The following excerpts are from Patrice Lewis, writing for WND.com. (Go here for the full article.)
We've heard the complaints year after year about how much earlier retailers push Christmas on us. Immediately after Halloween, up go the decorations. They'd probably do it in September, but Halloween is too good a moneymaker for most stores, so at least they wait until Nov. 1 before putting up Santa Claus.
But until this year, I had never heard the radio preceding Thanksgiving with Christmas music. Why are they doing this? It doesn't put me in a holiday shopping mood to hear "Jingle Bells" in mid-November. It only annoys me, like hearing "The First Noel" played over and over in July.
I know this is a desperate ploy to get us to shop earlier. I realize retailers are hurting, so I guess I can't really blame them for pushing things. Christmas shopping has become the single event of the year that puts many businesses on an even footing. It's not called Black Friday for nothing – it's the day many retailers are pushed into the black (profit) instead of the red (loss). Still, the way I interpret the pre-Thanksgiving Christmas music or decorations or advertisements is, "Let's get the troublesome and unprofitable holiday of Thanksgiving over so we can SHOP." Sheesh.
Yes, it certainly makes me mindful of the significance of the season – Jesus' birth – to act like herd animals for some piece of electronic gadgetry.
Of course I disagree with Mrs. Lewis on the meaning of Christmas. (The holiday was invented by the Catholic Church to give pagan converts an excuse to continue celebrating one of their pagan feast days--only instead of honoring their idols, now they could do it in honor of the birth of Jesus. Jesus is the reason for the season? No, Catholicized paganism is the reason for the season!) But her point on Christmas becoming, for many, a completely commercial holiday is well taken.
It doesn't bother me so much that the commercial aspects have completely overshadowed the religious significance of Christmas (since I don't agree with that anyway). But it does bother me that, as Mrs. Lewis points out, the commercial aspects of Christmas have completely overshadowed Thanksgiving.
Thanksgiving is supposed to be a day to reflect on how richly blessed we are, a day to develop our gratitude and contentment. But instead of focusing on the generosity of the Giver of every good and perfect gift, we turn it into a day of selfish over-indulgence--a day to eat too much; lay around in front of the TV; and prepare to forget about all that God has given us, and to focus instead on Black Friday and our quest to get even more.
Contentment? Bah, humbug!
In the ever-lengthening season of shopping for material luxuries that we and our loved ones don't yet possess, the idea of actually stopping to be grateful for all we do have is becoming increasingly absurd--and therefore neglected.
Know ye that Jehovah, he is God: It is he that hath made us, and we are his; We are his people, and the sheep of his pasture. Enter into his gates with thanksgiving, And into his courts with praise: Give thanks unto him, and bless his name. --Psalm 100:3-4
I completely agree. It seems that some people completely dismissed Thanksgiving altogether. I even saw a commercial for Discover card that really made me sick. It talked about how our country/culture is a i-want-the-latest-and-greatest-gadgets-even-if-i-cant-afford-them kind of society, and they said that it was perfectly ok. And that it's perfectly ok to go overboard and that's why Discover Card is there to help. I mean, that's exactly what they want us to do - go overboard, spend too much, and spend the next year paying it off. It's absurd if you ask me.
Less than a year ago, I preached a sermon that really opened my eyes. This was at least the third time that I had preached it, but this time the truths coming out of my mouth hit me like a ton of bricks (I guess I just wasn't mature enough to feel the implications the first two times, even though I knew the truth.) The sermon was on abortion.
I took a lot of heat from some of my fellow pleonasters (especially in the Politics group) for being too focused on this one issue in the recent elections. (I believe most of that was because of my position. But I must admit that a lot of it was also probably because of the way I presented it. As a relatively new blogger, I am still learning the balance between trying to make an argument forcefully and passionately, as opposed to having it come across as mean-spirited in a venue where motivation and tone of voice are easily misread.)
But why has abortion become such an important issue to me? Because the Bible says it's murder. There are several passages (I can provide them if requested) in which the Bible refers to an unborn baby as a "babe" or a "child". To end the life of a "child" is murder. Other passages refer to a child being "conceived", which shows that human life begins at conception. And to intentionally end a human life at ANY stage of development is murder.
When I hear politicians discussing abortion, it comes across to me (as I believe it should to anyone who believes the Bible) as a discussion of murder. That's why the issue is so important to me--because we have people sitting around the table discussing which situations make murder acceptable! Should a mother be able to murder her baby for any reason? Should she be able to murder her baby if it endangers her health? Should she be allowed to murder her baby if he's the product of rape or incest? Should a scientist be allowed to murder a baby in order to run medical experiments on it (embryonic stem cell research)? It's ridiculous when you look at in those terms.
And it's also disappointing to see so many Christians who are more concerned with "the economy" or "limited government" than about murdering babies. I'm concerned about those things too; but they are not nearly as important as the fact that we have MURDERED 50 MILLION BABIES since the 1973 Roe v. Wade decision. Murder is legal in this country, and many of the ones who should be taking the strongest stand against it are instead voting based on who's going to lower their taxes!
We've got to get our priorities straight if we're going to turn this country around.
I'm sorry I missed you too. I work in a doctor's office so I couldn't run over very quickly and I didn't get off till 6:30. :( Please, always try to call me when you're in town. :) I'm glad I got to see your wife just for a minute at church though!
Now that the American people have foolishly chosen a godless socialist as our next President, I keep hearing Christians saying that we need to remember that God is in control. And while I certainly agree that God is in control, we must not take that to mean that He wanted Barack Obama to be President.
God sometimes uses His control to do things that He is not happy about. For example, although God is in control; and although He is "not willing that any should perish" (II Pet 3:9); we all know that many will be lost anyway. Or perhaps an analogy closer to our own current situation: God was in control when the Israelites demanded, "give us a king." God was in control; He did not want them to have an earthly king; and yet He gave them one anyway.
I'm not trying to put words in anyone's mouth, but I hope that all my brethren who are reminding us that God is in control don't mean to imply that God is happy with a new President-Elect who opposes Him at every turn.
God is in control, but he often chooses to work through us. The fact that we refused to let him work through us to Provide good leaders is the reason we have ended up with Obama. (We all knew McCain's positions were wrong. Some of us even knew that they were evil, even if not to the extent of Obama's. And yet, in spite of the commandment to "overcome evil with good" (Rom 12:21), the majority of Christians in America voted based on their own wisdom instead of God's, and tried to overcome evil with lesser evil. And we found out it doesn't work. Maybe we should've tried God's way first!)
The good news is that it's not too late to do it God's way now. God is still in control. And for the time being, He is still allowing "We the people" to govern ourselves. But we must refuse to continue carelessly, perhaps even faithlessly, down the path that we've been on for the last several years. If God is going to bless us with liberty by working through us, that means we have to be working too. We have to get involved! There's too much to do--and too much at stake--to just throw up our hands and wait for 2012!
Educate yourself. (WND.com is a good place to start. The Bible is even better.) Get involved in a political party. Get involved in your community. And, most importantly, get involved in the work of the local church!
I respect what you have said but I completly disagree with you. I think your last point is what we need to do and not the others. If we want to have a country that "fears God and does His commandments" then we need to teach the lost and erring and turn around the country individual by individual. Look at the Apostle Paul's interactions with political leaders of his day in Acts 23-26. He taught each of the individually about the condition of their souls. He didn't discuss abortion (which was rampant), Homosexuallity (again rampant), or even Pedaphillia (which is worse and commonly accepted). He reasoned that if these men were instead Christians then the policies would take care of themselves. We got the president we (the american people) wanted (and maybe needed). I am reminded of Habbakuk when he cried out in Ch 1 "Lord how long will you let this go on" and God said " I am sending Ur of the Chaldees". Remember how quickly Hababukk changed his mind. The american people may be severely punished in the coming years for their outcries of what they wanted- but make no mistake God is in control and will allow what we need to happen. Our responsibillity as Christians is to make other Christians Mt 28. If we have a nation full of Christians we don't need to discuss policy.
Good thoughts. Balance is always the priority we should stive for. I am just commited to the fact that if we had a nation of Christians then we would have no need for "settling" on a candidate we would have the right one and plenty of them. Although I have to admit that I am concerned a little about trying to push Christianity into politics the last group that was successful with that ended up creating the Catholic church.
A vitiated state of morals, a corrupted public conscience are incompatible with freedom. --Patrick Henry
It is righteousness--not selfishness--that exalts a nation. When the majority of Americans care more about a candidate's economic plan than his view on abortion, maybe this is why we're about to be saddled with a President under whom we are likely to lose several of our basic freedoms.
And we will continue our slide into government control of our lives until we decide to stop compromising our morals in the voting booth.
When you go to vote tomorrow, don't forget to take your faith with you.
It cannot be emphasized too strongly or too often that this great nation was founded, not by religionists, but by Christians; not on religions, but on the Gospel of Jesus Christ. --Patrick Henry
Unless we continue to build our nation and choose its leaders based on the principles set forth in the Gospel of Jesus Christ, we can expect all our efforts to be in vain. "Except Jehovah build the house, They labor in vain that build it...." (Psalm 127:1)
