Dear Friendly, Was Jesus really born on December 25th? All these songs about snow and cold and shepherds sleeping outside in the fields in icy winter don’t make sense to me. Signed, Not So Sure About This. Dear Not So Sure, I was just a child when I heard some radio preacher say that Jesus was probably not born on December 25. I thought the floor had just been yanked from me. How dare that person question what surely is... Read more
It’s one of those days where I realize just how fortunate I am. The wind is pretty wild here in Krum and the temperature dropped well into the freezing range overnight. It’s projected to be bitterly cold here tonight. I personally welcome the cold weather. I sleep better, and also appreciate the necessity of extended cold for the sake of yard and garden. I am also not poor. I live in a reasonably well-insulated house with a good heating system,... Read more
A few weeks ago, in a need to do something that I could start and finish, I cleaned the stove. When I took off the light cover from the stove vent hood so I could wash it, it promptly broke. “No problem,” I thought. “I’ll just get another one.” Placing the broken on in the car, I decided that the next time I was near one of the large, big-box, home improvements stores, I would get a replacement. A few... Read more
This letter appeared in the “Dear Abby” advice column that was in the newspaper on December 8, 2012: DEAR ABBY: Last night I received a call from my almost-5-year-old granddaughter asking me for Santa Claus’ phone number. It seems she is very angry at her daddy for calling her a brat because she wouldn’t give him a hug. She wants to tattle on her daddy to Santa. Her parents are not together. Her daddy’s involvement has been only within the... Read more
A dear friend of mine phoned earlier this evening. She refers to herself as my “spiritual mother” and I very much believe it. She’s in her late 80’s, and is simply beautiful. I describe her as a piece of pure light wrapped in a tiny piece of increasingly frail human flesh. We connected about a year and a half ago. She had been reading my newspaper columns in the Denton Record Chronicle and phoned to talk with me and see if... Read more
Note: this is part three of a three part series. Part One is here; Part Two is here. Three Things to Keep in Mind First: not all growth is good growth. When effectiveness is measured only by numerical growth, we make the fatal mistake of assuming that just because something grows rapidly, it is doing so under the blessing of God. All gardeners and physicians know this: rapid growth doesn’t necessarily mean good, healthy or desired growth. Second: the process... Read more
Note: this is the second of a three-part series. Part one is here; part three is here. The Church is In Crisis I suspect everyone agrees that The United Methodist Church, as a world-wide organization, is in crisis. Our membership grows older and the death tsunami looms. Few churches see a vital future. People in the US church, who have been the principle financial support of the worldwide church, are moving away from denominational religious structures. The crisis leads to... Read more
I recently walked out of a local electronics store in some frustration. I have an older inkjet printer that needed new ink cartridges. Now, ink cartridges are some of the biggest consumer rip-offs ever devised, so I wasn’t in a great mood when I walked in. My irritation grew when I realized that my aged printer does not have its exact model number indicated on any of the multitudes of printer cartridges available. Two different sales staff tried to help;... Read more
Dear Christmas Advice-Giver, Why are some of the religious Christmas Carols so sad when this is the season of happiness? I mean, really, “In the Bleak Midwinter?” Nothing like a downer. Aren’t we all supposed to be just super joyful right now? And what does “bleak” mean anyway? Signed, “Bleakless” Dear Bleakless, Here’s the situation: For much of Christian church history (i.e., before advertising took over the world), the four weeks before Christmas Day were weeks of soul-searching, fasting, and... Read more
In the spirit of poking a bit of fun about the inconveniences of modern life, I post my second installment of my latest First World Problem. The previous one can be found here. A couple of weeks ago, I decided to give away a TV that was connected to the satellite service and served only as a recording device–no one ever watched it. Little did I realize that, by disconnecting it and not replacing it, I would mess up the... Read more
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