Win a Free Drink (Merry Christmas)

Well, readers, It's Christmas time and I would like to give you a gift. I mean besides the gift of my extraordinary wisdom and delicious recipes. At the same time, I would also like to figure out the true meaning of Christmas. Here's my plan: you will tell me about the true meaning of Christmas. Then, whoever gives the best answer, according to my fickle judgment, will have a drink designed just for them and the ingredients for that drink shipped to them, by me, free of charge.

The Utimate Christmas Wish List

Dear Santa, for Christmas this year I want a zip line from my apartment to school, a bottle of Johnnie Walker Blue, a high speed rail line from Boston to Arizona, an indestructible bike, books about God, and lots of candy. We all have our lists of things that we want, but around Christmas we take it to the next level. Kids turn in extensive, itemized spreadsheets to their parents detailing every last thing that they wouldn't mind having. Some of these lists can get pretty outrageous. When I was a kid I asked for a Lamborghini (I got a Matchbox version). As crazy as our lists for Santa might get, imagine a Christmas list for God. That would have some really hard-hitting items on it. I wonder if we can find one in the Bible...

The War on Christmas

Hooray, Christmas is coming, everyone to your battle stations! It's time to lace up the combat boots, fire up the tanks, and fight. That's right, we Christians are in the middle of an historic fight for all that we hold dear. One might compare it to the Battle of Tours in 732; the fate of Christendom hangs in the balance. From all sides, the death machine of secular society is closing in on an innocent baby in a manger. Bent on destruction, they will not stop until they have desolated all that is holy. That is, unless we few, we happy few, we band of faithful and pious believers raise the cross as our standard and dash the godless monstrosity on the rocks of our faith. I'm not even kidding.

When You're Here, You're Family

I'm not talking about Olive Garden, I'm talking about Church! Just like a loving family, the only criterion for being loved, valued, and affirmed at Church is that you be there. During the holidays, many of us gather with our families and get that warm, fuzzy feeling. I personally recommend re-connecting, or connecting for the first time, with a Church family this Christmas season. It is sweet and beautiful to share powerful moments with a Church family. If you are wondering what I mean, here is a video of my Church family.

The singer is a member of our Church. The outside world says that she is disabled and weird, inappropriate and annoying. At Church, we love it when she sings her favorite song, "You are my Sunshine." Notice how the whole Church family joins in and when the banjo players figure out the key, she really gets moving! This, to me, is what Church is about. In the Bible, Mary says that God exalts the lowly. This is what that looks like: