Stuff Christians Like Guest Post

I had the privilege of being the guest poster on Stuff Christians Like on Friday. This is my second time to guest post, and I think there are few less people mad at me about this one.

Click here to read my first guest post: Secretly Believing the Prosperity Gospel

Click here to read Friday’s post: Having Job Titles No One Understands

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Put the Cross in Christmas

Fine idea, but I’m not sure if I can get behind this:

Read about the “movement” here.

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Thinking About Santa

Some interesting comments from Noel Piper:

Over the years, we have chosen not to include Santa Claus in our Christmas stories and decorations. There are several reasons.

First, fairy tales are fun and we enjoy them, but we don’t ask our children to believe them.

Second, we want our children to understand God as fully as they’re able at whatever age they are. So we try to avoid anything that would delay or distort that understanding. It seems to us that celebrating with a mixture of Santa and manger will postpone a child’s clear understanding of what the real truth of God is. It’s very difficult for a young child to pick through a marble cake of part-truth and part-imagination to find the crumbs of reality.

Third, we think about how confusing it must be to a straight-thinking, uncritically-minded preschooler because Santa is so much like what we’re trying all year to teach our children about God. Look, for example, at the “attributes” of Santa.

• He’s omniscient—he sees everything you do.
• He rewards you if you’re good.
• He’s omnipresent—at least, he can be everywhere in one night.
• He gives you good gifts.
• He’s the most famous “old man in the sky” figure.

But at the deeper level that young children haven’t reached yet in their understanding, he is not like God at all.

For example, does Santa really care if we’re bad or good? Think of the most awful kid you can remember. Did he or she ever not get gifts from Santa?

What about Santa’s spying and then rewarding you if you’re good enough? That’s not the way God operates. He gave us his gift—his Son—even though we weren’t good at all. “God shows his love for us in that while we were still sinners, Christ died for us” (Romans 5:8). He gave his gift to us to make us good, not because we had proved ourselves good enough.

Helping our children understand God as much as they’re able at whatever age they are is our primary goal. But we’ve also seen some other encouraging effects of not including Santa in our celebration.

Read the rest of the article here.

What about you? How do you do Santa?

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Steven Seagal: Lawman

I thought this was a joke until I heard Steven say: “It’s not a joke.”

Apparently, it’s not a joke. And according to Seagal, it’s not a job either: “It’s an adventure.”

I present to you the depths to which reality tv has fallen: Steven Seagal: Lawman.

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Mass We Pray

Seriously? I mean, seriously?

I don’t know whether to laugh, cry, or scream. I’ve got a pretty good idea which one Jesus is doing though.

Somebody tell me this is a joke.

(HT: Challies)

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David Letterman and the Gospel

Russell Moore has a great post about what David Letterman can teach us about the gospel. In case you missed it, Letterman admitted on his show last Thursday that he was the victim of extortion, that he had numerous affairs with people on staff of the Late Show, and someone had found him out. That person was blackmailing Letterman in order to keep quiet.

Here’s a part of what Russell pointed out:

The power the blackmailer had over the comedian was in the truthfulness of his accusations, and in the cold, rational evidence he had for each of his charges.

You and I once felt a deeper, more primal blackmail, and it scared us to the core. In fact, we often still do. Now, for most of us, it’s not the same kind of transgression or the same type of discovery. But we’re blackmailed just as surely, in fact even more so.

The scripture says that Satan’s reign over this present order is by holding us captive through the slavery of the “fear of death” (Heb. 2:15). And why are all humans afraid of death? Because, like Letterman’s letter in the back of the car, our conscience is pointing us to judgment, with a “black box” of evidence of our guilt (Rom. 2:15-16).

That’s why the gospel is such good news for blackmailed creepy people like us…

Read the rest here.

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Practical Television Advice

This is a tough one for me, cause I love TV. Alot. Nevertheless, here’s some great, thought-provoking suggestions from Randy Alcorn. You do not have to agree with all of it to benefit from his advice. Here are his points (but click through to read his reasons):

1. Keep track of how much time you spend watching.
2. Decide in advance how much TV to watch per week.
3. Use a schedule to choose programs for the week–then stick to your choices.
4. Keep your television unplugged, store it in a closet, and/or put it in a remote part of the house (prevents mindless flip-on).
5. Periodically “fast” from television for a week or a month. Notice the “cold turkey” effects. (Avoids addiction, reminds you of all that can be done when TV off).
6. Choose programs that uplift rather than undermine biblical values.
7. Use the “off” switch freely. If it’s wrong and you keep watching, you’re saying “I approve.” (Unless it doesn’t present temptation and you’re critically analyzing it).
8. Use the channel changer frequently.
9. Watch and discuss programs together as a family–to avoid passivity and develop active moral discernment through interaction. (Avoid the second TV set that splits the family and leaves children unsupervised).
10. Don’t allow young children to choose their own programs–that’s the parent’s responsibility.
11. Don’t use television as a baby sitter.
12. Spend an hour reading Scripture, a Christian book or magazine, or doing a ministry for each hour you watch TV.
13. Consider dropping cable, Showtime, HBO, or any other service that you determine is importing ungodliness or temptation into your home.
14. If you find you can’t control it–or you’re tired of the battle–get rid of your television.

(HT: JT)

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U2’s Stage for Upcoming Tour

It’s big. Really, really big. Check it out:

(HT: Z)

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Michael Jackson’s Funeral

Vitamin Z here with some good thoughts:

Everyone knows that Michael has been dead for awhile now… or so we thought. Thousands gather for the memorial service a week later and are treated to the shock of a lifetime. At the end of the service, Michael jumps out of the casket in the full Thriller costume and is joined on stage by all the dancers from the video decked out as well. They perform the whole routine while the music thumps. Women are fainting, men are fist pumping, people are screaming, dancing and wetting themselves. It would go down in history as the biggest publicity stunt in history. His career would be revitalized overnight. Can you imagine it? As a child of the 80’s, it certainly would send a chill down my spine. Yeah… what if. Not gonna happen, but it would be something no one would ever forget.

Oh, but wait. Jesus did do that. But he really died and really rose again. It wasn’t’ a publicity stunt. It is a fact of history. People knew it was true and still hated him for it. Should tell us something about the human heart. We are still talking about it 2000 years later too.

Z continues:

In his memorial service today, millions are with him and applaud his life and work. Our Savior died despised and alone. Today we see clearly that God’s values are not our values. We like Michael Jackson more than Jesus. It’s a good reminder for me, a sinful guy who loves the praise of men, (maybe just as much as Michael did) that God does not play by our rules. It’s hard, but I am fighting to play by His.

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50 Cent – The Wind Beneath My Wings

No kidding. According to an article referenced by Vitamin Z, Bette Midler and 50 Cent are now BFF’s:

The two apparently met while working on park restoration projects together. Says Bette, “He is one of the newest members of our tribe. He has really made my life worth living. 50 has been with me through thick and thin.”50 Cent agrees, “Look how beautiful things are and how nice it feels when I’m around her. Me and Bette collaborating would be really hot. But I’d need to make something new for her. For the right song, we’d definitely get together.”

How about that, guys? Bette and Fidy? It got me thinking. What if they did collaborate… what would the name of that song be? Here’s a few suggestions:

In Da Rose Club

Boogie Woogie Window Shopper

Wind Beneath My Candy Shop

21 Questions From a Distance

Got any more?

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