Supercilious Bells

My mother's sister, next to her in age, Fannie, had married and lived in town. With my parent's grandparents, we visited her for a meal. She owned an electric refrigerator, my mother, grandmother, had never seen anything like that before. She actually made ice cream in her refrigerator. None of us had ever eaten ice cream except hand-churned. To this day, the food I love best on earth, ice cream, tells the whole story of just how much things have changed in one lifetime.

At this Christmas season, a friend went into a store and found nothing pertaining to Christ, except up on one back shelf, dusty, he finally located a Nativity set...Mary, Joseph, the Christ child, the wise men, the angels, the animals. 75 years ago, there were no artificial trees, no Christmas tree farms, if there were, we would not have money for such. I remember, as a young boy, roaming the woods with my ax to locate a Christmas tree, cedar, holly, pine, something with a decent shape or at least 3 sides with a good shape, the bad side turned to the wall. We would string popcorn, along with a few, tinsel decorations. Later, when electricity finally came into the community, my mother bought some electric lights, which were a curiosity in the community.

My father's sister was in college in Raleigh. Going there, to pick her up for Christmas holidays, I saw the first city decorations: wreathes on light poles, lights strung across streets. We noticed that some homes even had lighted candles in the windows, beautiful decorations on doors. The store windows in Raleigh were like a fairyland, we had only seen such beauty in the Sears and Roebuck Christmas catalog (As an antiquarian book collector, I have owned 250 of these catalogs, which I have sold all over the world...such memories).

Thank God, we are not stuck where we start. God had designed before the creation of the world, His intention for this country boy, to travel the planet, even at Christmas time. One newspaper wrote a long article about the various ways Christmas is celebrated around the world, as seen by me, in my world travels. Athens, Greece was by far the most beautiful city I have ever seen at Christmas. Only in Christian nations, do you have Christmas decorations, certainly none in Muslim or communist countries. Even in Israel, the land in which our savior was born, I saw one Christmas decoration, in a small store, just across the road from Absalom's tomb.

In this day of nauseating lights, bells, advertisements, which have leeched out everything pertaining to the true meaning of Christmas. When Christmas has become a nightmare shopping holiday, of spending and spreeing. It would do most people good to think of the true meaning of this holiday, proclaiming the greatest Event in the history of the world, and how it was celebrated as a holy day, by our ancestors. I am not one to justify in any way, the dishonesty involved in Christmas...Santa Claus, flying deer, elves, credit card excesses.

Having been in cold Bethlehem in Christmas eve, having studied of the likelihood of the time of the birth of Christ, we know that He was born 33 AD, probably in August. I have stood in the cave, over which is built the Church of the Nativity, I rejoiced in the historical splendor of it all. It is true, it happened, every historical event, date, points to the joy of it all.

I do not want to forget, the humbleness of the event, not just the poor shepherds on a hillside, but the way poverty-stricken people have found joy in the occasion. At that small country church in which I was reared (built in 1874), this was the only time of the year in which you saw smiles, heard laughter, from many of the poor people of that community. I do not believe a Christmas tree should be found in the sanctuary, but they did have one there, decorated, gifts under the tree for all the children in the community, for many of them, their only gift.

Even then God portrayed the inequities of life, even in the celebration of His birthday. I remember one wonderful lady, Ms. Peeden, one grandchild, she wanted him to have the nicest gift under the tree (he died recently, he was about my age). Once, she put a small car, one you could ride in. He would not let the other children ride in his car. Some of these poor children had never seen an orange...had to be taught how to eat it, but they went home from the church thrilled for the knowledge of having been given a gift, and food, from the generous people of the church. After all, this is, in essence, what it is all about. Beyond all comprehension, beyond all comparison, the message of the greatest gift known to man. God, giving everything for life, including redemption from sin through His only Son, a free gift, and our, in return, only giving back to Him, thankfulness for the gift of everything that is good in our lives.

If the supercilious bells, lights, often ridiculous tunes, indulgence by overeating, overspending, partying and spreeing have robbed you of the real meaning of Christmas, it is your fault. If, at this season, this marvelous season, when you look at the many lights, you do not see the light of the world. If when you look at the holly leaves and berries you do not see the precious drops of blood of Christ, the thorns which pierced His precious brow, you have missed the true meaning of Christmas.

It All Starts in the Home

In 2003, Judge Roy Moore was removed from his post as Chief Justice of the Supreme Court in State of Alabama, for his continued attempt to display the ten commandments at the justice building. Over the years, many lawsuits have been fought over the display of the ten commandments in public places across the country.

The thought has occurred to me many times, how many people who fight the battles for public display of the ten commandments have the ten commandments prominently displayed in their own home, business, school, and church? In most cases, the chief offenders and those who promote the ten commandment display, the nativity displays, patriotic displays, are those who have sold out to liberalism in their own homes. How much of the worlds celebration of Christmas have you bought? Did your Christian home buy Santa Claus? All the frivolity, the business, the spending and spreeing that the world does at this time of the year. I think it is wonderful that we have a great painting of the baptism of Pocahontas in the U.S. Capital rotunda.

From 1799 until 1892, the Supreme Court of the United States declared this a Christian nation. If it has ceased to be a Christian nation, it is largely the fault of the Christians. The Christians and the Christian church has sold out to the world. Instead of the church changing the world, the world has changed the church. AS the great writer C.S. Lewis said, “the best evidence for and against Christianity are Christians.” If the real Christian lived his Christian faith before the world the entire world world be saved, certainty this country (33% of the world's Christians live here). We certainly would not have a Marxist-Muslim in the White House. We would not have 54% of Catholic voters casting their vote for the greatest proponent of abortion and a culture of death that the world has known since Mao. IT ALL STARTS IN THE HOME.

Of the four gospels, only two give the nativity story. All four give the events of the cross. The greatest event of the world, the birth of God in the flesh in the manger, leads more importantly to the cross. God who put on a tent of human flesh, dwelled among us as a perfect example, fulfilled all the prophecies and promises of the Old Testament (Isaiah 53) went to the cross offering himself as a sacrifice for our atonement, our salvation, our redemption, our life (John 14:6).

99% of all businesses are small businesses. When you think of the large Walmarts, DuPonts, Monsanto, this may seem strange but drive down any street and look at the small businesses, service stations, restaurants, barber shops, etc who employ a few people and you will understand the importance of small business... micro-financing. Micro-financing has become a big frustration in the present financial and banking dilemma. The Obama administration is anxious to bailout and shell out to the big corporations who make the big corporate political contributions (GM, AIG, Banks). Micro-business has been left out in the cold of this depression.

In South America, among the natives, it has been found that the importance of micro financing keeps business alive. Citizens with just small businesses, 1 or 2 employees, get financing because this keeps money flowing. With today's computers, this is not as difficult or costly as in the past. Anyone who knows anything about online business, buying and selling, knows that this is where most business is taking place. Micro-financing could do wonders with home business and small business. More homes than you can imagine are involved, yours should be.

Of course, the parking lots at Walmart stay filled with vehicles because the public has learned to shop strategically. This writer has made 3 trips to communist China since it reopened in 1973. I have seen the slave labor in communist China. I gave several interviews on my first return about conditions in the communist, slave labor fortress. No one seemed to care. So, shiploads of slave labor-produced goods of every description are constantly arriving and being distributed by Walmart and such. Good industry jobs producing goods for this country, giving Americans employment have gone to China and India, the two populations of the world with more than 1 billion people. Are you buying Chinese-produced goods or American-produced goods? IT ALL START IN THE HOME.

As an addition to the above effort of the American economy to commit financial suicide, I have found in my own business and in talking with everyone else in business... Without exception, The greatest problem in American business is American employees... The work ethic... Everyone wants to get paid but no one wants to work, and most employees are untrained for work of any kind. Go to your hospital, public health services, social services, education system, the largest employers, all will tell you the same thing, their greatest problem is that of employees unprepared and unwilling to work who had just as soon stay home and draw unemployment. The satisfaction of doing a day's work, the honor of labor, has largely disappeared from the American scene. Over and over, with young people who have worked for me, I have offered to share my expertise in many fields but I always tell each one the same, I have spent my entire life studying, listening, and trying to soak up all the knowledge possible in every area of every endeavor. Several have told me, “I just want to get a check”.

Young people, like many of their parents, have seen government checks in the form of social security, disability, grants, welfare, food stamps, etc. completely change the work ethic of the American population. To get a job, promotions, become concerned with investments, financial security is foreign to the thinking of most Americans anymore. The work ethic starts in the home with chores, discipline, and expectations. This writer worked hard because he saw how hard his parents worked. The indoctrination of children with a desire for success is as much parental responsibility as learning to dress decently. A young man going around with his pants down and underwear showing, a young girl going around half-naked with tattoos, do not come from a respectable home with respectable parents. The commandments tell us that children should honor their parents, and so they should. It is just as important for parents to honor their children by instruction, and the discipline of control. Control in eating, dressing decently, keeping their home, their vehicle, their clothing and bodies clean and presentable. IT ALL STARTS IN THE HOME.

A food buffet, like the Holy Scriptures, like shopping in a store, like the marketing of education, you can pick and choose; BUT learn to choose well. We hear much about choice in sexual activity, and even in the killing of the unborn. Most of successful living involves making the right choice. IT ALL STARTS IN THE HOME.