Winter Song

I was watching TV last week when I saw Elvis Costello perform this song. I heard this last verse and had to go look up the lyrics. They got me to thinking, and so I thought I would pass them on to you...

When the turkey's in the oven and the Christmas presents are bought
And Santa's in his module - he's an American astronaut -
Do you spare a thought for Jesus, who had nothing but his thoughts,
Who got busted - just for talking, and befriending the wrong sorts,
When Winter.... comes howling in.
- Winter Song by Lindisfarne

I would love to hear what you think.

This Is Christmas

Merry Christmas!
This week I put some thoughts down in song. You can hear the song here:

http://www.myspace.com/jasonmcgibbonproject

Xmas!!??!!

OK, so at some point you have probably seen a sign or heard the phrase "Keep Christ in Christmas." It is a thought that I find poignant and important this time of year. It is so easy to get carried away and distracted from what this season really means. Often, however, I think that this sentiment has been reduced in our minds to simply refusing to use the term Xmas and insist on always saying and spelling, in full, the term Christmas...to keep the Christ in Christmas. Ironically there is some evidence to suggest that Xmas is actually a Christian term. In Greek (the language of the New Testament), the letter X (chi) is the first letter in the word for Christ. When translating from Greek to English we often use the letters ch where a Greek X would be, and we see this in the title "Christ". So X, being the initial for the title, quite probably developed into a symbol for Christ and thus eventually Xmas would come to symbolize Christmas. In the beginning it may not have "X"-ed out Christ at all but was a symbol reflecting the title. Now certainly today many ignorantly use it to avoid a direct reference to Christ, or just out of sheer laziness but at the end of the day is a full spelling of Christmas on a sign for a Christmas tree lot really going to ensure that Jesus is at the centre of everyone's celebrations this season? Probably not.
So, what are some ways that you are aiming to keep Jesus at the heart of this season? I would love to hear from people and have some examples of how we might practically place our faith, and yes even the theological truth of the season, at the forefront of our hearts and minds.
Here is one suggestion that I have...
Being the music guy at our church, I have been working on arrangements of some of the traditional Christmas carols. I am always struck at the theology that they manage to convey...some amazing thoughts and truths. We have been working on "Hark, the Herald Angels Sing" recently and the line "Mild He lays his glories by, Born that man no more may die..." has grabbed my attention. We worked up an arrangement that would specifically highlight that line. "Mild He lays his glories by" may be the understatement of the year (or century or millenia...), but what a reminder of the mind-blowing reality of Jesus - God the Son, divine - leaving the glories of heaven behind to enter our reality. And the next phrase jumps right to the heart of the Christian message and hope, the cross and resurrection, reminding us of why Jesus came. There are other great lines too, like "God and sinner reconciled". AMAZING. So my suggestion is to read some of those old songs slowly and focus on what they communicate. If they leave you with some questions to go ask and dig and search for answers. An increased depth of the meaning of this season can only help us to celebrate more fully, worship more deeply and truly keep Jesus at the centre of all we do.
So how about you, what are some things that you can suggest. I would love to hear about them so leave a comment!

Lessons from Linus (A Charlie Brown Christmas)

"Sure Charlie Brown, I can tell you what Christmas is all about ...

⁸And there were in the same country shepherds abiding in the field, keeping watch over their flock by night.

⁹And, lo, the angel of the Lord came upon them, and the glory of the Lord shone round about them: and they were sore afraid.

¹⁰And the angel said unto them, Fear not: for, behold, I bring you good tidings of great joy, which shall be to all people.

¹¹For unto you is born this day in the city of David a Saviour, which is Christ the Lord.

¹²And this shall be a sign unto you; Ye shall find the babe wrapped in swaddling clothes, lying in a manger.

¹³And suddenly there was with the angel a multitude of the heavenly host praising God, and saying,

¹⁴Glory to God in the highest, and on earth peace, good will toward men. (Luke 2:8-14 KJV)"

- Linus (A Charlie Brown Christmas)

'nuff said.

Let it Snow, Let it Snow, Let it Snow

Well, today is the first day of December and for the first time on record our area has finished November with no snow. I have to admit that I have been fine with it. I have not really been looking forward to the cold, dark winter very much this year and the thought of shoveling snow has not been too appealing. On the other hand, my son has been waiting for snow. It has been an almost singular focus for him and despite the craziness of the season as Christmas approaches he has remained focused on the snow. This morning there was a slight dusting on the ground and he was cheering it on as if a fan cheering and encouraging his favourite team at a sporting event. All my son really wants to do this year is go sledding. Last year at this time he had just come home from the hospital after two surgeries to remove a brain tumour. Even though he kept insisting he was fine and felt strong enough to go sledding, there was no way that his mother was going to let him fly down a hill on a sled with a skull that had not yet fused, titanium plates or no titanium plates (it was a wise decision I think). So now he has been waiting all year to be able to hit the hills and he is really excited.
It has reminded me about two important lessons for this year. The first is about contentment. I know that if I am dreading the snow, that when it comes is a great chance that I will be miserable...a bit of a self-fulfilling prophecy. Aside from moving, there is little I can do about the weather, so instead of fretting and complaining I should be looking for the positives and looking to be content in all situations (Philippians 4:11). I actually love sledding too, and show shoeing and a number of other snow related activities. I just have to remember to take time to consider the positives and not let the negatives spiral out of control in my mind. And when I focus on the positives I may come to a place where I am more than just content or bearing the circumstances I might actually be able to thrive!
Secondly, as Christmas approaches and the advertisements ramp up telling me all the things that I need to be happy and to make life worth living, it has been a refreshing reminder to celebrate simplicity and to be appreciative of all that I do have. I want to celebrate the change of season for the remarkable wonder that it is and not take it for granted or even resent it. I want to see the gifts that God has placed all around me. I will also be celebrating my family who are all around me, healthy and happy. We will be sledding together and I will be appreciating all that I have been given. There are few gifts that I could ever get that will compare with these things.
So, let it snow, let it snow, let it snow...I am ready to hit the hills.

Santa...a tale of terror

I shared on this blog last year about how our youngest daughter developed a fear of Santa. In reality it was more than just a fear. She was terrified. She was so terrified that simply driving by the mall caused her to be gripped with fear to the point of being petrified. Well another year has gone by and I was preparing for another season of trying to minimize the impact of Santa on our Christmas celebrations. As Santa began to appear in advertising and on T.V. a strange thing was happening. My daughter was not crying or running out of the room. My daughter had made peace with Santa and declared that she "didn't hate Santa anymore" with a face that showed just how proud she was for making this step and maturing into a big girl. Times had changed...that was until we were at an event where Santa made a live appearance. We had warned her that he was coming but she insisted that everything was fine. We noticed, however, that as the time of his visit approached, she became quieter, she edged ever closer to her mother, squeezed her mother's hand ever tighter and began to dawn that petrified demeanor that we were used to seeing. Seeing him on T.V. was one thing, but as it turns out she still has a definite fear of Santa Claus. She approached him to receive a gift (with her mother close to her side) and when he asked if she was going to come and sit on his knee she politely replied "No thank you, I don't like you."
This ongoing saga has caused me to think about Santa a bit differently, to consider our Christmas traditions in a new light and has challenged me to celebrate a bit differently. This year I was thinking about the origins of our Santa Claus. I don't need to get into the whole history, and by simply googling it yourself you can find lots of information. One common feature found in almost all histories is a connection back to the historical person of St. Nicholas. The history of St. Nicholas itself is a bit clouded by myth and legend and hard to figure out but there were a few facts that seem fairly certain and worth mentioning.

1) St. Nicholas was the Bishop of Myrna and was present at the Counsel of Nicaea in the year 325 AD. It was at this counsel that leaders in the Christian church worked through intense theological concepts. It was from this counsel that much of how we understand and express some of our theology such as the Trinity derived. The Nicaean creed comes from this counsel. He was deeply concerned and involved in theology.
2) He seems to have had very wealthy parents who died when he was young, leaving him great wealth. He took the word of Jesus to sell everything and give to the poor quite literally and he used his whole inheritance to support the poor and needy.
3) Under the emperor Diocletian persecution against Christians broke out. He was persecuted, exiled and imprisoned for the faith.

I don't know how much our current image of Santa brings to mind such things as theology and Truth, sacrificial giving and persecution for the faith, but I will be thinking about these things this year, and what that may mean for me.

What I Want for Christmas

I have been thinking about sacrificial giving a lot lately mostly from my own discipleship and reading and confirmed by events around me. The Son of Man did not come to be served but to serve and give his life as a ransom to many (Matthew 20:28), so the life of someone claiming to follow Him must also reflect this. As I have been thinking about giving I have had a couple of organizations come to my heart that I would love to be giving more financially to support. Realistically, however, after regular giving and tithing (non-negotiable for us) and then everyday needs there isn't much left over. All this means that if I still want to give financially to these organizations I will need to be creative...so this is what I have come up with.
Even though I don't have a lot of extra to give, I know that Christmas is coming up. I know that there will be some people thinking about what to get me. So, I have decided that what I am asking for for Christmas is that a donation be given to two organizations that mean a lot to me. Now I hesitated to even post this blog because I don't want it to seem like I am showing off or making this about me. Really though, anyone reading this blog is probably family (hey mom, hey dad) or friends, so what a better way to let everyone know :)
This year I am asking people to consider either giving to the research of Liam's neurosurgeon Dr. Singh at McMaster Children's Hospital, to the Brain Tumour Foundation or both! They both have been amazing to us over this past year and they continue to do amazing work to support those with brain tumours and help find a cure.

Donations for Dr. Singh can be made to the following:

Support for Dr. Sheila Singh
Fund # 1237

Hamilton Health Sciences Foundation
40 Wellington St. N.
Hamilton, ON
L8N 3M8

or go online to:

Hamilton Health Science Foundation

Information about supporting the Brain Tumour Foundation can be found at their web site:

www.braintumour.ca

Thanks!