Vision Navigator

Christmas day started out peacefully enough at my house. Opening presents from Santa. Then breakfast. Giving thanks, opening Christmas crackers (the British kind with cheap toys and paper hats), and eating. Then off to the tree to open presents from family.

And then it happened. Someone fired the first shot (ok, it could have been me, but let’s not point fingers…). A simple wadded up ball of wrapping paper bounced off someone’s head. And suddenly, Christmas trash turned into treasure. Treasure in the form of…ammunition.

The picture above shows my ammo stash. A stash that was hijacked and used against me by my daughters as I emerged from the bathroom after a pit stop. Of course you know, this means war…

Fortunately, I was able to regroup and gain the upper hand, restoring peace to the land (peace through superior firepower, mind you, not to mention tactical skill, guile, battle hardened experience, and the fact that my 14 year old son decided to remain neutral and not tip the balance of power over to his sister’s side).

The irony of all this? The most fun I had today came from the least expensive stuff. Stuff that is typically overlooked and undervalued.

The moral? Well, I could think of a lot of them. Like it doesn’t take a lot of money to have fun. Or, you can’t put a price on imagination, or creativity. Or, the best presents of all are those that bring us together in relationship (like the gift of God’s son, for example). Even if the relationship involves beaning each other with wadded up paper balls…

How did your family celebrate Christmas? What was your most memorable present or experience?

Who’s on your Christmas gift list? For me, it’s mostly family, friends, neighbors, colleagues, plus some ministries and other charitable organizations. Generally then, my list includes people I relate to, value, or think are deserving of a gift.

Was feeling pretty pleased with this arrangement until I reflected on this:

You see, at just the right time, when we were still powerless, Christ died for the ungodly. Very rarely will anyone die for a righteous man, though for a good man someone might possibly dare to die. But God demonstrates his own love for us in this: While we were still sinners, Christ died for us. Since we have now been justified by his blood, how much more shall we be saved from God’s wrath through him! For if, when we were God’s enemies, we were reconciled to him through the death of his Son, how much more, having been reconciled, shall we be saved through his life! Romans 5:6-10

Catch that? Christ came and died as a gift for powerless, ungodly sinners who were enemies of God. Which pretty much covers all of humanity from his perspective, by the way.

So why doesn’t my list look like God’s? Maybe it’s because the real Spirit of Christmas involves a radical act of extravagant grace.

To make room on my list for this, I’m thinking I need to include at least one person who fits into one or more of these categories:

• Enemies
• Backstabbers
• Undeserving Jerks
• Blowhards
• Hags
• Betrayers
• People who really annoy me
• Haters
• Lying thieves
• Or worse…

Do you have someone like this on your list? If not, why not?

What could you do to rock some enemy’s world this Christmas? How can you make room on your list to unleash a whirlwind of extravagant grace into some poor, undeserving, unsuspecting schmuck’s life?

What’s stopping you? Who thinks you’re a schmuck?

I showed her this picture…

His name is Temesgen Lema — he lives in Ethiopia, and he’ll be five on New Year’s Eve. His father died a few years back, and now his mother struggles to raise him and his five siblings on 36 cents a day. Temesgen is one of many unsponsored children who could be helped by a one-time gift to Compassion.

As sad as his story is, what really choked up my bride was the sight of his bare feet. Why? Because we had just been talking about supporting another group, Soles4Souls, whose simple mission is to impact lives with the gift of shoes.

While this may seem trival, it’s not. Shoes are vitally important to helping keep kids free from scrapes, cuts, worms, and harmful contaminants that pose a serious risk to their health.

So as you’re mulling over what gifts to give this Christmas, consider giving a gift that reflects the true meaning of Christmas. Namely, giving to a child in need, as a way of honoring the Christ child, who was given to meet our deepest need…

For more info, please visit:

http://www.compassion.com/ or
http://www.50000shoes.com/

Or why not visit both?

How are you conspiring to bless others this Christmas?

Running a little behind on Christmas decorations this year. Just finished putting the lights (all 800 of them) and ornaments on our own Christmas tree last night.

Was feeling pretty pleased with myself, until I opened an email with a link to this (make sure you have your sound turned up for the full effect):

Have to admit, that rocks!! Seriously. There’s a part of me (the visioneering part) that’s inspired to do something like this, and can picture what our house and yard would look like…

And then there’s the more grounded part of me that feels a sense of loss, realizing there’s no practical way I have the bandwidth (or perhaps the talent or skill) to make this happen. Which makes me feel a little depressed, slightly stressed, and a wee bit jealous to boot

Why? Because I can’t compete with the obviously talented and creative Mr. Holdman. Not this year anyway, but if I start prepping now…

Which begs the question, “Why do I feel the need to copy and/or compete with him in the first place?” Why am I suddenly not enthused with my own work, my own unique context, and the resources and responsiblities God has entrusted to me? Why can’t I simply enjoy and be inspired by Mr. Holdman’s creative expression, while appreciating the value of our own little 800 light tree?

Do you ever feel this way? Ever feel pressured to keep up with the neighbor next door, or the church across town? Do situations like this inpire or depress you? Cause the value you place on your own work to increase or decrease?

BTW, our tree really does rock!! Why? Because there’s no other tree in the world that has my family’s ornaments on them…

Thought 700 mini lights for an 8 foot tree would be enough. Apparently not.

Took a third trip to the store for more lights, and 800 total to finish…

Maybe I’m an over-lighter?

Tree looks really cool in person, though — not as blurry as the cell phone picture.

Burning question: Are you a fan of multi-colored lights, all one color, or all white?

Here’s a Christmas conspiracy theory we all ought to consider:

How do you plan to celebrate Christmas this year? Will you follow traditions, scrap them, or make new ones? Do your traditions honor or miss the real meaning of Christmas?

[ht: Jonathan Brink]