iGod

What colour is your Christmas?

Following on from yesterday's post, which admittedly has the tenuous connection with colour, here is this year's creative offering from Helene, a dear friend of ours back at All Souls Church.

Although Richard Frank has this year pipped me to posting it, I bear him no grudge. No, really, honest!

ASD

 

White Christmas or Christmas blues?

My family and I visited a Christmas craft fair recently, we do it every year. We go there to buy our tree. Out comes Bing singing "White Christmas" and we are in the zone!

While at the craft fair I came across a poster which read, "If Christmas did not exist it would have to be invented."

For some, Christ is the reason, but for many others He is the excuse. I cannot blame people for wanting to piggyback on one of the two greatest Christian festivals of the year. It has been a difficult year for many families. Jobs have been lost, homes repossessed, unsecured debt hugely increased. Christmas is a timely gift when we can have some respite from the harshest recession in living memory. God bless all those who are struggling.

But I pray the excuse will turn to a reason, because we all need hope beyond ourselves. Hope beyond our own personal predicaments. These are places where the state system can't touch or voluntary organisations get near.

However remarkable we are as human beings, and we are, I believe it is because we were made to be remarkable by a remarkable God. Lest we believe our own press that we are so good that we don't need divine help. That would appear to me to be arrogant and, let's be honest, a bit short-sighted.

 I like Dave Hayward's cartoon, because finding space for the son of God is not always convenient, especially when so much of the lives are filled up with worries of work, our children and the future. And that's just us in the church!

More wider, of course, the world struggles to find room to accommodate the coming of salvation. Our spiritual condition just does not get priority. Talk about putting the cart before the donkey.

Yet, somehow Jesus' birth still manages to be celebrated each year. For some, it will be in a grand cathedral in a prominent well-heeled part of a city. For others, it will be in a non-descript business unit on an industrial estate in South-east London. All expressions are loved by God.

For ourselves, it will be in Sudbury Town Hall on Christmas Eve at 7.00 pm.

A Christmas carol written by Christina Rosetti:

Angels and archangel

May have gathered there

Cherubim and seraphim

Throng'd the air

But only his mother

In her maiden bliss

Worshipped the Beloved

With a kiss.

Have a peaceful and joyful Christmas. God bless.

ASD

Kindness at Christmas

I have been in Pret a Manger this lunchtime buying their redoubtable Christmas sandwich. Apart from being a great festive munch the sandwich will also mean a donation being made to Crisis, the homeless charity. A charitable thing, indeed!

However, while waiting to be served I saw their poster on the wall which said how they give free food and vans to the homeless. However, they were quick to say that it was not because they were "nice" people, but because they hate good food going to waste at the end of the day. I don't know about you, but this kind of sends out mixed messages to me.

it is funny how being "nice" is a somewhat out of vogue virtue. The adage goes if people are being nice to you they want something. It is a cynical view and not totally unfounded.

Recently a well known atheist entertainer suggested that Christians are "kind" to manipulate people's feelings, to lull them into their net of deception. At least, that is the gist of one of his myopic arguments. Sad, really.

Of course, as marketing techniques go, the offer of something apparently "free" only to "pay later" is a well tried and tested way to acquire business. It's giving with "terms and conditions".

As someone who loves doing acts of random kindness for people, I have to be honest and say I get very little out if it in the sense of seeing huge amounts of people added to the church.  I enjoy bringing some happiness into someone's life, but If I was doing it to be manipulative you would have to say I am not doing it very well!

However, I am trying to show Jesus, The Jesus who loves with no strings attached. Not the fundraising Jesus for a leaky roof or the TV evangelist Jesus who wants you to ring in with your credit card details. That's not my Jesus. God save us!

Have I got an agenda? You bet!

It is to show people that there is a God that loves them without a set of terms and conditions or a "buy now, pay later" scheme.  My God is the God of freewill, not a God of trickery, manipulation or illusion that looks to beguile the innocent and vulnerable. My God doesn't need gimmicks or to entertain to get your attention.

Being kind is different to being "nice".  "Nice" is twee and arguably skin-deep.

Kindness cares. Kindness costs. Kindness is compassion. It is also often a forgotten fruit of the Spirit.

Kindness is no kitten.

ASD

Christmas starts with Christ (article reproduced)

Each month I try and write an article for our town magazine, Community News. It gets distributed for free far and wide to all the households. The magazine editors, themselves, do an absolutely brilliant job and really serve our community well.

Here are my latest collection of rambling thoughts reproduced here:

I love Christmas. I love it all. It brings out different sides in all of us, though some can be dubious. 

For instance, there is the Christmas Party Animal who has the knack of sniffing out a soiree the other side of the county and always stays till the bitter end when the host is begging for their bed.

I remember as a theological student asking a cheery Catholic priest how he would like to be remembered when he left this mortal life.  He paused, smiled and then replied, “He liked a party”.  Not a bad way to be remembered. Better than a dour, miserable Christian.

Quite the opposite to the Christmas Party Animal is the Christmas Stress Head who gets more ill with the run up to the big day. They desperately try to juggle their children’s nativity play rehearsals and productions, and wonder when the shopping will get done and the food cooked.  Their Christmas can be far from fun. To boot, come January their body collapses with a major cold or flu.

As a Christian I value the anticipation of the Christmas Day. Like my Catholic friend I am not one for religious solemnity, though the thought of Jesus entering our world as a baby should make us reflect and find us in momentary places of stillness.

I saw a poster recently that said ‘Christmas starts with Christ’. For many of us who have a faith in Jesus that is most certainly true. It is not just an opportunity for some additional church services, it is first and foremost a birthday celebration. And with celebrations come parties. That means party decorations, food and drink, singing and dancing. Surely the arrival of the saviour of the world and hope for all humankind deserves some noise.

In the Bible the people of Israel used to celebrate all the major occasions with big feasts and parties. Although they were not without their ritual and solemnity they were certainly not dour occasions, and often lasted for days.

Yet what makes this birthday celebration different is how we give the presents. 

In our church we see giving gifts to each other as a symbolic gesture of remembering the gifts that were given to Jesus by the three wise men, as well as in thanks to God for the gift of Jesus.  Our presents to one another can be seen as reflection of the ultimate gift given by God to man, which is at the heart of our Christmas.

It is a pity then that when this wonderful truth gets overlooked the giving of gifts becomes just a meaningless ritual that everyone does, but simply hasn’t got a clue why.

Well, here’s a suggestion to put meaning back into your own Christmas. Why not join Stour Valley Vineyard Church at its Christmas Eve Service in the Town Hall on Thursday 24 December?  It starts at 7 pm.  Mulled wine and mince pies are served from 6.30 pm onwards.  And if you can’t make our service there are plenty of other churches where I know you will also receive a warm welcome.

Merry Christmas!  May you know the peace and love of God at this time. God bless.

ASD

3rd Person Christian

I have come across a term this week: third person Christian. In essence, it means Christians who think a message is not for them, but for another. Now don't rush for your dictionaries because it is a made up expression, but I quite like it all the same. It kind of works.

Mark Batterson makes the point that when people hear something pertinent it is for them to give to someone else. How many of us, if we are honest, think this?

There are times when I have really felt a passage speak to me as a pastor and automatically think it is for another person or the whole church. However, when I have time to reflect I can realise it is actually for me! Can you believe that? This can be a hard thing to concede when you are not in the frame of mind to listen for yourself.

I think for those of us in leadership this is a hugely important thing to be aware of, especially when we are giving out all the time.  Of course, God wants to speak to us about our own character issues. He wants a one-to-one relationship with us first before we give out. How dense can we be?

So let me ask a couple of questions: do we always make a point of first reading the Bible for ourselves before others? Do we hear from God with a view of having a word for others or ourselves? Tough isn't it?

I find when I don't carve out personal devotional time to reflect, pray and worship I put myself in a precarious place. It takes humility and discipline to put it right.

In fact, I would have thought it is nigh impossible to lead others in the presence of God if we are not to be found already in that place ourselves hearing first hand.

ASD

The start of Advent

As many of you informed and smart people will know the period of Advent started on Sunday with, er, Advent Sunday. However, the Advent calendars won't start until 1 December. Why is that?

Anyhow, I came across this poem/prose from Breathe and thought it was worth sharing here.  For those of us who were at church on Sunday you will understand its pertinence.

Advent starts now

Not when the gifts were stuffed into shops in warm October.

Advent starts with a voice crying “Get Ready”

Not with the coos and calls of consumption.

Advent starts with hearts stripped bare, scaffolding down, empty and still…

Advent starts with a people humbled, desperate, dependent on Grace for the future unfolding.

It starts with a promise: God comes

The feast is not the goal; the feast is a promise:  

He will be with us 

So get ready

Advent starts today

Thanks, Damion.

ASD

Some blogs to bookmark

It is really hard to keep up with everything happening in the Blogosphere. There is so much good stuff out there. The trouble is we often only have time to skim-read. 

Google's Reader is an excellent way to keep me checked in with what's out there. I recommend it.  Anyway I thought I would give you a few of the ones I am currently enjoying reading. I have been blessed overall by these committed bloggers. I appreciate their time and energy in bringing regular posts. They often give me the encouragement to carry on. 

For those of us in the Vineyard tribe I have tried to include some of the highlights out there. Okay, in no particular order:

Bible Studies.org.

Brian McClaren

Jason Clark (Deep Church)

Ken Wilson

Ed Cyzewski

Dan Wilt

Carl Medearis

Jason Scott

Dave Workman

Jim Wallis

Dave Schmelzer

Pete Scazzero

Joe Boyd

Steve Sjogren

Ruth Gedhill

Seth Godin

Ekklesia

Jonny Baker

I'd be interested to hear from anyone else who who has a fave blog. Let's share the love!

As ever, thanks for reading. Have a blessed weekend whatever you are doing.

ASD

Post removed - Bus poster

I have removed a light-hearted post on news of the latest bus poster produced by The Humanist Society. Reason being, I was concerned that this was seen as cheap point-scoring, which was not my intention.

ASD

How the X got factored into Xmas

Well,the season of Advent begins next weekend and I am starting to get my head of all the things that need to be done in our church. And there is, indeed, much to be done!

In the last few days I have already heard people talk inevitably about the secularisation of Christmas. With that some people continually take umbrage with the use of  "Xmas". So I thought I'd share where it is thought to have come from.

Abbreviations used as Christian symbols have a long history in the church. The letters of the word "Christ" in Greek, the language in which the New Testament was written, or various titles for Jesus early became symbols of Christ and Christianity. For example, the first two letters of the word Christ are the Greek letters chi (c or C) and rho (r or R). These letters were used in the early church to create the chi-rho monogram, a symbol that by the fourth century became part of the official battle standard of the emperor Constantine.

It has to be said that although historians struggle to pinpoint the exact origin of the single letter X for Christ, some scholars believe that it came into widespread use by around the thirteenth century, along with many other abbreviations and symbols for Christianity, but the truth is we're not quite sure if that is 100% the case. More helpfully, one theologian writes:

"But by the fifteenth century Xmas emerged as a widely used symbol for Christmas. In 1436 Johannes Gutenberg invented the printing press with moveable type. In the early days of printing typesetting was done by hand and was very tedious and expensive. As a result, abbreviations were common. In religious publications, the church began to use the abbreviation C for the word "Christ" to cut down on the cost of the books and pamphlets. From there, the abbreviation moved into general use in newspapers and other publications, and "Xmas" became an accepted way of printing "Christmas" (along with the abbreviations Xian and Xianity)."

So, all in all, we need to, perhaps, encourage each other to take a deep breath, calm down and not get exercised when we see shops use 'Xmas' in their displays. It really is nothing new! It is no different to any other abbreviations being used such as Mr or Dr.

We can also take comfort that although it is written "Xmas" everyone still generally pronounces it as "Christmas". However, it is for us, as Christians, to give it its precious meaning to those unaware of the life transformation it brings.

Not a bad thought to have as we enter the season of preparation.

ASD

Spend a penny and support WaterAid

Today is World Toilet Day and to mark this occasion WaterAid have launched a new iPhone app called ToiletFinder. It does exactly what it says on the tin. It even tells you if you have to pay for the convenience or not. 

Although it is free it is hoped that people who download this application will give a donation to the important work that WaterAid does in Africa and Asia. They provide safe clean water for drink and sanitation, saving a huge amount of lives in the process.

The WaterAid news page says:

"It may be difficult to find a public toilet from time to time here in the UK, but for over 2.5 billion people in the world, it's impossible – there simply isn't one," said WaterAid's Amy Faulkner.

"With millions of iPhone users out there the potential reach of this app is huge and could be ground-breaking in terms of raising WaterAid's profile and helping people."

The ToiletFinder UK App lets users find out more about WaterAid and the work it does to bring life-saving water and toilets to the world's poorest people.

Globally, 2.5 billion people - that's 40% of the world's population - have nowhere safe to go to the toilet. This crisis means that 4,000 children die every single day from diseases caused by poor water and sanitation.

"For us, trying to find a loo is an inconvenience, but for someone living in the developing world, not having a toilet can be a matter of life or death. We hope that by using the ToiletFinder UK App the British public will think about how lucky they are to have a loo," added Faulkner.

ASD