Christmas is a season of extremes, from the inundation of advertising to special worship services at church.  It's an overly-busy time of year for most of us, with the rush of buying gifts and trying to get our to-do lists done before Christmas morning.  In the end, Christ-mas is about the birth of "the Christ".  Did you know that "Christ" was not his name, but his title?  Yep, Jesus of Nazareth was called "Christ" - the Greek word translated as Messiah or Anointed One. ...

In his book, Mocha with Max, author & Pastor Max Lucado shares a safari story with a frustrated traveler, following as his guide cut through dense undergrowth with a machete.  Unsure, the traveler asked "Where are we?  Do you know where you are taking me?  Where is the path?"  The guide simply replied, "I am the path."

Within the church, Easter comes as a high point, with special music, colors and worship services. It seems that not long after Easter Sunday, life is back to the same-old same old. The enthusiasm of Easter soon gives way to the busyness (or "business") of life. It's not that we lose faith in God or that we don't care, but there are so many things along the way that creep into our lives that prove a distraction: disappointment with people, confusion, unmet expectations, even shattered hopes.

The season of Christmas as celebrated today is one marked by confusion, both within and without the church. Is it about December 25th as Jesus’ birthday? Is it about the giving and receiving of gifts? Is it about spending time with family?

I recently had the joy of participating in an orientation for a distance education program at Concordia Seminary in St. Louis, Missouri. I serve as a mentor for a deaf student in the Deaf Institute of Theology (DIT) and met several colleagues and friends who mentor others in the Ethnic Immigration Institute of Theology (EIIT). For the week, I was surrounded by men and women who were training for ministry. They came from Ghana, Togo, the Republic of Congo, Eritrea, Zambia, Sudan, Brazil, Mexico and many other nations. It was truly a joy for me to see God’s hand at work in so many ways in the lives of these students (many of whom are entering ministry as a second career) and the people they have served. The boundaries of language and culture were overcome as we found ways to understand and support each other.