One of my favorite Christmas stories happened during the horrors of war. The Christmas carol “Silent Night” was responsible for a wartime Christmas miracle. The year was 1914 and soldiers were having to spend Christmas Eve night on the battlefields of France during World War I, the Great War, as it was called. After only four months of fighting, more than a million men had already perished in the bloody conflict. The bodies of dead soldiers were scattered between the trenches. Enemy troops were dug-in so close that they could easily exchange shouts. On December 24, 1914, in the middle of a freezing battlefield in France, a miracle happened. The British troops watched in amazement as candle-lit Christmas trees began to appear above the German trenches. The glowing trees soon appeared along the length of the German front.  Henry Williamson, a young soldier with the London Regiment wrote in his diary: “From the German parapet, a rich baritone voice had begun to sing a song I remembered my German nurse singing to me…. The
Continue reading...

I have watched the “Occupy Wall Street” and similar occupy movements with some bemusement. I believe I was able to sort through the garbled messages to find the primary point. I think the main point is that the system to make and grow income should be fair and equitable to all. I concur. But the part that really puzzled me was the self-righteous anger toward the demonized one percent. We are the ninety-nine percent was the recurrent chant. But I kept thinking that there is a really awkward truth being ignored by many if not most of the protestors. We have a very different expectation as Americans for what we are “owed”. An article I found at Yahoo News was sobering. In America, the top 1% earn more than $380,000 per year. We are, however, among the richest nations on Earth. How much do you need to earn to be among the top 1% of the world? $34,000. That was
Continue reading...

I am officially a pacifist on the “war on Christmas”. I would, however, support a ceasefire on Christmas if it banned all commercial displays until Thanksgiving. I say “Merry Christmas” whenever I want to and to whomever I desire. And while there is a small percentage that would like all vestiges of the Christmas story purged from any public display that percentage is very, very small. This war is not worth it. The collateral damage to the Christian message of love and joy suffers far more than we can imagine from this cultural war. I know that many think I have been drinking way too much grace punch. Probably true. It’s really good stuff. But the fact is that in America Christmas has become much more of an economic than a religious holiday. There are so many icons like Santa Claus and Rudolph and the Grinch that are not at all related to the religious aspect of the holiday. From the generic holiday
Continue reading...

(From theFish.com) I never have any idea where this weekly experiment known as the iPod Devotional will take me. I fire up the aforementioned device, hit shuffle play and write about the first song that hits my heart. Today is admittedly an odd choice. The song was written in 1997 by Toby Keith and Chuck Cannon. I had forgotten that my iPod music list had a version of the tune by the iconic Willie Nelson. Today the lyrics of “Tired” caused a lot of reflection, sadness and prayer. The narrative tells about the life of a factory worker who is, sadly, merely going through the motions of life. Married Rebecca back in seventy-seven I still love her and I guess she loves me too We go to church on Sundays `cause we want to go to heaven Me and my family, ain`t that how you`re supposed to do That describes so many people that I know. Tired of their job.
Continue reading...

(From theFish.com) My buddy Kelly casually dropped the name of a group last summer that he thought I might look to add to the iPod rotation. The band he mentioned was the Avett Brothers and the scouting report was superb. Today a song by the group inspired this week’s iPod Devotional. It is called “The Perfect Space” and the lyrics resonated with my season of life. I wanna’ have friends that I can trust, that love me for the man I’ve become not the man I was. My Truefaced friend John Lynch says it this way. “What if there was a place where the worst of me could be known, and I would discover in the telling of it that I would be loved more, not less?” Wouldn’t that be amazing? To have a friend that you could trust with all that is true about you and feel safe. All of us have a deep need to be known and
Continue reading...

(From theFish.com) I love Thanksgiving. I love watching the giant balloons of the Macy’s Thanksgiving parade floating through New York as wide-eyed children watch. I love the traditional football games. The official start of the Christmas season. The post feast nap. I love it all and Thanksgiving Day is here again. Thanksgiving Song by Mary Chapin Carpenter captures the intimacy of this wonderful holiday. Grateful for each hand we hold Gathered round this table. From far and near we travel home, Blessed that we are able. Grateful. That is a powerful word that is so easy to overlook in the tension of life and the depressing cycles of usually bad news. I have so much to be grateful for this Thanksgiving. I am grateful for another year with my best friend and bride Joni. I am grateful for three wonderful sons, two amazing daughter-in-laws and one fantastic grandchild. I am blessed that we are able to be together this Thanksgiving.
Continue reading...

A lot of people dear to me are going through some difficult waters right now. Some are in physical pain, some in emotional pain and some in financial pain. Sometimes even the most sold out followers of Jesus want to raise their face to the heavens and scream. “WHY God? WHAT are you doing? HOW can you let this continue?” A song by Josh Wilsonresonated on the daily walk and is the basis for today’s iPod Devotional. The song is called “I Fall Apart”. Why in the world did I think I could Only get to know you when my life was good? When everything just falls in place The easiest thing is to give you praise Now it all seems upside down I wish that wasn’t true. I wish I was mature enough to recognize God’s blessings every day and praise Him without ceasing in my normal life of comfort or when things go off course. The truth is
Continue reading...