Christmas presents that ALSO help the needy

Most people seem to me to have a tendency to think about the needy at Christmas time.  That’s good.  Unfortunately, it also seems that many have a tendency to think about the needy only at Christmas time.  As Christians, our concern for those in need should be apparent every day of the year.   The biblical commands to care for the poor are numerous and clear and certainly not limited to once a year.

I don’t say any of that, of course, to discourage anyone from remembering the needy at Christmas.  Rather, I hope to encourage you to remember the needy all year long.  Since Christmas is quickly approaching, though, I want to point out a few simple and rather painless things you could do this holiday season to help those in need.

Buy Coffee

Freshly roasted coffee makes a nice, fairly inexpensive gift for the beloved coffee addicts in your life.  If you’d like to buy coffee and help the poor at the same time, you have a couple of options.

A Christmas meditation with Martin Luther

My Sunday School lesson last week concluded with some questions about the Incarnation:

Consider the remarkable truth that God becomes a human being in Jesus Christ. How do you respond to that fact? Does it still have power to amaze you? Is it so familiar to you that it has little impact?

It is a sad fact of our human nature that our hearts often grow dull.  We don’t feel the force of truth as we should.  In order to combat that tendency we need to meditate deeply on the stunning realities of Scripture.  The incarnation is exactly that sort of reality.  The new The ESV Study Bible, commenting on John 1:14, says,

What is Advent, and how do you celebrate it?

A couple of weeks ago I posted an Advent poll (which you can still participate in, if you’d like).  Based on some of the comments on that post, as well as other conversations I’ve had, I think there are a lot of people who are interested in Advent, but simply inexperienced or uninformed about it.  I understand that, because I was in exactly the same boat until about three years ago.

There are two questions in the title of this post.  I want to try, with your help, to answer both.

In answer to the first part of the question (What is Advent?), I would say from my limited experience that Advent provides a structured way to spend an extended period of time meditating on both the Incarnation (the first coming) and the return (the second coming) of Christ.  Here’s a brief but helpful history of the development of Advent, from the Encyclopedia Britannica:

Advent with Martin Luther

Martin Luther was adept at articulating timeless truths in creative and memorable and sometimes even jarring ways.  Don’t take that as an endorsement of everything Luther said, though.  His creativity and enthusiasm would have been better kept in check at times, but–that’s just part of what made him such a colorful character, and so much fun to read.

And reading is what this post is about.  I’m always on the lookout for good books to read during Advent.  I want to tell you about one I bought a couple of years ago.

That’s Christmas

The staggering fact that God one day wrapped Himself in flesh and lived among us is explored in this compelling video.  Post continued below the video…

(HT – Tony Brott)

What if God was one of us? Joan Osborne wistfully asked that question in a popular song several years ago.  Don’t be misled by the title of the song, though.  It was by no stretch of the imagination a Christian song, although it did raise a provocative question.

Poll: Do you celebrate Advent?

Do you celebrate Advent?  I never had–at least, not until 2005.  Our new pastor arrived in the summer of that year, and one of the things he wanted to do was begin a new tradition at our church–celebrating Advent together.  From that first year until now, my family and I have thoroughly enjoyed observing the season, both at church and at home.

So now I’m curious how many of you celebrate Advent.  I’d like for you to take the poll below, and then perhaps elaborate in the comments on how you or your church observe Advent, and how long you’ve been doing it.  Thanks!

Advent and Christmas music

I love Advent, and I love music. So does my whole family.  So, you probably won’t be surprised when I tell you that we have a lot of Christmas CDs.

My friend Tony recently recommended the new Christmas CD by Ten Out Of Tenn. I haven’t heard it yet, but I’m sure I’ll like it.  Tony and I have similar tastes in music and doctrine (I’ve never met anyone else who was Reformed and liked Larry Norman).  Anyway, I thought I’d take time to list some of the Christmas music we like to listen to not just at Christmas, but all year round.

My favorites: