By   Mon, Nov 30, 2009

As a culture, we are easily obsessed. We simply go overboard and take things too far. We can't get enough of sports, celebrities, Facebook, and reality TV. I think we can add Christmas to this list.

Our stores set up Christmas displays even before Halloween in hopes of encouraging a head start on Christmas shopping. We have Christmas specials on television. We have Christmas outfits and Christmas pictures, Christmas decorations and Christmas dishes, Christmas music and Christmas traditions and, of course, everyone's favorite: Christmas gifts! So as Christians, how do we handle our culture's obsession with Christmas? Do we embrace this Culture of Christmas? Do we hide from it? Do we fight it? What is the appropriate response?

Growing up, I loved Christmas. Each December, my family would have a beautiful advent calendar with a little mystery door to open each day leading up to Christmas. It was a magical time as we counted down the days to our presents. We'd spend countless hours looking through the Sears and J.C. Penney catalogs, making notes and adding things to our wish lists. On a December Saturday we would go out to the mall and our parents would give us each $20 to buy presents for the family. There was something fulfilling about searching for the perfect gifts - ones that would both please and surprise each family member. Coming home from school to find the outside of our house covered with lights, the inside of our house filled with decorations, and a tree surrounded by presents, I knew something special and exciting was just around the corner.

Our family had many other fond memories and traditions that I instinctively now want to repeat with my own children. But how do these fine traditions relate to our cultural obsession with Christmas? As a Christian, can I keep these traditions and still focus on the true "reason for the season" or will all these superficial customs distract me from the true gift of Jesus, who was born in the simplest of settings?

Surprisingly, the Lord's Prayer gives us some helpful insight. The fourth petition of the Lord's Prayer is "Give us this day our daily bread." In the Small Catechism, Martin Luther writes that "God gives daily bread to all, even to the wicked, without our prayer, but we pray in this petition that he would make us aware that these gifts come from him as a gift and enable us to receive these gifts with thanksgiving." The common practice of giving and receiving gifts makes it appear that Christians and non-Christians alike are caught up in the Culture of Christmas, but Christians have a double blessing because they can see the Giver behind the gift.

In the fourth petition we ask God to make us aware that these Christmas gifts come from him. But aren't my parents the ones who purchased the gifts? How is God involved? Well, who gave you your parents? God. That is exactly how God chooses to work - through people! In Genesis 2:15 we see that God uses his people to take care of his creation, "The Lord God took the man and put him in the Garden of Eden to work it and to take care of it." So whenever any gift comes to us we can be aware that God himself is the Giver behind the gift.

Back to our original question: What shall we do with our Culture of Christmas? We can ask our Heavenly Father to send us the Holy Spirit so that we might see Christ in our Culture of Christmas. We can ask God to give us eyes to see that he is the Giver behind every gift - a Giver who gives generously to his children and to those who are not, because he loves us all. What freedom we have as Christians! Thanks be to God who has revealed these things to us! He allows us, living in this Culture of Christmas, to see the Giver behind the gifts.

How may we see the Lord in the Culture of Christmas? Christmas presents remind us that God provides also for our daily needs. Christmas lights and decorated houses remind us that he provides us with the shelter of our homes. When we gather as families, we are reminded that, through our families, God has provided not for our physical needs such as food and shelter, but also for our deeper needs - identity, security, and protection in this world. Even those too-early and over-the-top Christmas displays in department stores can remind us of the anticipation of Christ's initial arrival and his eventual return.

The greatest blessing in seeing God as the giver of all gifts is that we are reminded of his most precious gift to us, the true focus of Christmas, Jesus. These physical gifts, all good gifts from God, serve as signs that point us to Christ.

Counter-Culture Christmas:
Seeing the Giver When We Don't See the Gifts

For some of us, the Culture of Christmas does not inspire obsession, but rather depression. We're not excited about new gifts, because Christmas time reminds us of something or someone we've lost. It's painful, rather than joyful.

Christmas can be a time of financial stress and the feelings of helplessness and failure that go with it. It is a reminder of celebrating another holiday without a beloved family member. It is also a time when the dysfunctions of our own families are seen so clearly. We hear the familiar words of the Christmas story and we think that there is not peace on earth and goodwill toward men. So instead of counting down the days until Christmas comes, we find ourselves counting down the days until Christmas goes. We wonder how we are going to make it through another Christmas season.

The question we are really asking is, "How can we see the Giver, when we don't see the gifts?" or "How can we find Christ in the pain of Christmas?"

When Jesus first came to this world as a human baby, he wasn't born in a palace - he was born in a barn. He wasn't welcomed by the rulers of his day. Herod sought to kill him, forcing Jesus' family to flee with him to Egypt. It was the story of Jesus' life. His life on earth didn't end in triumphant victory; it ended at the cross in pain and in death.

But his loss was for our gain. It was into a world of pain and death that Jesus was born, it was for a world of pain and death that Jesus came, and it was through his own pain and death that he redeemed this lost and dying world. By his wounds we are healed.

Just as much as the gifts of Christmas point us to Jesus, the pain of Christmas also points us to Jesus. As we realize that this world is not how it is supposed to be, we also know the reason for which Jesus came - to give his life to redeem us. Could it be that it is in our suffering and pain, rather than the glitz and the glamour, that we see Jesus most clearly?

In both gift and pain we are reminded of the first words of the Lord's Prayer, "Our Father" who wants to give us all good things - even Christ!

Pastor Adam Berge serves Bethesda Lutheran Brethren Church in Westby, WI

By Cheryl Olsen   Mon, Nov 30, 2009

It was breakfast time at Dan and Rachel's home (last name has been removed for web use) when I arrived to ask about Christmas in Chad. I sipped tea while the kids wolfed down pancakes and warmed to the conversation. Because an early Minnesota snow had fallen that October morning, it seemed natural to me to talk about Christmas. But Christmas and snow were not synonymous for Gabe, 12, Sylvia, 9, and Tevi (pictured with her doll below), 7 - since Chad is warm in December! Still, snow and kids always make a great combination, and Gabe had already been out to the street barefoot in the snow, and had put an icicle down his sister's back. She retaliated with a pet white mouse down his back!

Soon the words were flowing too fast for my pen to record, as the recollections tumbled out of three mouths, along with many fun tangents twisting their way through the conversation.

Later, I had an afternoon conversation with Annalise Nordtvedt (pictured with her family and the Kittlesons above), a Resident Life Assistant at Hillcrest Academy and a student at Lutheran Brethren Seminary. Annalise was a Taiwan missionary kid, and after her graduation from college, served as a Dorm Parent at Taiwan's Morrison Academy.

Anna Kittelson (pictured with her family and the Nordtvedts above) is another missionary kid from Taiwan. She completed her college degree and is now working in Mankato, Minnesota. Anna also shared her perspective on Christmas abroad and here in the U.S.

What was Christmas abroad like for these kids?

They celebrated in various ways, but each one talked about the importance of family. All of them also mentioned Christmas as an opportunity for focused community outreach. At the end, contemplating their honest responses, I began to examine my own celebration of Christmas.

First, what does Christmas look like in a missionary home?

In Chad, Dan and Rachel used "a fake tree," according to Gabe, as a Christmas decoration. Before that, they would cut down a small thorn bush, but it would quickly lose its leaves. "It was very messy, and we had to sweep up after it," Sylvia chimed in (see photo to the left). Then the kids began to talk about other ways to decorate the house. "Snowflakes!" "Yes, snowflakes!" In a flash both Tevi and Sylvia got paper and scissors and began to snip paper snowflakes right then and there!

Annalise Nordtvedt's family in Taiwan had an artificial tree too. There were "a fair amount of Christmas decorations available in Taiwan. Everything seems to be ‘Made in Taiwan.'" But the Taiwanese celebration of Christmas had no spiritual significance.

Anna Kittelson remembered times in Taiwan when "my mom would make cookies for our neighborhood and my parents would answer questions about why we had decorations up and what we were doing." Simply baking and decorating for Christmas became an entry point for a conversation about Jesus.

Was Christmas a special outreach time?

Anna shared, "Christmas was a really big time in Taiwan to do outreach and they did a lot of things, from potlucks, programs, to carol singing in some neighborhoods."

Annalise (pictured with her family to the right) described her home as a "store-front" building, with family rooms upstairs. Around Christmas, they invited neighbors to a potluck in the large lower room. People didn't hesitate to come. "‘The Americans are having a party!' they'd say. We'd set out the wooden nativity set and act out the Christmas Story."

In Africa, Dan and Rachel and the children went to the market to get a sheep or goat. Previously, they had been invited to a neighbor's feast for the birth of a child, or special family event. Now, Christmas Day became an opportunity for the Venbergs to provide a feast and share what was special about Christmas. Since their neighbors valued Jesus as a prophet, this was another opportunity to talk about him and read his story to them.

Is Christmas for the missionaries just about outreach?

No, all of these families also had intimate family celebrations; a special meal, sharing the Christmas story, and opening gifts. In Chad, Africa, the meal might be chicken - a big treat. That meant catching and butchering one of their own fowl - but making sure it wasn't one of the kids' pet chickens! Rice pudding was another time-consuming food-preparation, but it "tasted delicious!"

How about gifts in Africa? The kids said, "We like to go to the market and buy stuff." Gabe told of some earrings he bought for Sylvia. Her eyes twinkled as she said, "I liked that!" He bought Tevi a necklace. Sylvia talked about the Artesional, where she said, "They have ridiculously expensive prices!" But she also said her dad was the "number one bargainer!"

On Christmas Eve they dressed up to have Family Tea (pictured to the left). One year they told the Christmas story with puppets. Another time they all slept under the stars, with mosquito nets tucked beneath them. All three were excited as they remembered the fun with other missionary families, "playing games, staying up late, and hide-and-seek in the dark." They feasted together, enjoyed lights at night, and even air-conditioning in one room.

Quite the opposite, Annalise Nordtvedt told of the chilly Christmas Eves her family spent in their upstairs rooms around the cozy kerosene heater. Christmas Eve brought the lighting of the final Advent candle, reading of Christ's birth, a meal, and gifts. This was a quiet special night. The next morning would bring the "loud, crazy Christmas" celebrations at church. Each church group, Sunday School, youth group, and many families would do a skit, sing a song, or something for the program. Followed by a potluck, it was a party!

Anna Kittelson remembers, "Our family would always spend a night together eating, playing games and opening presents. I have a lot of great memories from Christmas." She and Annalise both have childhood memories of having this quiet private time occasionally interrupted by Christmas carolers (pictured to the right), whose expectation was to be entertained with tea and food at each home they visited all night long. "A couple times they showed up unexpectedly at our house as we were about to open presents. So at times, it was hard being a missionary kid because church events came first."

But that wasn't the end of Christmas. Anna says, "It was fun! We usually had a Mission Christmas with all the families working in our mission getting together for food, fun and games." Annalise also recalls the special Mission Christmas together eating, opening gifts (they "drew names" at Thanksgiving), and acting out the Christmas story.

Is it easier to focus on the birth of Jesus abroad or here?

Anna answered, "It was little easier there because Christmas time is not commercial at all. And we spend a lot of time going over why this time of year was special. Here it seems to be more focused on presents and what everyone is getting. I don't see a lot of people taking the time to remember what this time of year is about. Going to church seems to be more of a duty and an offhand thought. They go on Christmas Eve just because they know they should go."

Annalise expressed the same sentiment. "Here, there's so much emphasis on material things. It really disturbed me when I first came here - it's right in all of our faces." She paused contemplatively, "Now it isn't so obvious. You get used to it."

Rachel (pictured with family to the left) agreed, "...There aren't so many distractions as there are here."

What can we learn from these kids about our Christmas preparations or celebrations?

First, being with their parents and siblings was much more important than what they received as gifts. For each, Christmas overseas was more normal than a U.S. celebration. Ties formed with other missionary families were often stronger than their extended families here. What we might consider coming "home" to this continent was not "home" at all for them. Being here, away from their normal home, at times even caused homesickness, especially if their parents weren't here.

One conclusion is, if you know a missionary kid who is in college, or a young adult away from parents during Christmas, welcome them to spend Christmas in your home. Treat them as a member of your family, not just a dinner guest. Are there foreign exchange students in the same situation? Are you willing to share Christ's love at Christmastime by bringing them into the inner circle of your family fellowship?

Secondly, how would Jesus want us to celebrate his birthday? We give gifts in honor of Jesus, God's gift to us. But what would he want as a present from us? Do we spend time in his house? Talk to him in the middle of our dinner preparations? Do we elevate our gift-giving, perfectly decorated home, or favorite traditions, to the extent that we miss enjoying the gift that he is? Do our traditions reflect who he is, or what his values are? Would we be willing to sing Christmas carols all night? Or willing to have our private family time disturbed, for the sake of identifying with the people he sends us to?

Cheryl Olsen is the Information Coordinator for Women's Ministries of the Church of the Lutheran Brethren (www.wmclb.com)

By   Mon, Nov 30, 2009

...the angel said to her, "Do not be afraid, Mary, you have found favor with God. You will be with child and give birth to a son, and you are to give him the name Jesus. He will be great and will be called the Son of the Most High. The Lord God will give him the throne of his father David, and he will reign over the house of Jacob forever; his kingdom will never end"  - Luke 1:30-33

We live in a culture that, on a yearly basis, tries to flatten the remembrance of Christ's birth to the horizontal world of gift giving. But St. Luke reminds us that Christmas first had a vertical dimension - God came down to us. This fact makes the horizontal world all the more meaningful. Let the heavenly idea linger for a moment, and then the means by which God came to us becomes all the more striking - he came down as a child through a mother.

All parents are familiar with hopeful aspirations for their children's futures, and Jewish mothers were no exception. We can recall St. Matthew's account of mother Zebedee asking Jesus for executive positions for her boys in the new kingdom. In that light, what must Mary have thought - Son of the Most High... the throne of David... reign forever... his kingdom will never end? It wasn't her idea, but there it was, cascading down from heaven in the words of Gabriel's announcement. But if it wasn't her idea, then whose idea was it? To answer this question we go back almost a 1,000 years before Mary to another announcement; this one made by a prophet to a king.

In 2 Samuel 7, we are told of the stunning prophecy delivered to King David. After David had consulted with the prophet Nathan about building a "house" (temple) for God, Nathan was sent back with a promise that God would build a "house" (dynasty) for David. Nathan's announcement to David rings true with Gabriel's announcement to Mary.

The Lord declares to you that the Lord himself will establish a house for you... I will raise up your offspring to succeed you, who will come from your own body, and I will establish his kingdom... Your house and your kingdom will endure forever before me; your throne will be established forever.  - 2 Samuel 7:11-12, 16

Situated somewhat in the middle of a string of Old Testament Messianic pearls, Nathan's prophecy to David is connected to previous promises about a conquering male descendant who would defeat Satan and deliver God's blessing to humanity (later promises spoke of a servant king - a suffering king). Nathan's oracle hints that a forever throne needs a forever king. This becomes clear to Mary when Gabriel describes her child as Son of the Most High.

The God-man king we call Jesus Christ is the perfect explanation to a biblical paradox: a king from David's human offspring who is also the Son of the Most High God. Yet more than a paradox, this is the king we need! The Christmas king is the Son of God king, who stands as a forever reminder that God is victoriously for us, not against us. But the Christmas king is also the Davidic offspring king who, as our brother, understands our human weakness.

Mary's child and God's Son: Here is the unique king - where the vertical and horizontal meet, and where we find ourselves in his kingdom which will never end.

Rev. Brad Soenksen is Professor of Old Testament at Lutheran Brethren Seminary in Fergus Falls, MN

By   Sun, Nov 29, 2009

Evan Langlois was ordained into the Christian ministry on September 20 at Bethany Lutheran Brethren Church in East Hartland, Connecticut.  Pastor Evan came to Bethany from the Lutheran Brethren Seminary in June of 2007 and has been working as the Associate Pastor of Outreach and Evangelism.  Pastor Ole Lillestolen, Senior Pastor at Bethany, officiated at the ordination ceremony and Pastor Warren Geraghty, Pastor Evan's former pastor at Praise Christian Fellowship in Pleasant Valley, CT, was the guest speaker.  Pastor Ryan Nilsen, the Eastern District Chairman, also brought a greeting and shared in Scripture and prayer.  Carol Langlois, Pastor Evan's mother, and Sharon Hansen, Pastor Evan's mother-in-law, sang a duet.  The service was followed by a festive reception.  Pastor Evan and his wife Beth, a high school biology teacher, are looking forward to continuing their ministry at Bethany.

By   Sun, Nov 29, 2009

Victory Church English Department in Hsinchu, Taiwan is in need of a young man or woman to work with our youth and to help with other aspects of the English ministry. This person must have youth ministry experience and also have a good working knowledge of web sites (How to keep them current and improve them).

For more information contact Pastor Rocky Bronson at victoryenglish@yahoo.com.

Pastor Rocky Bronson
Victory Church Chinese Lutheran Brethren
Hsinchu, Taiwan

By   Mon, Nov 30, 2009

Accepted the pastoral call from Grace LBC in Bottineau, ND: Rev. Craig Jennings effective Nov. 29, 2009.

Accepted an interim pastoral call from Elim LBC in Clearbrook, MN: Rev. Dale Hanson started last June.

Accepted an interim pastoral call from Anchor of Hope LBC in Stanwood, WA: Rev. Bob Hosmer effective Nov. 1, 2009.

Accepted Director of Youth position from Community of Joy LBC in Eagan, MN: Rev. Tom Seaver started last August.

Resigned: Rev. Bob Lawson from St. Peter's LBC in North Tonawanda, NY effective Dec. 31, 2009.

Resigned: Rev. Jim Osvold from Triumph LBC in Moorhead, MN effective Oct. 1, 2009.

Resigned: Rev. Ed Strom from Triumph LBC in Moorhead, MN to accept the call to Freedom LC (AFLC), Ottawa, IL.

Resigned: Rev. Gary Witkop from Community in Christ LBC in Arvada, CO effective Dec. 31, 2009 to become the Western Regional Pastor.

Transitioning to Regional Pastor postions: Rev. Joel Nordtvedt (Central Region); Rev. Rick Bridston (Eastern Region - currently part time); Rev. Stan Olsen (Pacific Region).

By Tim Mathiesen   Wed, Dec 02, 2009

We are asking all of YOU as an online reader to submit your original creations/recordings (music, visual art, poetry, etc.) to us for others to download and keep as gifts to this community during the holiday season. Send them to us and we will post it here on this page!
Email to: ffpublishing@clba.org

Micah Nordtvedt

Broken World
Performed by Kelli Geiszler for the musical Riffraff: A Christmas Musical

Download >

Brad Pribbenow

We Wait in Hope
A song for this Advent/waiting/anticipating season.

Download >

- from Salvation (cdbaby.com/pribbenow) (c) 2001 Brad Pribbenow. UBP. -

As With Gladness, Men of Old
An arrangement of a hymn often used right after Christmas (during Epiphany). It speaks about the wisemen coming to visit the baby Jesus.

Download >

- from Hymns. Volume 1. (cdbaby.com/pribbenow3) (c) 2004 Brad Pribbenow. UBP. -

By   Mon, Nov 30, 2009

It's Christmas card time again! Most people send Christmas cards to greet to their friends, to share family information and to encourage people with a reminder of Christ's birth. But this lady makes and sends cards all year long! Read about Vonnie Draxten, who shares her gift of card making with myriads of people, teaching others to do the same. If Barnabas was a "son of encouragement," Vonnie is a "daughter of encouragement."

I am Yvonne Draxten, and I grew up in Fergus Falls, Minnesota. My husband, Ole, and I have two children, five grandchildren, and three great grandchildren. I worked for Wells Fargo Bank as a telephone receptionist for twenty-one years and retired nine years ago.

The day I retired I was sixty-five. It was Friday. It was payday. Everything seemed good. But retirement was difficult! From talking to many people every day, to all of a sudden not having a regular schedule and taking four or five naps a day - I felt lifeless! Eventually I was able to spend time making cards to keep busy.

How did I get started? I attended bridal and baby showers at Bethel, our church, and saw some cute enclosure cards. I found out that Laurie Strom was one person who made them, so I talked to her. She invited me to her home, where one noon hour I learned how to "stamp." Her sister Barb was one of the craft persons at Inspiration Point Bible Camp. Barb taught stamping, so I learned more and bought more "stuff."

How many of you are stampers? Well, if you are, you know - you never have enough stamping stuff!

On Sunday afternoons, if the weather was not good enough for the grandchildren to be outside, they always wanted to stamp. My granddaughter said, "Grandma, when you die, will you put it in your contract that I get your stamps?" Now, I have two granddaughters, and am sure neither really wants all my stamps! We turned a bedroom into a studio for stamping. My husband built cupboards in the room, and now I have all my stamping things together in one place. I spend many hours each week there and have found it's a good place to have a quiet time with the Lord.

At first I made cards only for my family or to sell, but it was not satisfying. I was always feeling "under the gun" to make more. I now believe the Lord was moving me into a greeting card ministry to be an encourager. It is satisfying and the opportunities are endless.

Several times during our monthly WMF meetings, we have had each person in attendance make a card. All the cards are then sent to missionaries. Inspiration Point hosts a yearly Stamp and Scrap seminar. For the past five years I have taught stamping there and furnished all the paper and supplies, because it is a ministry.

For our Life Ministry Group (Sunday adult class), I make cards for people who are ill, lonely, or grieving - and pass the card around the class so each person present can sign their name. Receiving these cards means so much to people who can no longer attend class. They know that we at Bethel have not forgotten them and are assured that we are praying for them. They especially like reading all those signatures - fifty to seventy of them!

When someone dies, we express our sympathy to the family by sending a card or bringing one to the funeral. But grief goes on for the bereaved, with many dark days to follow. After all the activity of planning the funeral, writing thank-you cards, and taking care of legal matters is over - then what? Loneliness sets in and they feel that they are forgotten. So depending on the circumstances, I follow up with cards - once a month. One family death was so tragic I sent cards for five years. Or I may send them through a long illness - depression, for example. People need to know they are not forgotten, that somebody cares!

It happens often when I make a card for someone that the timing just doesn't seem right. So I set it aside and then one day - maybe two weeks later - the timing does seem right. Sometimes that person sends me a card of thanks in return or calls me on the phone to say, "It was just what I needed." The timing was perfect because it was God's timing.
"Serve wholeheartedly, as if you were serving the Lord, not men" (Ephesians 6:7). God works in wonderful ways. Since I like to send follow-up cards there is never an end to the numbers of cards that need to be made. Many people need prayer so I add them to my prayer list.

"Never be lacking in zeal, but keep your spiritual fervor - serving the Lord" (Romans 12:11). I humbly send out cards with a prayer, asking the Lord to bless the recipients, to meet their needs for that day or event, and that the card can be an encouragement.

May the Lord be praised and his name be held above all others.

Yvonne Draxten attends Bethel Lutheran Brethren Church in Fergus Falls, MN.

By   Mon, Nov 30, 2009

In the spring of 1988, doctors at Mayo Clinic diagnosed me with a rare and chronic autoimmune inflammation of the skeletal muscles and blood vessels called Polymyositis. I was then a pastor at Our Redeemer's Lutheran Brethren Church in Minot, North Dakota. Receiving this diagnosis, I remember saying to God, "My life has been yours since I was a teenager. Whatever you choose to do in my life, it's OK with me."

On the amazing journey since that day, I've learned so much about our awesome God. He's shown me he heals spiritually, emotionally, relationally, physically and financially. God uses four options in healing: gradually, temporarily, suddenly and permanently. The last one is reserved for believers in Jesus. "Precious in the sight of the Lord is the death of his saints" (Psalm 116:15).

The doctors said the disease was chronic, describing it as a fire in my muscles and blood vessels that could not be put out. They began using chemicals with the hope of slowing down the spread and intensity of the fire so I could live as healthy and as long a life as possible. They suggested a warmer climate. I was told that stress aggravates the inflammation, so if I wanted to live I should accept disability. After over four years of treatment I was able to take two years of temporary disability.

Many of you prayed for me. We stepped out in faith, and saw God care for us in amazing ways! My wife Diane and I were flying home from the Northwest. Over Denver, our plane was in a holding pattern waiting to land, when the Holy Spirit clearly spoke to my heart. "This is just what you are doing as pastor of Our Redeemer's. Go home, resign and trust me!" I remember feeling uncertain, yet not afraid. We had no idea how the Lord would provide for us. Our children were teenagers in high school and college. Now I look back and see that the Lord had our lives in his plan.

Brad Martinson, Director of Finance for the Church of the Lutheran Brethren, called me. He told me about a disability insurance program for pastors. We worked with his office and found that I qualified. God used this to provide for my family and me for two years!

At the end of 1994, the leaders at Grace Lutheran Brethren Church in Bottineau, North Dakota told me that if I would be their pastor they would do the ministry work I couldn't do. It became a healing time for the church and for Diane and me. After six years, we accepted the call to serve Good Shepherd Ministries in Buda, Texas. Did God ever lead us to a warmer climate! The temperature has been in triple digits most of this summer with very little rain.

I have been under the care of doctors of internal medicine, rheumatology and neurology and on some serious immune-suppressing drugs for the last 21 years. My muscles have deteriorated, so that I have fallen without warning or control. When I tried to exercise on a treadmill my falls increased. I believe the Lord led me through my skepticism, and that of my doctors, to a surprising "supplement" that has helped very much.

The Lord brought a horse ranch owner and reining horse trainer into my life. I was at a restaurant when Kyle Schurig came in with folks from his ranch and a trainer from Australia. We became instant friends and he invited me to ride horses at his ranch. I told him there's no way I could get on a horse. He said, "We'll teach one to bow." Kyle and Elizabeth Schurig are not part of our church ministry, yet God led our paths to cross so we could minister to each other. They have welcomed me to their ranch, home and activities in a way that continues to be a special blessing. One Christmas Eve, Kyle asked me to meet him at his stables. Standing in the entry was a registered quarter horse with a great big red bow wrapped around her neck. Kyle said, "Merry Christmas, Roy!" Wow, what a gift! The ranch has become my retreat.

By now you are probably wondering, why am I am sharing all this?

Five years ago the medications I had been taking weren't working any more. A neurologist prescribed 2000 mg. a day of a new drug. About six months ago, my doctor took me off of the prescription "to see if the drugs are working." At a follow-up visit on August 11, he told me, "The damage from the chemicals and the fire has been done, but the fire in your body has burned itself out!"

The impossible has happened! "For nothing is impossible with God" (Luke 1:37). God has been awesome to me in Texas!

I have so many to thank - the congregations I served that have been so supportive; Brad Martinson, Larry Bethel, and the CLB Trustee Board for your work with the CLB health plan, which made it possible for me to stay in the ministry; and especially my family. They have loved and supported me through the mood swings, limitations and uncertainties in this amazing journey of faith. Finally, thanks to all of you who prayed!

Pastor Roy Erdahl serves Good Shepherd Ministries in Buda, Texas (www.goodshepherdbuda.org).

By Randy Mortenson   Mon, Nov 30, 2009

Every year when the Christmas season rolls around (in mid October or so, when Christmas displays begin swallowing Halloween costumes at Walmart, Target, etc.), I see and hear reminders from well-meaning Christians that "Jesus is the reason for the season" and that we Christians ought to "take back" Christmas. Well, a) I'm not fooled by the slogan, and b) I don't believe there's anything to "take back." In fact, I believe it's time we give Christmas back to the pagans. Frankly, we don't need Christmas. The world doesn't need Christmas. What we need, and what the world needs, is Jesus Christ.

No date for Jesus' miraculous birth is given in the Bible. In an article published in Christian History called "Why December 25?" Elesha Coffman writes, "For the church's first three centuries, Christmas wasn't in December - or on the calendar at all." Coffman goes on to say, "Some church leaders even opposed the idea of a birth celebration. Origen (c.185-c.254) preached that it would be wrong to honor Christ in the same way Pharaoh and Herod were honored. Birthdays were for pagan gods."

I know Christians who get upset about people using the word holiday in place of Christmas. "Put Christ back into Christmas!" they say. As if it is something to be "fixed" - or at least defended - through general semantics. And we have all heard about political battles over nativity scenes displayed on public property.

I understand the emotion involved in these things. I really do. I feel it, too.

But when I take a step back to think about what's really at stake, and pray about it, and seek God on it, I begin to wonder if we as Christians are involving ourselves in foolish arguments. Or, worse, if we are actually sinning in our annual masquerade of Christmas piety and pageantry. Are we clinging to Christ? Or to our beloved traditions? There appears to be something just off - maybe even dangerous - about gathering around a live baby or a rubber doll or a molded piece of plastic shaped to resemble an infant, and singing, "O come let us adore him: Christ... the Lord."

Meanwhile, Jesus gazes upon such a scene from his place in heaven at the right hand of the throne, from whence he shall come again to judge the living and the dead.

I enjoy the holiday season as much as anyone, I admit. I mean lefse and krumkake and eggnog and the music! I love the music, which is nostalgic and, yes, can be worshipful (any time of year).

But what would happen if, on December 25, rather than reading about Christ's lowly birth, we read about him coming again "in a cloud with power and great glory" (Luke 21:27)? Or we visited not a stable in Bethlehem, but a cross on a hill outside Jerusalem? That was Jesus' destination as Immanuel. Let us prepare our hearts, and our world, for his coming again.

Randy Mortenson serves Ebenezer Lutheran Brethren Church in Mayville, North Dakota.

By   Mon, Nov 30, 2009

Fiscal Year-to-Date Contribution Report (Received as of October 31, 2009)

By CLB Prayer Team   Mon, Nov 30, 2009

Disruption: anything that messes with my routine.

Caesar Augustus needed a headcount so he could collect taxes. So Joseph left his projects in the carpenter shop, got his donkey, and took Mary (being great with child) on a trek to Bethlehem. Not their choice. Dreams and plans disrupted.

Today's economic downturn - a massive disruption. Many of us have felt the pain of being told, "Your job has been terminated." Or maybe you're a young person completing your schooling only to find out that the career opportunity you had worked so hard to prepare for no longer exists. Dreams and plans disrupted.

Where do we turn? We feel helpless. And so we turn to prayer. "Helplessness becomes prayer the moment that you go to Jesus and speak candidly and confidently with him about your needs" (Hallesby, 1994).*

The Church of the Lutheran Brethren Prayer Team has been praying for unemployed persons in our churches and neighborhoods. We are also asking God to show us ways we can step up and help them.

Disruption? It's nothing we can't bring to God, for "This is the confidence we have in approaching God: that if we ask anything according to his will, he hears us" (1 John 5:14).

The CLB Prayer Team, on-call to pray for requests from our family of churches.
Join the Team. E-mail: pray@prayclb.org

*Ole Hallesby, Prayer (Minneapolis, MN: Augsburg Fortress, 1994), 30.

By Tim Mathiesen   Sun, Nov 29, 2009

And do not set your heart on what you will eat or drink; do not worry about it. For the pagan world runs after all such things, and your Father knows that you need them.
- Luke 12:29-30

I think about my three-year-old daughter when I read these verses. She feels the need to constantly remind me about her needs as if she's worried that I won't provide for her. Shouting "Daddy, I need milk!" as I am pouring her a glass. Asking me for the third time, "Daddy, help me with my shoes," even though I'm in the process of bending over to help her. I have never refused to help her. I have asked her to try by herself to help her learn, but I have never forced her to walk outside without any shoes on her feet.

Am I doing the same thing to God when I worry about what I will "eat or drink"? The above verses remind me that my "Father knows that (I) need them." What if I lose my job? What if our family car breaks down and we can't pay for the repairs. What if one of the kids gets sick and all of our earnings go to hospital bills? Is my ignorance towards God's promise as silly as a child constantly reminding her father about her need for milk with dinner? Do we have our hearts set on the right things in life?

But seek his kingdom, and these things will be given to you as well. - Luke 12:31