The Visited Planet
Today as we embark on a New Year, just a week after celebrating Christmas, I believe it’s beneficial to once again ponder the significance of the birth of Jesus over 2,000 years ago. Sadly the Christmas season has become so commercialized that it’s easy to be distracted and fail to be moved with awe and wonder at the birth we claim to celebrate. This was the certainly the case with Charlie Brown who, depressed by the commercialization of Christmas, cries out, “Isn’t there anyone who knows what Christmas is all about?” . . .
His Name Shall Be Called Wonderful
The incredible book of Isaiah records the life and prophecies of Isaiah, whose prophetic ministry spanned over 50 years from about 740 to 686 B.C. When Jesus announced His ministry (Luke 4) he went to the synagogue in Nazareth and read from the scroll of the prophet Isaiah, “The Spirit of the Lord is on me, because he has anointed me to proclaim good news to the poor. He has sent me to proclaim freedom for the prisoners and recovery of sight for the blind, to set the oppressed free, to proclaim the year of the Lord’s favor.” After rolling up the scroll he sat down and declared, “Today this scripture is fulfilled in your hearing.” . . .
Joy To The World
I remember clearly about 53 years ago when the words of this amazing Christmas carol left me in awe. I was with my close friend, Jerry, and we were driving through town in a 1964 VW Bug on a chilly evening in December. The windows were down, the radio turned up, and as the fresh air swept through the car, this song began playing and we enthusiastically sang along. This moment led to a most memorable Christmas as it was the first one where I began to hear clearly in my favorite carols the “good news of great joy that shall be for all people.” . . .
Drop the Blanket
For nearly 60 years, “A Charlie Brown Christmas” has brightened the lives of millions of people. In a tender scene, Linus, in response to Charlie’s Brown’s question about the true meaning of Christmas, recites the story of the birth of Jesus from Luke’s gospel . . .
Song of the Stars
This breathtakingly beautiful children’s story imagines all of creation recognizing that the time had finally come for the fulfillment of prophecy, which foretold that at just the right time God would enter the world as a baby in Bethlehem. The story begins, “The world was about to change forever”. And it has . . .
John Henry Faulk’s Christmas Story
This post includes another moving Christmas story recorded in 1974 by the gifted radio broadcaster and storyteller, John Henry Faulk, for the program Voices in the Wind . . .
A Christmas Memory
Many years ago during one Advent season, I discovered an old book in my parent’s home titled “A Christmas Memory” by Truman Capote. I often searched my parents’ book shelves as my mother was an avid collector of old books. To her every one was a treasure. This particular book was a thin, plain, cheaply made book, published in 1956 with the picture above glued to the book cover . . .
The Tale of Barrington Bunny
Nearly 50 years ago I discovered a book in my parent’s home titled “The Way of the Wolf” written by Martin Bell, an author, musician, and Episcopal priest. This book, published in 1970, includes the Christmas classic, “Barrington Bunny”, which I first read to a high school youth group when I was in college. Several decades later, when my granddaughters were older . . .