You might be a redneck...

Nothing says Christmas like my mother-in-law's next door neighbor, who painted quite a Rockwellian tableau on Christmas Night.

Standing outside on his lawn in the settting sunlight,
dressed sloppily in sweat pants with the requisite knee holes and sagging waist band,
frayed AC/DC T-shirt,
backwards ballcap over balding mullet,
beer clutched firmly in one hand,
with chicken leg grasped in the other.

Surveying the neigborhood Christmas light decorations,
he quite audibly belches, scratches, and then swaggers back inside.

MERRY CHRISTMAS! (may Santa bring you a nice sweater and some Tums...)

Good grief!

In honor of Copper at Christmas

A PEACE OFFICER'S CHRISTMAS

Twas the night before Christmas,
and all through the streets,
not a person was stirring,
'cept an officer on the beat.

As he quietly patrolled the town with great care,
children and parents slept peacefully there.
The officer was clad in his blues and his vest,
gun on his hip, always looking his best.

He'd just pulled aside for a quick bite to eat,
When all of a sudden, out on the street,
A bright light appeared from out of nowhere,
He shielded his eyes from the brilliant glare.'

Twas an angel of the Lord at the squad's rear,
He smiled and spoke, "Dear Officer, don't fear."
"I've been sent by God with a message for you
who faithfully serve while wearing the blue.

He wants you to know He loves you all,
He's pleased with the way you've answered His call.
"To protect and serve others, so selfless you've been,
Your bravery and kindness have known no end.

Even in tragedy, when nights became long,
You've helped countless strangers by being strong.
"God sees your heart, the joy and the pain,
He knows the profession can often bring strain.

So he sent me here to let you know,
That as you patrol, He goes where you go."
As you protect others, your Father protects you,
His angels go with you, His Spirit does, too.

No bullet too fast, no bad guy too strong,
I'm sent to make sure that your life will be long.
"So fear not the night, and fear not the day,
fear not the threats that might come your way.

I'm sent to accompany you on your beat,
There's not one moment you're alone on the street.
"The officer sat stunned by the love of His God,
He bowed his head, with a tear gave a nod.

As the officer said thank you, the angel took flight,"God's got your back, carry on, and goodnight."

Copyright CopDevotionals, 2001. All rights reserved. May not be duplicated without permission. www.copdevotionals@aol.com.

Joy To The World

The Lord Has Come

Let Earth Receive Her King

Let Every Heart Prepare Him Room

And Heaven and Nature Sing

And Heaven and Nature Sing

...And Heaven and Heaven and Nature Sing!

Happy Birthday, Jesus!

Merry Christmas To All!

Pirate Envy

September.

I decide to get a jump start on my Christmas shopping and buy a huge bag of sweaters, shirts, matching elements and accessories. The gifts were purchased at Labor Day sales (SMART) for my darling husband and other members of my family (SMART AGAIN).

Moving along to December. Three days before Christmas, to be exact.

I cannot remember for the life of me WHERE I PUT THESE GIFTS. I have been searching the house for 48 hours, looking for these massive bags of items I so carefully hid away (SMART). So other people in the house could not discover them. (SMART). Not so that I could NOT find them (NOT SMART).

I have effectively dismantled our closet, the attic, the nooks and crannies in the kitchen, and the storage shelves in the garage searching for something I apparently have hidden far too well. Over the last two days, I have developed a fond appreciation for the value of buried treasure maps. If only I knew a pirate.

Any suggestions?

Light-tastic

My Dear Neighbors,

Thank you to all those sweet and fun-loving souls who decorate your houses each Christmas with lights, ornaments, and accoutrements. As I drive by your homes, my heart is warmed by the lights and the effort, the meaning and the good old fashioned jolly spirit behind the display.

In this year of increased efforts to effectively kick Jesus out of Christmas, the semantic Happy Holiday vs. Merry Christmas gang war, actual real wars taking place throughout the earth (and not only in Iraq - crazed Iranian dictatorial lunatic, anyone?), natural disaster relief, and new evidence of the failure of human beings or political ideologies or secular reasoning to truly heal and redeem the condition of our souls... I am uplifted to simply walk about and see Christmas lights displayed overwhelmingly by my neighbors. I love to drive through the streets, admiring the creativity and glow of each festively decked home.

Including the house down the street whose vast lawn has been transformed into a megawatt tribute to the days when dinosaurs freely roamed the earth. Or at least this block. Though it is sort of concerning that Santa's reindeer seem to be in mortal peril of becoming Christmas dinner for the twinkly light-wrapped T-Rex Happiness and the Triceratops wearing the Santa Hat and candy cane scarf, it is the thought that counts.

Even the most "odd" of the well-meaning light displays still warms my heart. So thank you so much for adding your own dose of joy into my Christmas experience this year.

Fa La La La La....

Love,

Your Neighbors whose own display is... well, we tried. At least our nativity scene and candy cane forest avoids the Jurassic Period altogether. That has to count for something.

Late Night Lunacy

ALTHOUGH I ADORE LATE NIGHTS, THERE ARE AMPLE REASONS WHY I SHOULD NOT BE ALLOWED TO STAY UP PAST MIDNGHT WITH ANY DEGREE OF REGULARITY. NOT THE LEAST OF THESE IS ILLUSTRATED BELOW, AS WITNESS TO THE VARIOUS ONGOING CONVERSATIONAL BANTER GOING ON INSIDE MY HEAD DURING THE WEE HOURS. A MERE SAMPLING OF THE RANDOM RUMINATIONS THAT HAVE PEPPERED MY ENERGIZER-BUNNY MIND THIS PARTICULAR NIGHT/MORNING:

How in earth do taxicab drivers in NYC keep track of every address in that massive city?
Despite what Copper says, Croc's are just plain cool.
What exactly is the difference between a tortoise and a turtle? Color? Size? Aren't they wholly different species?
I need to paint that wall.
If I eat three mini-Snickers candy bars at midnight, do the calories count for yesterday or today?
In fifteen years, will I look back on photos I take of myself this year and think my hair and clothing styles look as goofy as the ones from fifteen years ago?
I know I am addicted to Dr. Pepper. But if you know you are addicted, it doesn't count, right?
When cats meow, are they communicating to one another in some kind of feline language, or just complaining relentlessly in no particular language?
Why can't I stop this elaborate procrastinating and just write the Christmas card family letter?
How can there possibly be 722 shades of any given single color? The black sweater I bought to go with my black pants, doesn't. Neither does it match my "black" shirt, skirt, or socks. I give up.

SEE? MY BRAIN NEEDS A CURFEW.

Unto Us

We stand in a field with signs, angrily protesting the War...
but forget to love and pray for those whose lives are at stake in this conflict.

We criticize our leaders, tear them down, point out their flaws, and revel in their failings...
but fail to pray for and encourage them in their enormous burden of representing a fractured people in a fallen world.

We condemn evil, arrogance, and piety...
Except when it is within our own hearts.

We give to the poor, the less fortunate, and suffering...
But in our hearts, we know we could give so much more.

We wrap presents, trim the tree, bake cookies, put on pageants, and send out cards...
as the glory of the hope and salvation of Jesus Christ takes a back seat to the clanging cash register.

Christians scold one another for caring too much or too little about that which finds resonance with our individual hearts...
Instead of encouraging one another and building each other up.

We seek to ardently to be a lighthouse for Christ in the darkening horizon...
But the light is struggling to be refracted from the beacon of our hearts, marred by soot long in need of cleansing.

We are called to hunger and thirst for righteousness...
but resist venturing out of our comfort zone to make stands for Him.

We claim hardship with our high gas bills, hurricane clean up, and political battles...
when there are children wandering streets without food, clothing, family, or hope.

We seem content to let this Christmas pass without renewed commitment to glorify God...
in all aspect of our lives, hearts, souls, actions, words, and destiny.

Every one of us, large and small, believer or not, has the opportunity to receive the gift of Jesus this Christmas for the very first time. Or to rejoice in Christ anew. To let His birth and the gift of salvation He brings change us in ways that compel us to live for Him as He died for us. May this Christmas be unto us something beyond ornaments and overtures. May it be life altering. May it bring us to our knees. May it carve out the resistance in our hearts and restore our love for others beyond boundaries, religions, politics, race, or creed. May it make us acutely aware that everything we are is not good enough for the gift we received Christmas Eve.

It is by grace alone that we can even celebrate the gift of Jesus. Let us honor Christmas and glorify Him with our celebrations. And let us take His message of loving hope to the ends of the earth.

"For God so loved the world that He gave His only begotten Son, that whoever believes in Him should not perish but have everlasting life." John 3:16.

Merry Christmas. By grace alone. And because He loves us all.

For unto us a child is born.

And the beat goes on...

I am spending my last night away from family in my quick 3-day trip to the lovely Tennessee Valley.

Here on business, I am aching for home. Not only because it is about 74 degrees below zero, but because I have never before left my precious LaLa and Joyboy overnight. And, though their Daddy has been so jazzed to get to spend some solo quality time with our munchkins this past week, the throb in my soul from the distance between me and my husband and especially my sweet children is painful. I miss my babies terribly and am counting the hours (14, EXACTLY) until I am with them again.

While isolated and alone here, I have taken special comfort in corresponding with friends via email and the computer. I participate on a message board with women I met online more than 5 years ago as we were all preparing for the birth of our children who were due in May, 2001. This astoundingly diverse and incredibly passionate and caring group of women has been more meaningful and has impacted me more in the last five years than any friendship group I have ever formed.

This week, we have taken on the tangled discussion of the question of what Christmas has become in America in our "debate" section. Our latest musings have included the Target boycott and ponderings as to what "Christmas" even means in concept and practice anymore.

I thought you might be interested to read my latest thoughts, as posted within this phenomenal group of women. I have changed the following only slightly to remove personal commentary and alluded references. While I lament with all my soul the attack on Christianity and traditionally faith-filled Christmas, I rejoice that I can openly discus it with my friends. And though I am not sure anyone hears my heart, I'll just keep putting it out there and hoping...

"...While I agree that there should be some general "lightening up" of people, including myself, about our faith and the fact that we are all sharing the same planet, and that we must not be afraid to be openly different with one another, I cannot resist the gauntlet thrown out:

My answer to the "why not 'Happy Holidays' in public or service related settings"?" question is: because not being free to express the joy of Christs'' birth (read: my faith) with others in exclaiming "Merry Christmas" without fear of offending the PC brigade is both discriminatory and unconstitutional. But it also breaks my heart. It's not joyful or respectful to be wished a "Merry Whatevertheheckitis". One may as well say, "Happy HooHa Day." It is simply meaningless drivel, and it belittles the religious values of the faithful.

The aggressive removal of Christmas from Christmas attempts to remove the last bastion of sacred meaning from a celebration that has become increasingly secularized. But is a celebration of the BIRTH OF JESUS: "Christ" (or Jesus) and "Mas", or birth. That is the meaning of the holiday. The holiday is not an entity unto itself. Without Christ, it is reduced to yet another excuse to shop, eat a meal together, bake cookies, give gifts, and decorate.

It is not about being spoiled brats and refusing to share a birthday cake. It is about joyfully & eagerly inviting everyone to share the blessing of the cake. But then those same party guests insist on stamping on the cake, tossing it aside, and bringing in hoagies to replace my cake. Deemed unappetizing to a few, it is summarily labeled inappropriate and thrown aside, where NO ONE gets to enjoy it.

Can we not have cake AND hoagies, too ~ joyful and respectful recognition of individual faiths in this nation and their unique celebrations of what is sacred and valued to them? Why must Christmas be discarded from the public realm in order to appease the PC brigade? Inclusion can never be achieved by a policy of exclusion in order to appease those heralding the path of least resistance.

Some of the Target backlash is louder than the specific incident would seem to merit. But please understand that for those us of fussing about it, removal of the words "Merry Christmas" from public presence is the latest in a relentless series of attacks on our faith. This is about freedom of religion as well as peace on earth. If Christmas cannot be openly acknowledged by Christians in public (whether marketplace, school, etc.), that is blatant discrimination. I would not expect a Jewish person to accept my labeling of sacred Passover as mere "happy holiday" to assuage me because Easter happens to fall at about the same time of year, I don't approve of/relate to their symbols of acknowledgment of their sacred celebrating, and would rather create something which asserts my celebration of faith into theirs and thereby morphs the sacred celebration into something more palatable to myself but devoid of meaning for them.

American Jews and Christians joyfully share a calendar date for a Spring holiday which is individually sacred to our faiths without requiring the forced submission or blending of the celebrations into some kind of superfluous sandblasted "holiday", and insodoing, allow freedom for one another and respect each other's right to religious expression. Why can we not seem to achieve this balance at Christmas?

My honestly honed experience and perception of public displays and celebrations of the "Holidays" reveals active encouragement of public displays of "holiday" trees, Menorahs' and dreidels, the crescent moon symbol of Islam, the seven symbols of Kwanzaa, and in our geographic area - even Chumash Indian cultural displays - but erect a display of the nativity in some sort of publicly accessed place, and people go absolutely bananas.

It is specific exclusion.

Christians are part of the public too. Merry Christmas has as much place in the public arena as we do. More, because God CREATED this public space we think we have so much control over. Or should we people who love Jesus and want the freedom to express that sentiment just shut up and go away altogether? Or perhaps it would be better if we were segregated into "Christians-only" areas of Walmart or Target, where we can freely express our faith within preset boundaries and with others "of our kind"?

This issue hits raw depth within me. In a year where "In God We Trust" is under attack in the Pledge and on our money, where the mere Constitutionally protected freedom for Christians to gather and pray together at school is targeted for eradication, and where political and judicial appointees are GRILLED over their private and public Christianity has peppered our national realm, this latest attack on the Christian faith is yet another brick in the wall. (never imagined I'd quote Pink Floyd while defending my right to love Jesus and celebrate His glorious birth out loud - but hey... :))

MERRY CHRISTMAS.
PEACE ON EARTH.
GOOWILL TOWARDS MEN.

The emergency broadcast system test

would be preferable to this.

Why do they run news specials about serial killers in the we hours of the morning? This lovely show (the only thing on late night cable here in the hotel), combined with a wicked cold from the minus 587 degree weather, has me up well past 4:00 am with no hope of rest any time soon as involuntary images of John Gacy and Richard Ramirez are perpetrating my thoughts now. This has been helpful, guys. Thanks.

You know you're in the south when

the TV commercials for Family Dining establishments proudly announce that they offer "the tastiest Grade-A sausage on a stick you have ever tasted."

Goodness. Who knew there was a pedigree involved in rating meats-on-sticks?

A Few Good Men...

Fellow movie buffs may recognize the moment in this movie in which Demi Moore, as a lawyer for the defense, loudly objects to a motion made by the prosecution. Her objection is flatly denied by the judge. She then stands up and reasserts her motion, saying, "We STRENUOUSLY object."

While on a business trip to Tennessee this week, I am met with the following realization: Christmas is being strenuously objected to across our land. The word and concept of an amorphous "holiday season" is replacing "Christmas" all over the place. Masses of people are supposedly offended by the mere mention of the word, the advertisement of baby Jesus and the manger, the very concept that Christ is involved in this sandblasted, glittery, commercial fest that is effectively poaching the celebration of the birth of my Lord. So Christmas seems to be objected to and increasingly censored.

Sometimes I naively take shelter in my refuge in California, assuring myself that surely the rest of our nation is not struck with anti-Christmas-itis as my precariously askew home state is. But as I am greeted by the same shallow, secular, commercialized version of this most sacred holiday, as I visit the "Bible belt" of America, I am gaining new understanding the extent of this phenomenon.

I understand and respect wholly that in this most diverse of nations, America embraces within its boundaries variant traditions that share the calendar with Christmas. I support our many Jewish friends in their Hanukkah festival of Lights, our few peers who celebrate Kwaanza, our smattering of friends who cherish their Yule or more Secular traditions, and even one guy even hails to the Seinfeld "Festivus" celebration (he has a weird affection for Seinfeld, no doubt ~ but in a good, goofy way ~ I've warned you about the vast and often random assortment of people who comprise our circle of friends).

But we do not see universal demands being made to remove the Star of David, the Seven Symbols of Kwanzaa, Yule Holly or Mistletoe or Log displays, Santa, Rudolph, and Frosty. We DO see evidence of Christ, Jesus, and Christmas in concept and practice under attack. Look around, listen, and hear. Christmas is being aggressively shoved out of the way. Not to include other traditions, but solely to EXCLUDE Jesus Christ. Why must Christmas move aside to allow for other traditions over this sacred holiday season. Why must some demand their right not to be "offended" by the very presence of Christ in the Christmas celebration or season trump our right to openly celebrate our religion and the Lord at the center of it? As for me and my heart, that causes me anguish and I strenuously object.

The kindest and most honorable manner to include every American in the Christmas season is not to EXCLUDE those of us for whom Christmas begins and ends with the birth of Christ (not the arrival of Santa Claus or the unfortunate accompanying pile of credit card debt he brings to the tree each year). Inclusion, not exclusion, is the only way we can harmoniously share a holiday season which holds different cherished meanings for each of us.

In this most miraculous season of peace on earth and goodwill towards men, we must remember that this goodwill must extend to, as well as from, Christians. Christmas, for those of us who are saved by grace alone, will always be wrapped around the heartbeat of our savior, not a snowman or a reindeer and a jolly fat man in a red suit (who, while admittedly fun and joyful, do not deliver the salvation we celebrate). Surely we can coexist together without forced censorship? Surely Jesus deserves equal recognition within our growingly amorphous "winter holiday season"? Surely there can be peace on earth between religious and secular traditions as we cherish our own celebrations this Christmas?

Peace on Earth.
Goodwill towards men.
An Angel in the Eastern sky.
A Baby in a Manger.

And Hope for all Mankind.

That is Christmas for me. And I gotta say, I think Jesus effectively annihilates the wall-mounted singing reindeer (that I am a bit scared some goofball relative just may give to Copper this year)

Creative Creche Characters

The Nativity Scene in our living room seems to be a work in progress. Unusual additions and distractions continue to find their way into our miniature creche display.

On Tuesday, the three Wise Men were missing for a few hours. Apparently, it was a little cold for them outside, visiting baby Jesus in the drafty manger, so they preferred to be wrapped in a toilet paper blanket and tucked cozily behind the sofa cushions.

On Thursday, Thomas the Train Engine dropped by with a few of his fellow train buddies.

Friday afternoon, I noticed the camel and sheep had been replaced with a My Little Pony and a stuffed green frog.

And this morning, Nemo seems to have wandered into the stable and was laying alongside baby Jesus in his manger. A fish out of water in more ways than one. He looked so comfy nestled alongside the Christ child that I just left him there. Nemo and Jesus, a definite odd couple. I guess Mary and Joseph are going to need to invest in a saltwater fish tank soon. Or move to Australia.

When I asked LaLa about her newfound propensity to embellish the story of the birth of Jesus, she initially shrugged. But later she said, "But Mom, they wanted to see baby Jesus too."

I can't wait to see what new character wants to see baby Jesus this week. My bet is that Jay Jay the Jet Plane will eventually show up in Bethlehem. Most likely accompanied by a plastic dinosaur or two.

In 24 days

George Frederic Handel composed the Messiah in twenty-four days.

By the time he wrote the Messiah, his once illustrious career composing opera and secular music in the mid 1700 England had screeched to a halt. Tastes were changing and opera audiences were dwindling. No one wanted to listen to the kind of music Handel wrote anymore. No one wanted Handel anymore. By 1741 he was swimming in debt. It seemed certain he would land in debtor’s prison. On April 8 of that year, he gave what he considered his farewell concert. Miserably discouraged, he felt forced to retire from public activities at the age of fifty-six.

Then two events converged to change his life. A wealthy friend, Charles Jensen, gave Handel a libretto based on the life of Christ, taken entirely from the Bible. He also received a request from a Dublin charity to compose a work for a benefit performance.

Handel set to work composing on August 22 in his little house on Brook Street in London. He grew so absorbed in the work that he did not leave his house once in the course of the writing. Not once. A friend who visited him as he composed found him sobbing with intense emotions as he worked. Later, as Handel groped for words to describe what he had experienced, he quoted St. Paul saying, “Whether I was in the body or out of my body when I wrote it I know not." Finally emerging after penning the final musical movement that would take its place in history as the Hallelujah Chorus, the composer, tears streaming down his face, cried to his servants, “I did think I did see all Heaven before me, and the great God Himself!” ” Handel’s title for the commissioned work was simply, Messiah. It was completed in September 14, in 1741.

Twenty four days.

The Messiah is now firmly established in the standard repertoire. Its influence on the other composers would be extraordinary. When Haydn later heard the Hallelujah Chorus he wept like a child, and exclaimed, "He is the master of us all!" Beethoven once said: "Handel was the greatest composer that ever lived. I would uncover my head, and kneel before his tomb." King George III called Handel "the Shakespeare of Music." George Bernard Shaw commented that "Handel is not a mere composer in England: he is an institution. What is more, he is a sacred institution." Newman Flower observed, "Considering the immensity of the work, and the short time involved in putting it to paper, it will remain, perhaps forever, the greatest feat in the whole history of musical composition."

This work has had an uncanny spiritual impact on the lives of its listeners. One writer aptly declared that Messiah's music and message has probably done more to convince thousands of mankind that there is a God about us than all the theological works ever written.


I sang Handel's Messiah today. As part of a 60-voice choir with full orchestration, we gave two concerts to our community - morning and afternoon. More than 1000 people attended to hear this beloved sacred music emanate from humble voices, hearts, and nimble fingers on musical instruments.

The Messiah utterly broke me this morning. As we sang the Hallelujah Chorus, I was so moved that tears sprang and I was unable to continue for the remainder of the movement. Thankfully, I managed to get myself composed and finished the chorus with the rest of the choir. But after the last notes resonated, I broke down again. It took a prayerful hug from my dear mother-in-law (who sang alongside me in the choir) to cause the tears to subside. This music took ahold of my heart and infused it with the TRUTH of the LORD.

I stood there with newfound understanding of the truth I have always "known": that in God, all things are possible. My humble voice can be combined with others to produce a joyful noise and change hearts forever. Including my own. And that in a mere twenty-four days, a miraculous musical composition can be written which holds within its movements the capacity to impact the souls of human beings more than 250 years after it was created.

God is timeless. His mercy and love and never ending. I stand in awe of the artistry and music that Handel wrote in the Messiah, which succeeds in illustrating that truth, in beautiful longevity.

May we never forget to be thankful or underestimate the power of God to work through those who are willing. AMEN.

And it makes me ponder exactly what the heck I have done with the last twenty-four days in my life.

...but that is an update for a later blog...

Good tidings to the ACLU

HEY ACLU, MERRY CHRISTMAS!

Memo: while you're out there "protecting and championing" the civil liberties of all Americans, you might want to rethink your vendetta to remove Christ and Christmas altogether from your sandblasted vision of some amorphous "winter holiday" in America. The incessant pointless bullying of corporate and public America does not protect the civil liberties of Americans seeking to celebrate Christmas out loud and without censorship. Attacking Christ is never a smart bet. Vegas would give better odds to 400 pound horse jockeys riding blind horses with 3 legs. No one who has taken Him on has ever won the battle. And we who celebrate Jesus instead of Rudolph, miracles in mangers over cash flowing commercialism, the sacred ahead of Santa... will always be here to remind you that the civil liberties of Christians, Jews, and the American faithful deserve your equal attention as much as those belonging to individuals who believe exactly what you believe. End of Memo.

MERRY CHRISTMAS, ACLU. Jesus loves you even as you scorn Him. MERRY CHRISTMAS!!!

I am sure the censor-o-meters at the ACLU have already started buzzing. Bring it on.