cat food, etc.). But as I read the article it was clear that the article was referring to meat destined for my dinner plate! Hmm. "Pass me another 'horseburger' please."  Now that's just what I want to eat! (NOT!) But, according to this article, horse meat could soon become available for human consumption. This as a result of the recent lifting by Congress of a five year ban on the funding of horse meat inspections.

Now whether this happens or not, I guess we will have to wait and see. I am sure the horse lovers of America will do all they can to keep it from happening. Who knows, maybe a group of horses will join the cows on television ads encouraging viewers to "Eat More Chicken!"

When it comes to eating, it is important to eat healthy. I am not sure how healthy or unhealthy eating horse meat might be (I am guessing that all depends on who you talk to) - but eating a portion of "roast horse" sure does not sound appetizing!

In the spiritual arena ... we MUST eat healthy! We must feed our souls what our souls need to grow. And that is a regular, solid portion of God's Word (Psalm 1:1-2)! How much interaction do you have with the Bible? If you want some help in this area to ramp up the time you spend with God in HIS Word ... let me suggest you check out what Matthias Media has to say about Regular Bible Reading.

Thanks for stopping by . . .
pj

Thursday A La Carte

Here are my a la carte offerings for this week. Enjoy!

1. Does the Devil have a "playbook" that he follows in his attempt to derail us in our walk with God? Here's a thoughtful article by Ray Ortlund that answers that question. It's a good read!

2. Here is a video (1:42) which shows how the most fascinating window ever made by man was installed. The location of this window might surprise you!

3. Leading family devos .... who is doing it at your house? Who should be doing it?  Here is an brief blog posting on this topic.

4. Scotty Smith on the Gospel Coalition offers a prayer for grace to forgive as Jesus has forgiven us.

5. R.C. Sproul talks about the need for the Christian to be EVER READY! 


6. Finally ... on a lighter note! You go DOG!