Earlier this year I wrote a series of posts on “A Theology of Gift-Giving“. The impetus behind creating these posts was twofold. One was to demonstrate the directive theory of drama that I was promoting from Kevin Vanhoozer’s The Drama of Doctrine. The other was to counteract the extremes on both sides of giving gifts that I have experienced, namely, treating gift-giving (particularly for holidays) as carnal and giving gifts in a materialisitc and spoiling manner. I was satisfied by the end product in these posts so I thought that I’d offer them here together since they are conducive to the season at hand. I would love to hear your thoughts on these posts as well as your testimonials of how you go about striking a good balance between the two extremes I mentioned above.

• A Theology of Gift-Giving
• A Theology of Gift-Giving II

Building a theology of gift-giving almost sounds pagan. I’m sure some of you who noticed my first post in this series were immediately suspect of my chosen topic of study. I admit that it’s hard not to feel that way towards something like this subject since we have so much cultural baggage that we bring to the table in this discussion. The reign of materialism in our nation creates a difficult atmosphere for serious Christians to take gift-giving seriously. But, if you desire to equip yourself with a Christian worldview that encompasses all of life (or reality), then nothing goes untouched. This, once again, is the value I see in what Kevin Vanhoozer has tried to demonstrate in his work on theological method, The Drama of Doctrine, where he presents his case for a directive theory of doctrine. I introduced this idea to you in an earlier post called “Theology and Worship: A Qualitative Relationship,” and in my first installment of this series, I found myself applying it’s principles. So my intent in writing this post is not only to commend to you a proposed theology of gift-giving, but also to demonstrate how to do theology in a directive manner. With that in mind, you will not find me proof-texting from isolated parts of Scripture to support my theories. In fact, there will probably be minimal scriptural quotations. Rather, we want to see how we should develop theology for areas that are not so explicitly referenced in the Bible based upon other ruling doctrines. Here we will see that doctrines are meant for so much more than to communicate truth or to give theological definitions for systematic categories. Their knowledge is meant to tell you how to live in light of the revelation and reality of God.

In the previous post in this series I submitted three basic features of gift-giving. Now I want to pick up on a fourth and build the discussion from there.

Gift-giving is relational. The nature of giving someone something relates wholly to our personal nature of which God’s divine nature is responsible. God is a person, and he is personable; he has created persons in his image, thus, being relational is part of our God-given orientation. The idea that gift-giving is only about adding to someone’s stock pile of unnecessary “stuff” misses the great opportunity we have in utilizing one of the fundamentals of what makes us who we are. The ability to give someone something out of a spirit of generosity for the purpose of blessing the receiver in some way is a visible demonstration of one aspect of the gospel, namely, that of putting others before ourselves. 

An example of how the flesh rebels against this action so deceptively can be revealed by asking yourself this question: Do you ever feel compelled to give people gifts that you would like to be given, or do you shop with your own preferences out of sight and out of mind? This goes especially for buying things to give to members of your immediate family. Do you find yourself purchasing items to give to your children or even to your spouse because you know that you will be able to benefit from it or because you know that they will soon lose interest in it and you would be happy to take it off their hands? On the other end of the spectrum, if we truly desire to place others before ourselves in gift-giving, then we should be committed to giving them gifts that ultimately have nothing to do with us. Let’s just think about it. Have you ever opened something and then stared at it trying to figure out why in the world that person was thinking that you’d want such a thing? Then, as they watch you ponder over it, you hear them justify their selection as they say, “When I saw that I knew you’d love it because I know how much I could use one just like it. I mean honestly, who wouldn’t be excited about getting that? And I got a great deal on it!“

All in all, we must have some kind of a theology for gift-giving since it is a purely relational activity, and therefore, Scripture has much to say (an understatement) regarding how we are to relate to others, both to Christians and non-Christians. As we seek to build a theology of giving gifts, there are many Scripture passages that come to mind, but let’s look at just a few.

First, we see in the Sermon on the Mount that Jesus compares the manner in which human fathers know how to give “good” gifts to their children to the way in which the Heavenly Father gives “good things” to his sons and daughters. In his illustration, Jesus makes it clear that in giving gifts, it would be absurd for a father to give his son a stone when he has clearly requested bread, or likewise, a serpent for a desired fish (Matt 7:9-10). By bringing the obviousness of this point into view, Jesus asks why would we expect anything less from our Father who is in heaven, when we are evil and he is perfect? Without pushing this passage any further, thereby abusing its context and full meaning, we can see at a very basic level that the manner in which we approach gift-giving ultimately ought to reflect the way in which God himself expresses his fatherly love towards his children in bestowing upon them the inexpressible blessings found in Christ.

The doctrine of God as Giver informs us as to how we should view our own gift-giving. We should give graciously with a heart of generosity (Jam 1:17). In addition, the very fact that Scripture calls salvation a “gift” as well as other aspects of redemption such as justification (“the free gift”) provides for us a paradigm of what gift-giving ought to look like and even how we should act as receivers, not only as givers (Rom 5:15). For us to allow our materialistic culture to snuff out this great opportunity to imitate the mercy of our Heavenly Father is to be near-sighted and dominated by the times. If we truly want to be counter-cultural, then we would be more effective by redeeming activities such as this one and giving visible examples of how they can be done with integrity in a godly manner. For instance, giving gifts can be used in a number of ways: (1) for no other reason than to be a blessing to others; (2)to encourage reconciliation or forgiveness; (3) as a means of Christian inspiration; (4) for pastoral means; and/or (5) for  meeting real physical needs.

Ultimately, our gift-giving should be done so in a way that gift itself becomes an instrument in causing the receiver to love the giver more than what he or she has been given. This point goes all the way back to Ken’s illustration I retold in the first post. This is the ground of giving because gift-giving is relational and personal, and as Christians we should be practicing this activity in the likeness of how our Father who is in heaven gives gifts. God gives all of his gifts for the purpose of causing his children to love and to treasure him above and beyond all else. In other words, once the gift has been given, though it has real value because of the gospel, it should be quickly forgotten because of how it has enabled us to delight in God.  Do your gifts to your wife serve to increase her love for you or just to satisfy her holiday demands? Do your gifts to your children serve as tangible objects of how much you love them or does their love for you fluctuate upon whether or not you get them candy at the checkout line in every store you leave? John Piper says it this way in God is the Gospel, “Sometimes the heart sees the surpassing worth of God in such stark contrast to all that he has made, the best way to say it is that God is all and the rest is as nothing (175).” Love the gifts, but be ready to drop them and lovingly embrace the Father. Learn to give gifts this way.

Now that we’ve observed the amplified reactions of Mary, Elizabeth, and the unborn baby John the Baptist (click here for Part I), let’s move on and catch a brief glimpse at three other instances in Luke’s account of the birth narrative to see how those who were exposed to the knowledge and personal experience of the coming of the Son of God in the flesh responded in amazement.

Although in this study, I’ve focused on the appearance of words such as “marveled,” “astonished,” and “amazed,” there are other words that the Gospel writers used to convey the awestruck responses of people who were in the path of Jesus’ life and ministry on earth. One such word(s) to take note of is “fear/afraid“. Even though their reaction in this case was primarily in view of the visible manifestation of the angel of Lord in addition to the glory of the Lord which “shone” around them, we still see that a human’s encounter with the Holy always begins with a sense of fear. The text says emphatically that the shepherds were “filled with fear.” Here a little Greek can help us get a better grasp of just how “filled with fear” the shepherds were. The actual phrase consists of a verb (were afraid of/were frightened), a noun (fear), and an adjective (great). A very wooden translation of the clause would be “they were frightened with great fear“. It is clear in the Greek that Luke wants us to see an emphasis in their “fear” because the verb and noun are cognates. In other words, they come from the same root, just like in English the verb “feared” and the noun “fear” are two different parts of speech but come from the same linguistic root.

This makes it even more interesting when in 2:10 you immediately hear the angel of the Lord say, “Fear not.” Instead, the angel proclaims that what he has come to reveal is “good news” and will be for “great joy” to all peoples. Nonetheless, the shepherds, as simple-minded as people make them out to be, were still greatly moved by their supernatural encounter and with the good tidings that had been delivered to them.

Third, under the proclamation of the shepherds, Luke tells us in 2:18, “And all who heard it wondered at what the shepherds told them (see 2:10-14). It was the message of the arrival of the long-awaited Savior, who was to come in the lineage of King David, and be born in his city, Bethlehem. One can only imagine hearing the announcement from shepherds that all of the years of waiting since the first promise in Genesis 3:15 were now finally over. The Christ has come! God has come in the flesh in order to save his people from their sins (Matt 1:21)! I doubt if the word ”wonder” can even really capture the full psychological and emotional elements at work in the people who had received the shepherds’ testimonies. Within this particular scene, we see Mary growing in her awareness and comprehension of all that was happening in the universe as a result of the birth of her firstborn son. Luke says in 2:19, “But Mary treasured up all these things, pondering them in her heart.” Then, still mesmerized by the majesty of what had been revealed to them, Luke writes that the shepherds returned after heralding the good news of the baby born to be King, “glorifying and praising God for all that they had heard and seen, as it had been told them (2:20).” The birth of Jesus was a celebration marked by excitement, rejoicing, and wonder. It is clear in the text that the people got it right as they made God their treasure, having come to know that they were in the process of being eyewitnesses to the Lord fulfilling his great and glorious redemptive plan of salvation. (See also the account of Simeon’s prophetic word over baby Jesus and how Joseph and Mary “marveled” at what was said in 2:22-35)

And fourth, later in Luke 2 we see the 12 year old Incarnate God making an unforgettable appearance in the temple in Jersualem at the Feast of the Passover. Coming off the heels of constant exuberant worshipping and praising God for the birth of the promised Messiah (i.e. Joseph, Mary, Elizabeth, baby John, Zechariah, the Shepherds, Simeon, and Anna), Luke continues to build the great cosmic magnitude regarding the earthly presence of the Son of God. The young Jesus was found after three days in the temple, apparently blowing the minds of the teachers who were present. Luke recounts in 2:47, “And all who heard him were amazed at his understanding and his answers. And when his parents saw him, they were astonished.” It seems that from the very beginning of Jesus’ life he caused people to burst with wonder and to marvel at the reality of who he was, is, and is to come. Perhaps those teachers sitting around the inquisitive and articulate 12 year old Son of God that day were not fully aware of just who this child might have been; nevertheless, it is clear from Luke’s account that they noticed something remarkable about this boy, as did his learning parents. As the family departed Jerusalem and returned to Nazareth, once again Luke tells us that Mary “treasured up all these things in her heart (2:51b).” And then with a fitting end to these two chapters, Luke seals them off with a profound and prophetic word (one with OT roots) concerning the maturing Jesus by commenting, “And Jesus increased in wisdom and in stature and in favor with God and man (2:52).”

The story of the birth of Christ truly is amazing. One cannot even begin to exhaust the massive depths of completely understanding what it means for God to become flesh and be born as a baby, and then proceed to grow in wisdom, in knowledge, and in physical maturity. But, zooming out a little, though the wonder of the Incarnation itself is worthy of limitless contemplation, we must not forget that God ordained this event to occur so that Jesus, the Son of God and Second Person of the Trinity, might secure redemption for those who were under the curse of the law of sin and death as well as ensuring the restoration of the marred creation. However, in “pondering” these things, we must guard ourselves from making the center of the gospel about “us,” for we are meant upon reception of the good news of Christ to follow in the footsteps of the shepherds and return to the manger throne of Jesus Christ “glorifying and praise God” and join with the angels singing, “Glory to God in the highest!” And in order for us to have this disposition, we must never lose the wonder and astonishment of the coming of Christ and his divine identity no matter how familiar we may become with written Word of God. May the Lord in his grace and by his Spirit allow us to read the Gospels and the entire biblical canon each time as if it were the first!

“But God when the fullness of time had come, God sent forth his Son, born of woman, born under the law, to redeem those who were under the law, so that we might receive adoption as sons.”

~ Galatians 4:4-5 ~

The three-fold title to this series of posts is not meant to be an exhaustive list of words used in the Gospels denoting exaggerated and animated reactions to the words and work of Jesus Christ. I chose to highlight these three because of how much more they appeared to be used by Mark in his Gospel account, which has been the one where I have parked my exposition of various texts relating to this subject. However, for the sake of adding a “Christmas” entry to this series, I’ve extended my reach to the Gospel of Luke, where we will find other terms employed such as “wondered,” “pondered,” and “fear/afraid.”  As I prepared to submit my final post in this series, I found myself wanting to share some of the same insights concerning the birth of Christ, but unable to do so since the Gospel of Mark does not include that event as part of his narrative. At Redeemer, Pastor Tim Presson has been preaching this month through the birth story as found in Luke’s Gospel, so much of that material was fresh on my mind, so naturally, it was an obvious decision to spend some time in the Gospel of Luke in order to sift out relevant material to contribute to this particular study.

Everything about the Christmas season is burdened by familiarity. For adults (or at least the ones who progress in maturity) it becomes harder and harder to welcome the holiday season with the same enthusiastic ambition year in and year out since it was only 10 months ago that we packed up all the decorations, put away the Christmas music, and emptied our wallets. The same is true for the birth story of baby Jesus. We hear it in songs, see it on cliché holiday cards, listen to it in usually a 4/5 week sermon series, teach it in Sunday school lessons, watch it in Christmas movies, and reinforce it in the home-life as an attempt to develop Christ-centered traditions with the family. Don’t get me wrong; I’m not condemning any of these activities, but in all honesty, it grows more difficult every year to “be still” and wonder at the mystery of the Incarnation and at the many scenes and events that took place in the biblical narratives around the birth of the Son of God and Son of Man. Althougth what I’m promoting may at this point in the holiday season be nothing more than white noise, it is still the Scripture’s intention for us to join in with the other characters in the birth story and “wonder,” “ponder,” “treasure,” and “be filled with fear” as we behold the coming of God to earth in the flesh.

Let’s briefly look at four instances in the Gospel of Luke found in chapters 1 & 2 where we can participate with the other people in the narrative in marveling at the glory of God in Christ, even as a newborn baby and a young child.

First, let us not pass over too quickly the reaction of baby John the Baptist in the womb. It is amazing enough that as a baby, John responded to the presence of Jesus and his mother, Mary, but how much more so that he did so as an unborn child? The text says that baby John “leaped for joy” in Elizabeth’s womb upon hearing the greeting of Mary. The one whose entire ministry consisted of preparing the way for and pointing to the Messiah began as early as an unborn child as he rejoiced at the coming of Jesus, the long-awaited Savior and Incarnate God. Though none of our staple words are present in this scene, all of the events allude to an overwhelming sense of great wonder and amazement in the lives of Mary, Elizabeth, and John. After receiving Elizabeth’s blessing while being filled with the Holy Spirit, Mary was compelled to recite what is known as “The Magnificat” (Lk 1:46-55) which was a glorious song of worship, saturated with the Scriptures and praising God for the fulfillment of his Word to his people.

Click here to listen to my pastor, Tim Presson, deliver one of the most powerful Christmas sermons I’ve ever heard, and possibly, the only message that I’ve ever heard preached on “The Magnificat” as well.

Since I’ve already spent plenty of time in this post introducing my topic and pointing out the first instance in Luke’s Gospel, I’ll postpone the other three to a later entry and will hopefully get it to you before Dec. 25th!

Will you join in with me in meditating on the birth of Christ and standing in constant amazement and wonder at the divine identity of our great Savior and King, Jesus Christ the Lord?

Here’s a video from Fernando Ortega where he discusses the concept behind Christmas Songs, his new Christmas album, as well as the motives behind choosing several of the songs for the record. Enjoy! (Click here to view my review of this album)

When Fernando Ortega announced earlier this year that he was making a Christmas album, I new I had at least one thing to look forward to in the hustle and bustle of the Christmas season. By now, though, there is little more on this blog that I can say that I haven’t already said to implore you to listen to anything by Ortega. He is someone I never grow tired of listening to, and whose great worth I remember everytime I push “play.”

When I got off the airplane from South Carolina the weekend before Thanksgiving, instead of flowers, Kim surprised me with a brand new copy of Christmas Songs. You know your woman loves you when she buys you a CD as a “Welcome Home” present. And let me tell you, there’s no one better to listen to on the way home from a stressful flight (one which I almost missed by the way) than Ortega. His voice and piano arrangements have a natural soothing effect. This quality to his music is even more valuable when it comes to Christmas music, since most of  traditional Christmas music compliments the busyness of the season.

First, let me bring to your attention the cover art. Ortega always comes through with unique and creative album covers. In this case, the picture conveys the “advent” aspect of the record. As you can see, everything in the painting from Joseph and Mary to the star is pointing to Christ. Baby Jesus is positioned  in the middle of the picture with all of the other elements directed towards him. This may be stretching it, but I’d say that even Joseph’s staff is in a way meant to be pointing to Jesus. This is a good indication of what to expect from Ortega’s song selections on the record.

His intention for this project was to follow the advent of the birth of Christ. This leads him to open the record with “Come, Thou Long Expected Jesus.” I never heard or sang this song until attending Redeemer Church. It could perhaps classify as a “non-Christmas” Christmas song since it is not a standard track in the Christmas songbook; however, it communicates better than almost any other song the great expectation of the coming of the promised-Messiah in the OT. The fact that Ortega chose this track to begin his Christmas record shows that he recognizes that the coming of Christ was the fulfillment of God’s Word to his people, and was something that had been in the making since before time began.

The rest of the album flows nicely from “Come, Thou Long Expected Jesus” on a trajectory of seeking to exalt the baby born to be King. Other highlights of the album are the quiet instrumentals such as “Carol of the Birds” and “Go Tell it on the Mountain.” Ortega’s decision to make “Go Tell it on the Mountain” an instrumental is intriguing insofar as the song is usually associated with boistrous renditions, and depending on your context, oftentimes more shouting than singing. In his version, however, without the vocals you still sense the overwhelming desire to go and proclaim the good news that Christ has come, but with full reverence and fear. This dynamic works especially well in the way the song is positioned, being preceded by the celebratory “Joy to the World.”

The rest of the tracks all contribute in their own unique way to glorifying Christ as the long-awaited Lord and Savior who has come in the flesh. “Let All Mortal Flesh Keep Silence” and “Jesus, King of Angels” have been borrowed from previous Ortega albums. This, perhaps, could be the one flaw in Christmas Songs. There are only ten tracks on the CD and three of them are instrumentals and two of them have already appeared on other records. That leaves only five songs where Ortega is alouded to shine at his best, namely, in his vocals and in building fresh arrangements for songs that, possibly for many of us, have become too familiar to enjoy.

If that is the only flaw of Ortega’s Christmas Songs, then it is a small one, and really has little bearing on whether or not to buy the album. Although he has recycled two older songs, they fit nicely into the advent flow of the setlist, especially with the Christ-exalting “Jesus, King of Angels” closing out the record. I commend to you Ortega’s Christmas effort in order to further encourage all of you to begin to build a CD collection of Christmas music that not only captures the spirit of the Christmas season, but even more so, causes you and your family to worship Christ and to see him in a broader, more defined biblical and historical context than simply recoginzing that December 25 stands as his “birthday.” Enrich your holiday music collection with Ortega’s Christmas Songs and walk with him as he takes you through the story of the arrival of the long-expected Jesus.

(I have placed some samples of the songs from Christmas Songs in the Box.net media player in the sidebar, but I ask that you do not download them. I was unaware that viewers could download the songs I post, which I think is illegal, even though I’m using a platform. Until I can decide if it is permissible to download the files that I’ve uploaded from Box.net, please only click and listen to the songs, which is really the only reason I post any of the music on this site, not to make it available for free. In addition, I am alerted when the songs are downloaded, so if people continue to download the songs against my wishes, then I will be forced to remove the widget.)

Here’s a list of some of my favorite non-Christmas Christmas songs. What do I mean by that? Well, these are songs that speak to Christmas time, that is, having to do with the birth of Jesus Christ, but do not appear on a “Christmas” album per se. The only exception may be “Labour of Love” which can be found on Andrew Peterson’s Behold the Lamb of God. To me, however, though the whole record is about the birth of Christ, it really is more so a concept album than a Christmas album, and could be listened to all year long without it looking like you were refusing to lose that Christmas-loving feeling. Nonetheless, Jill Phillips’ vocals on this track should bring any heart of stone or flesh to tears as she meditates upon Mary’s experience upon giving birth to the baby born a king. You should be able to listen to all of these in my Box.net media player in the sidebar. If I find more songs like these in my music collection, I’ll update the post. In the meantime, I’d like to hear what your favorite non-Christmas Christmas songs are.

• “In Bethlehem Tonight,” from Learning and Unlearning, by Jim Cole – This whole album is outstanding. Cole is the Christian version of James Taylor, but not intentionally. His likeness to Taylor is coincidental, not the result of some Christian music marketing scheme; however, their similarities are uncanny in terms of both their vocals and guitar styles. Nonetheless, this song is beautiful and stands on its own two feet without any comparison to a music legend like Taylor.
• “Labour of Love,” from Behold the Lamb of God, written by Andrew Peterson, sung by Jill Phillips – I’ve already commented on this one above as well in my post devoted to this particular record.
• “Winter Song,” from Home, by Fernando Ortega – This song appears on a CD that already has a very “earthy” feel, so it is no surprise that Ortega gave it a seasonal title. It tells the story of how the whole creation was waiting with great anticipation for the arrival of the Son of God. Ortega shines, as he always does in this regard, in giving a soft and tender tone to the track, where none of the excitement of the birth of Christ is lost. Ortega’s song musically gives off a “wintry” sensation but it’s messianic message leaves you feeling warm and cozy inside.
• “A Song for Canaan,” from Swallow the Sea, by Matthew Perryman Jones – I’m not absolutely sure if this song is about the birth of Christ. It seems to be told from the point of view of Mary as she awaits and longs for the birth of the Savior. The lyrics paint a portrait of a caring mother longing to see her child who is in the womb. Maybe I’m wrong? That’s why I still like to buy hard-copies of albums that come with liner notes because you can read what the writer has to say about his music, sometimes offering song-by-song commentary. As you can tell, my copy of Swallow the Sea is digital.

Here’s some snapshots from mine and Kim’s Thanksgiving meal and Christmas decorations that we set up on Friday (Yes, that’s a deep-fried turkey, and it’s the only way to cook one!):

Kim got a little trigger happy with the camera taking pictures of our food, but she did an awesome job cooking everything, and the turkey was the best one I think I’ve made.

15lbs took 45mins.

Thanksgiving Meal at the Marshes: Deep-fried turkey, green bean casserole, cornbread dressing with gravy, squash casserole, cranberry sauce, sweet tea, and . . .

. . . crockpot macaroni & cheese!!

This is me holding Eli, the youngest of my two nephews. His mother is on the right, Kim’s older sister, Candi.

Mine and Kim’s two nephews, Gabe and Eli. Gabe is the one driving the John Deere, mischeviously hauling his brother Eli to some unknown destination.

Here is Kim with her sister and twin, Keri, along with Keri’s boyfriend Trace.

This is my younger sister, Dawn, and her fiancee Eric Smith. I will be marrying them on March 1, 2008!

Left to Right: Eric, Dawn, Phil (my Dad), Gloria (my Mom), Jack the Dog, Kim, and Me.

This is Jack the Dog. He is my replacement at home. He’s my mother’s new beloved son. Sometimes, I feel that if I was treated like him, I would have never left home.

Well, Kim and I are back in the Carolinas for Christmas! We made it safe and sound after a grueling drive across country in our little ol’ dependable Nissan Maxima. We’ve teased at the idea to drive straight through everytime we made the trip back home from Fort Worth, but always chickened and tired out after the first day of driving. However, this year, we got a late start on Wednesday, and didn’t begin driving until around 3pm. So, I just decided to try drive until I got too tired to go on and then would book a hotel room. Around 9pm, Kim and I were past Little Rock, Arkansas and knew that if we stopped east of Memphis that we would have another long day of traveling on Thursday. We were both tired, and Kim was sick, and I was ready to get it over with. So, we both agreed to be hardcore and drive all night long.

Kim has not been well since Monday, and we even had to take her to the doctor early Wednesday morning. But, I cannot even begin to describe just how strong and enduring my wife is. She was ready to press on! I cleaned out the back seat enough so that she could lay down and sleep, and I drove until about 1am. I started getting heavy-eyed, and then she offered to drive some. I took about a 2 hour nap and switched back with her some time around 2:45am right before we made our way into Nashville, Tenn. Then, I pretty much brought us the rest of the way home. We arrived in Waynesville, NC, in the heart of the Smoky Mountains at my Mom and Dad’s home, sometime around 8am (eastern time). I think altogether it took us about 16 hrs. I thank God for incredible safety, keeping me awake and energized, a wonderful and tough wife, and an iPod full of some great driving music.

Needless to say, I saw the sun go down and come back up all in one trip. It got pitch black dark near Texarkana, TX around 5:45pm, and then at about 7am (eastern time), I watched the sun rise up over the fog-filled Smoky Mountains as I drove through a winding gorge at 60 mph weaving in and out of a never-ending stream of tractor trailers. Though the early sunset was somewhat discouraging since it made the time feel later than it really was, the sunrise was majestic and reminded how much I love the mountains, especially during the winter time.

Kim and I have already been refreshed from our trip as well as the last few hectic weeks of work and school. I know everyone has been working hard too, but it just feels like Kim and I have been extremely busy and spread way too thin. I’ve found myself kindof twiddling my thumbs because I’m not used to just relaxing, but it doesn’t take me long to adjust my mindset so that I can simply enjoy my family and my freetime. Thanks to all of you who prayed for us as we traveled. God was faithful and gave us a blessed trip. Be in prayer for Kim as she has had some type of infection which has caused her to have some serious swelling. The doctor has given her medicene to take, and thankfully, the swelling has started to decrease. But, she would be having a much better time if it was completely gone. 

We travel to Kim’s parents’ house in Wagener, SC on Christmas morning and will stay there until we make our return trip to Texas. I hope that all of you are having a wonderful Christmas, and are taking a chance to reacquaint yourselves with the Savior, the Lamb of God who came to take away the sins of the world. May all our hopes be placed in the salvation and coming of the Word made flesh, the Incarnate Son of God, Jesus Christ in whom God has blessed his people with every heavenly blessing.

In Christ, Billy

(P.S. Click here to check out a funny little cartoon comic strip that combines Christmas with The Lord of the Rings. Credit goes out to Timothy Walker, a friend from our church, Redeemer, in TX. He sent it to me via email, but I thought that you all might like to see it too.)