Welcome

WELCOME

I say that to greet you with a glad heart and a inviting gesture into the new year. What's cool is when you are welcomed some where you have entered in and here we have done just that with 2011. It's a present, right now type thing. This is life! This is it right now, with the seconds ticking by through another year. Another test to brave. Another division to blame for wasted time.

But it won't be wasted time. There's just no telling what could happen this year. The mystery is exciting. Dare me to move. We'll make an adventure out of this yet.

Somebody said a few minutes ago that they think "we all make a pretty good team." I think that's beautiful, that we can have friends and Christ in us, the hope of glory. I think this whole life concept that I'm repeatedly stepping in is beautiful.

So here we are. Welcome to 2011. I'm so glad you are here. May God bless you with His friendship and fatherhood and make you saturated with good things.

Showtime.

Sweet Little Jesus Boy...A Christmas Carol

Ave Maria Gratia plena! That is, Ave Maria! Ave Maria! maiden mild! Angels from the realm of glory! Hark the Herald Angels sing! That is listen to the news these mighty warrior spirits are singing to you. "It's more fearsome than we! More awesome, this tiny babe!" "Oh night divine!" they swear, "Fall on your knees, you arrogant beloved!" It came upon a midnight clear, that glorious song of old. Midnight. How poetic. Joy to the world! The Lord has come. Let heaven, yea, let even nature sing about it. This is the show. The axis tilted. Boom. This is the first Noel! Let's say it in French. Let everyone know. Say it with bells. A carol thereof. Oh how they pound, raising the sound. All that jazz. And years from that day, I mean now, in modern times, there will be a formal party with champagne and the like. It will be Christmas and we'll get wind of war, and some noble, living in the wrong era will stand and toast and say, "God rest ye merry gentlemen, let nothing you dismay, remember Christ the Saviour was borne today." "Don't you understand?" he'd continue as they sat in silence, "Peace on earth! Comfort and joy!" and then they'd burst out in cheers and tip the bubbly into their mouths, being of good cheer and all.

To our Saviour. These carols applaud and celebrate His arrival. Grandiose? Oh yes. Romance? It bleeds it, dramatically too. Thrilling? Like hope it is!

Come all ye faithful? Really? Come all ye tax collectors and sinners, and you blamed fishermen that dropped out of school because you were too dense or too lazy to memorize the Torah! Come adulterers and half-crucified thieves! Silent Night? You mean the same night weeping wheeled out and sirens peeled the silence with the slaughter of babes as the dragon aimed to stop the whole salvation scheme in its tracks? What child is this that can cause this manner of revolution without any propaganda at all? Was he a self-proclaimed Messiah at birth that Kings would bring him gifts? Did a few shepherds want there name in the paper that they would leave their flocks and livelihood and travel to a random barn? And the astros? Star of wonder. A tail as big as a kite. But what? He was tucked away in a manger? The Magi got it. The Sheep men got it. Where was everyone else? Where were we when the sweet, sweet, little Jesus boy was born?

More than that, where we we when he was baptized? That was a landmark, oh boy. Where were we when he read the scriptures and claimed they spoke of Him? We were filled with wrath trying to throw him off a cliff is where we were. Who would do that to the King of the Earth? The Prince of Peace? The Wonderful Counselor? The Christ? Immanuel? Were we mad when we called him demon-possessed? We priced God's son at 30 pieces of silver. Why the heck would we do that? He was sweating blood in fear and we were napping. What kind of nerve is this? Then to top it off, we lied about him, flogged him, tacked him to a cross and were done with it.
Why?

Could it be that, we didn't know who He was? Have we found out who He is today even?
I think the African-America spiritual Sweet Little Jesus Boy is beautiful. It's actually a little more modern than you'd think as most get the idea of slaves singing this song out in the field. It was actually written by Robert McGimsey on Christmas Eve in 1932. The story goes he was walking home from a Christmas Eve service and he passed some sots who were drinking and swearing and he thought it was blisteringly irreverent. Didn't they know who He was? Didn't He know we were celebrating His blessed birth? Well I think that the Pharisees and Nazarenes and disciples and the Romans were blisteringly irreverent. I think we've kept up the tradition of this Christmassic desecration from then until now.
I think we owe Jesus Christ an apology, and that's what this song is. It's Christmas Eve, 78 years from the day this song was first penned and nigh 2011 since He came to live life, experience pain, guilt, and temptation, since he showed us how it was done, and since he took our sins upon himself in the bloodiest of ways. I've only been around nearly 18 years of that, but even in that short time, I've had cause to sing this sincerely myself. Christmas is a time for joy and peace on earth. Oh, I know that. I think we should pay some kind of heed to how Jesus showed us how to do things you know? He came to earth and in between saving our souls he showed us how we should live life. The world is mean. It's hungry. It treated him like dirt instead of royalty and it's doing the same to us today. That is simply how things are done here, but he showed us how. Sweet Little Jesus Boy. Sweet Little Holy Child. Master. Sir. I'm sorry. We treated you mean, we made you be born in a manger. I'm thankful for what you did. Help us all to not forget who you are now. Let us remember that you are our Saviour and with that we owe your praise and respect and dedication for life. Merry Christmas! Thanks for the peace on earth and the goodwill toward men we get each year this time that wasn't lavished on you when you came.


From me to you again citizens Merry Christmas! Thanks for reading and commenting and complimenting and disagreeing. I think you're swell. Here's to a Merry Christmas to you and your families. I hope it is filled with joy and peace and nostalgia and all those good feelings. I hope also that you get to know your Saviour, let us never be a stranger to him again. I love you, enjoy your Christmas, be of good cheer and keep driving and turning and getting lost and getting found and lapping those green lights on yours, mine, and our...Classical Ride.

MERRY CHRISTMAS

Lyrics Sweet little Jesus Boy
They made you be born in a manger
Sweet little Holy Child Didn't know who You was?

Didn't know you come to save us, Lord?
To take our sins away
Our eyes was blind, we couldn't see
We didn't know who You was.

Long time ago, you was born Born in a manger low Sweet little Jesus Boy.

The world treat You mean, Lord
Treat me mean, too
But that's how things is down here
We didn't know t'was You.

You done showed us how
We is trying
Master, You done showed us how
Even when you's dying.

Just seem like we can't do right
Look how we treated You.
But please, sir, forgive us Lord
We didn't know 'twas You.

Sweet little Jesus Boy
Born long time ago
Sweet little Holy Child
And we didn't know who You was.

For last year's Christmas Eve blog: http://theclassicmc.blogspot.com/2009/12/coursing-indepthrible-plasms-fictitious.html

The Monetary Message of "...Grinch..." along with a healthy dosage of Linus Van Pelt's clarifying theology

Every Who down in Who-ville, the tall and the small,
Was singing! Without any presents at all!
He HADN'T stopped Christmas from coming! IT CAME!
Somehow or other, it came just the same!
And the Grinch, with his Grinch-feet ice-cold in the snow, stood puzzling and puzzling:
How could it be so?

It came without ribbons! It came without tags! It came without packages boxes, or bags!

And he puzzled and puzzled, till his puzzler was sore.
Then the Grinch thought of something he hadn't before!
"Maybe Christmas," he thought, "doesn't come from a store.
Maybe Christmas… perhaps… means a little bit more."


I won't try and riddle this post with symbolism, hidden meanings, or why Dr. Seuss made the Grinch green. I haven't extracted anything innovative from the classic tale, and I'm shy about using a cliche. Most of you are familiar with this Dr. Seuss classic, but despite the obvious message in "How the Grinch Stole Christmas" we still say noble things to silence our complaining kids like,

"You know some kids don't even get a Christmas at all. Why, you should just be thankful for what you get!"

This over-used adage simply is not true. Every single person that has ever lived since B.C. transferred to A.D. has gotten a Christmas. For too many it has come "...ribbons and tags, and packages, boxes, and bags..." It has come without the traditions that seem to be the personification of Christmas when really they aren't at all.

I wish every child could receive a gift on Christmas. I think it's a beautiful concept this gift-giving. The fact still stays that the gifts and feasting and carols and decorations aren't what make Christmas Christmas. Christmas, I'd say "means a little bit more."

This is why the Grinch couldn't snatch Christmas away. This is why no one can. Nor poverty, nor bondage, nor tragedy. We all get a Christmas and we all get an equal portion.

Our Christmas, this holiday we celebrate each year, is the birth of Christ. Our Christmas isn't expensive electronics wrapped up in pristine packaging and gaudy glamour. It's not even mistletoe or sappy love stories or some chilling, thrilliant feeling. In fact our Christmas is this:


And there were in the same country shepherds abiding in the field, keeping watch over their flock by night.
And, lo, the angel of the Lord came upon them, and the glory of the Lord shone round about them: and they were sore afraid.
And the angel said unto them, Fear not: for, behold, I bring you good tidings of great joy, which shall be to all people.
For unto you is born this day in the city of David a Saviour, which is Christ the Lord.
And this shall be a sign unto you; Ye shall find the babe wrapped in swaddling clothes, lying in a manger.
And suddenly there was with the angel a multitude of the heavenly host praising God, and saying,
Glory to God in the highest, and on earth peace, good will toward men.
(Luke 2:8-14)

"And that's what Christmas is all about Charlie Brown"