Why I’m not afraid
Tomorrow begins the annual time of preparation that Christians the world over call Advent. This time of preparation is so strongly juxtaposed to what happens in pop-culture. As people begin mindlessly shopping and listening to inane holiday songs and getting them self all whipped up into the ‘holiday spirit’ Advent comes along with this…
Luke 21: 25-26 “It will seem like all hell has broken loose—sun, moon, stars, earth, sea, in an uproar and everyone all over the world in a panic, the wind knocked out of them by the threat of doom, the powers-that-be quaking. (from The Message, a translation of the Bible by Eugene Peterson)
Holy Shiite! That’s some wild stuff! And nothing like the pablum pop-culture feeds us. Advent is for the strong, the prepared, the fearless.
Or perhaps its for the weak, the unprepared and the fearful who know Someone who embodies strength, power, and confidence…
27-28 “And then—then!—they’ll see the Son of Man (aka Jesus) welcomed in grand style—a glorious welcome! When all this starts to happen, up on your feet. Stand tall with your heads high. Help is on the way!”
Here’s the thing.
We who know, trust and love Christ don’t have to be afraid of the worst that could possibly come at us. Our strength and confidence comes via association with him.
We can choose to be numb on strong drink and just act like everything is ok. We can shop and hum and sip our peppermint mochas and try to avoid the realities of suffering that already exist in the world and the future crisis that are bound to come by getting into the holiday spirit.
Or we can choose to align and side with the author of life, the Creator of the cosmos, and the One who overcame death.
I want to be on HIS team when all breaks loose because he will be the one calling the shots in the end anyway…
the kedge 
i saw “the passion of the christ” in the theater. when the movie was over, i was in shock. i couldn’t take it all in. the only thought in my mind was…”for me…he did that for me”. then, when i exited the theater, i was greeted by a six-foot-tall inflatable plastic “2” with shrek ears – advertising shrek 2. it enraged me. it felt as if the work of the cross had been uprooted and replaced by a pop culture idol. for that same reason, i used to hate christmas. in our culture, the nativity has been replaced by a six-foot-tall inflatable santa claus – like the one in my neighbor’s yard.
it still bothers me, but i’ve found that christ is strong enough to protect me and my family from the tidal wave of consumerism and waste that seems to have overwhelmed the celebration of his coming.
my family is doing something different this year. we’re not buying gifts. instead, we’re giving time and acts of love to each other. and it’s a wonderful feeling. it’s allowing us to focus on what is important and to love on each other in creative ways that are far more meaningful than store-bought gifts.
we were inspired by the advent conspiracy. if you don’t know what it is, you should check it out.
peace and blessings to you as we await our lord’s coming again.
Please find a completely different interpretation of the unspeakably vile sado-masochistic snuff/splatter movie “the passion of christ”
http://www.logosjournal.com/hammer_kellner
My advice would be to run as fast as you can AWAY from a religion that uses such a vile movie as a “missionary” tool.