Christmas scares me.

Not the holiday itself but that with each successive year, despite its ever earlier encroachment, it takes me progressively greater effort to summon the holiday spirit or conjure up a bright seasonal emotion which for decades seemed effortless.

Before Halloween has always been unreasonably out of the question, but before Thanksgiving they say, is now expected if you’re to enjoy the full magical value of the season even though half the country is still well over 75 degrees.

It’s a little scary when it takes this much work to be merry.

So I went to WalMart.

If anything says Christmas three months in advance, it’s WalMart, where eventually I found myself shopping retail for the best buy on holiday goods soon to be marked down.

Then I turned on the radio station.

As if I wasn’t snapping into the season quick enough, 24/7 carols sang their tunes, but then I questioned whether a song alone could or even should make such an instrumental shift in my attitude.

Over time, I tried several other near misses, disappointing myself at every turn. Baking, decorating, bad sweaters, none were capable of the transitional trick.

I once talked with my Mom about it and she shared with me some memories of earlier Christmastimes when the magic didn’t seem so difficult to come by.

I called my kids and chatted about it some and we laughed a little at remembering their first Santa Claus moments. But if I recall, it wasn’t until my son who was away at school at the time, said he was coming home for the holidays.

That was when I felt the change, much like that Grinch moment where in a heartbeat, he had encountered an obvious truth.
Christmas isn’t created by things and stuff and trappings. It’s inside people.

It’s our special stories, our humored histories and the secret gift searches we Google in talks with one another as the weather begins to change to hot chocolate and we all grow just a little bit closer.

Then suddenly one morning, that little something tips the scales just enough to conjure up the Spirit we sought all along.

And for the first time of the season, and certainly not the last, we utter our very first “Merry Christmas” to a stranger, and indeed, it had arrived.

Our church isn’t in the best of neighborhoods by a long shot.

Lots of families without transportation leave home early to walk in from all directions hoping to make it on time. Some of us with cars have made pickup arrangements with them and drop them back home after service.

It’s an urban church.

Usually though, they choose to stay for another service or to serve others attending. Oftentimes, it’s their only excursion by car and their only anticipated social event for the week.

Upon closer inspection, we find many are families and seniors living on razor’s edge with little food or hygiene products, few changes of clothes, decade old shoes, and yet no mind to complain.

Their clothes are clean, their kids are well-mannered, and they rarely ask for any help unless you dig a little deeper and make an offer.

It’s their passion to worship, to connect, and to find contentment within their own situation that remains Sunday to Sunday as a lesson to those of us blessed with so much more.

It’s a great blend of people and a vibrant, active community with our core belief “come as you are” as the common multicultural thread.

Sunday services are 930am and 11am.

Think about it.

I remember visiting Mom’s place.

Some things were always certain.

The bedsheets were always fresh and crisp and smelled like a warm dryer.

The Kleenex was the really good kind.

Moms always have extra sets of batteries and she always put a couple in your bag just in case.

If you need a spoon, it’s always in the drawer clean and you’ll never find a rogue chunk on the handle the dishwasher missed. Because she WAS the dishwasher.

There’s no dust.
Anywhere.

Somehow, she always had ice cream. Always.

And blanket fairies visited when you fell asleep on the sofa.

The clothes you wore last night were somehow folded in the middle of the night. Sometimes washed and folded if necessary.

And if you had to, you could eat off the toilet seat. And if you tried, she’d bring you a plate.

Moms are really great.
Enjoy yours while she’s still here.

“Therefore judge nothing before the appointed time; wait until the Lord comes. He will bring to light what is hidden in darkness and will expose the motives of the heart. At that time each will receive their praise from God.”

‭‭1 Corinthians‬ ‭4‬:‭5‬ ‭NIV‬‬

He’s a liar. 

She’s corrupt. 

A whole swath of people are twisting the truth. 

People know they’re doing the wrong thing but still do it. 

Maybe they’re well meaning or just misinformed. 

Or maybe I’m completely missing their backstory.

We’re so quick to pronounce judgment on people when it’s not ours to pronounce. 

Let he who is without sin cast the first stone. 

Humans are complicated and God is working on or with each of us on different levels and different issues at different times in different ways.

Most times, we just need to pray for them and chill. 

He’s not done with us yet. 

Any of us. 

When Jared had lived 162 years, he became the father of Enoch. After he became the father of Enoch, Jared lived 800 years and had other sons and daughters. Altogether, Jared lived a total of 962 years, and then he died.”
‭‭Genesis‬ ‭5‬:‭18‬-‭20‬ ‭NIV‬‬

Imagine lasting nearly a thousand years.

Within an unpolluted environment, living an active healthy lifestyle, and eating fruit loops free of red dye #40 it was easy.

Most people wish for long and prosperous lives in bodies resistant to the decay we see today as early as 50.

A new heaven and earth promises us that and more.
Effortlessly and without leg days.

God calls us to join him in eternal life. The only catch is being willing to be caught.

Floating along in today’s world without a safety net is a certain fatality around the bend just waiting to happen.

A real relationship with the one living God ensures your place in a new beginning where this one ends.

Be willing to be caught by Jesus today and you will live forever with a forever friend.

Isaiah 46:4

Even to your old age and gray hairs I am he, I am he who will sustain you. I have made you and I will carry you; I will sustain you and I will rescue you,”

Life is all about gains and losses. 

Entering our senior years ignites so many new joys, but also extinguishes joys of health and independence. 

Good and bad is a reality present at all stages of life. 

There are always things to eagerly look forward to and things to look back upon with mixed emotions. 

The elderly know this better than anyone. 

But the acknowledgment and promises of God are comforting that he is our sustenance, our bridge, and our salvation, (sustain, carry, rescue) despite our accruing frailties. 

Passing into our final season of life gives us more time for travels, loved ones, giving back, and eagerly awaiting the new bodies we are promised. 

Let’s enjoy our old age, our gray hair, and all the blessings of being alive. 

“However, as it is written: “What no eye has seen, what no ear has heard, and what no human mind has conceived”— the things God has prepared for those who love him—”

‭‭1 Corinthians‬ ‭2‬:‭9‬ ‭NIV‬‬

We all have tried at one time or another to imagine heaven. 

TV and movies add incredible beauty and spectacle to the idea of heaven, but still, no mind has ever conceived it. 

And even with all the imagining, few ever talk about the price of admission. 

Because understanding it’s free is so unbelievable, they try to be as good as possible in hopes that will suffice. 

To actually gain entrance, belief in Jesus’ resurrection after crucifixion for our sin is the free admission but it comes at a transformative price few want to pay. 

Transformation is not being more good. 

Transformation is being entirely sold out to Jesus and obvious about it. 

Not performative, but genuinely changed from old to new in all you are and all you do because of who Jesus is, and rarely with an eye on what is in store. 

The heart and mind and spirit packaged as a grateful thank you gift we are willing to die to deliver. 

I imagine that’s as close we can ever come to knowing what heaven is like while still here on earth. 

Most times, in matters of greatest importance, God makes crystal clear his will for us. 

“Let no debt remain outstanding, except the continuing debt to love one another, for whoever loves others has fulfilled the law.”

‭‭Romans‬ ‭13‬:‭8‬ ‭NIV‬‬

As a matter of our placement upon this earth, one outlier of indebtedness will always remain. 

Granted forgiveness of all your sins and owning the clearest of consciences will always and still leave a debt of responsibility which can never really be fully repaid or satisfied. 

“Love does no harm to a neighbor. Therefore love is the fulfillment of the law.”

‭‭Romans‬ ‭13‬:‭10‬ ‭NIV‬‬

Love one another is so basic a tenet of the Christian faith it’s found in countless variations throughout the Bible. 

Unfortunately, society often corrupts that tenet for purposes of validating, accepting and condoning certain explicitly forbidden behaviors of some subcultures.

Loving all people is still attainable without validating what they do. Love the sinner, hate the sin. 

And remember, this applies back to you as much as you may apply it to others. 

“Let everyone be subject to the governing authorities, for there is no authority except that which God has established. The authorities that exist have been established by God.”

‭‭Romans‬ ‭13‬:‭1‬ ‭NIV‬‬

Authorities spoken of here refer to those who keep and maintain order and justice in our society. 

For that, they’re a good thing. 

It’s the exceptions that deliver tyranny and oppressive systems of governance we should be on the lookout for. 

What then?

The Bible is clear that in such circumstances we must obey the higher laws and principles that define the difference. 

Government is established by God for the purpose of justice, order, and the common good. But Scripture also makes clear that this authority is not absolute. 

When rulers command what God forbids, forbid what God commands, or use their power to oppress, God’s people are called to obey the higher authority—His moral law. 

Examples run throughout the Bible: the apostles refusing to stop preaching (Acts 5:29), Daniel and his friends rejecting idolatry and unjust decrees (Daniel 3; 6), the Hebrew midwives saving infants in defiance of Pharaoh (Exodus 1:17), and prophetic warnings against unjust laws (Isaiah 10:1–2). 

These show that civil disobedience, when rooted in righteousness, is not rebellion—but faithfulness.

In short, Romans 13 teaches submission to rightful authority, not blind obedience to tyranny.

“Do not conform to the pattern of this world, but be transformed by the renewing of your mind. 

‭‭Romans‬ ‭12‬:‭2‬ ‭NIV‬‬

“Bless those who persecute you; bless and do not curse. If your enemy is hungry, feed him; if he is thirsty, give him something to drink. In doing this, you will heap burning coals on his head.” Do not be overcome by evil, but overcome evil with good.”

‭‭Romans‬ ‭12‬:‭14‬-‭18‬, ‭20‬-‭21‬ ‭NIV‬‬

Disarming. 

Literally, it means to remove an enemy’s weapon in unexpected fashion. 

Normally, we expect something completely different from an adversary that serves to escalate our conflict. 

But Jesus knows nothing is resolved and nobody listens in an escalation. 

While weapons are still in hand, threats and emotions run high. 

If your heart is in the right place and your desire is to heal, not hurt, renew your mind with fresh new advice from the OG of relationships. 

Try something entirely different. Not just because it’s different. Because it’s your best move to pave the road to reconciliation. 

Overcome evil with good and create an environment where the hand of God can do the unthinkable. 

Now THAT’S disarming.