Christmas

Shopping for gifts! Get togethers! Christmas programs at churches! Songs at shopping malls say "it's the most wonderful time of the year". It is not so wonderful; it is the most hectic. Christmas and New Year are only 1 week apart and many people take the whole week off. Some lazy people take the entire December off.
That's why it is "Happy Holidays".

People go crazy for shopping. Entire toys department at department stores are wiped clean. For stores it is THE time of their year to collect money. Makes me wonder: why DON'T you get toys for the children any other time of year?

People jammed the airlines for Christmas get together. Makes me wonder: why DON'T you visit your family any other time of year?

Who actually remembers Christmas is celebrating Jesus' birthday? By the way. Jesus himself never mentioned anything about celebrating his birthday. He ONLY told people to remember him in the Last Supper, for going on the cross. He never told people to buy gifts for each other to celebrate his birthday! Perhaps people are copying the mysterious wise men who gave baby Jesus gifts. BTW, those are not toys. Gold is a good gift for Joseph and Mary (and also for me) :) What about the scents and the myrrh stuff?? What are they good for?

Note: The Bible actually didn't say there were 3 wisemen. People inferred that each guy bought 1 gift. These mysterious guys never come back to celebrate Jesus' subsequent birthdays. In fact, these guys actually never appeared again in the New Testament. Just who are these guys? About that star that they followed: is it the Haley's comet that came every 76 years, or some other comet? But it STAYED at the stable. Is it a UFO?? Is there an explanation from astronomy?

If we copy these wise guys, we should simply buy baby gifts when they are born, that's all. No need to fuss buying Christmas gifts every year.

Here is a little known Bible statement about gifts: Acts 20:35. Paul says:

In everything I did, I showed you that by this kind of hard work we must help the weak, remembering the words the Lord Jesus himself said: 'It is more blessed to give than to receive.'

Another mysterious thing: This supposedly Jesus's statement was not included in the gospels! Ok, let's not start scholar debate, just suppose Jesus told him directly during their meeting in Damacus, ok?

However, Christmas does bring some joys to kids. They receive gifts and just have happy moods. Heartful folks also have a reason to visit some old and lonely elderly folks at elderly homes. Let them have it. Let them have moments of joy and a merry Christmas.