reclaiming Christmas

Nobody has a clue what Christmas is about. Either that, or nobody cares.

That's the impression I was left with after touring the Christmas lights last night in Wagga Wagga. After walking up and down two street seeing at least 100 houses, there were only two with a nativity scene on display.

We saw the Simpsons, Bob the Builder,Humpty Dumpty, Tigger and Pooh Bear, Goldilocks and the three bears, Big Bird and the Sesame Street characters, a singing tree, Jimmy Neutron and hundreds of Santas (in various states of dress and sobriety).

Now I don't think everyone is deliberately taking the Christ out of Christmas. And I don't think Christians whining about it all the time is very helpful. But I do believe we are in a period of cultural change maybe even a culture war.

Think about it, why would your ordinary non-Christian citizen put up a display of something they are not really interested in, that doesn't affect their lives the other 364 days of the year. And if you do take the Christ out of Christmas, what do you display - whatever makes you happy, whatever the kids might like, whatever can be tackied up with tinsel and glitz. So I don't expect any different, really. But it's not what Christmas is about.

So I've set up this site hoping to find the time to challenge and equip Christians to reconnect with their community and to reclaim and proclaim the glorious significance of Christmas. It's up to us to put the Christ back into Christmas.

When those hundreds of families do their annual Christmas lights pilgrimage, I want them to see what Christmas is about, let's show and tell them in our front yards, in our dining rooms, in our workplace and in our conversations.

God Bless,
Michael