4 Christmas Lessons From Joseph of Nazareth

December 7, 2022

Don’t stop preaching just because it’s Christmas! We get the Christmas story from the scriptures. What we know of the birth of Jesus comes to from the inspired words of the gospels. These passages, found in the first two chapters of Matthew and Luke, are some of the most well-known Bible verses in history. Good preaching highlights the fact that Christmas stories are also scriptural Christmas lessons.

Like countless other believers around the world, as I prepare for the Christmas season I will read these passages again and again. They are familiar and comforting, and perhaps that’s the problem: because I have come to these passages so often, I am tempted to think that there is nothing new for the Holy Spirit to reveal through these words. That would be a mistake, because the Bible narrative of the birth of Christ is not only inspired storytelling but also useful for training in right relationship with God. What better way to prepare for Christmas than to go deeper in our relationship with the Father?

The birth narratives–like all scripture–are food for students of Jesus. These passages are filled with challenges to our faith, and filled with the encouragement we need to grow in God. Today I would like to share just four observations from the life of Joseph of Nazareth, the man trusted by God to raise the Savior of the world.

4 Christmas Lessons From Joseph of Nazareth

1). Poor Joseph–God didn’t get his approval before acting.

Can you imagine the real-life shock of these words: “Mary was pledged to be married to Joseph, but before they came together, she was found to be with child through the Holy Spirit.” (Matthew 1: 18) Mary received an angelic visitation and the overshadowing of the Holy Spirit. Joseph received the worst news of his life. God “drafted” Joseph into a difficult position–would the Almighty ever do the same to us? Have we ever considered the implications of God’s sovereignty? If we affirm that we belong to him are we willing to be drafted as Joseph was?

Sean Feucht Praises Cooper Kupp for Blasting Balenciaga; Church Must Stand Up Against the ‘Exploitation of Children’

Jesse T. Jackson

December 6, 2022

sean_feucht_kupp — (L) Screengrab via Twitter @seanfeucht. (R) Photo courtesy of Sean Feucht.

Last month, world renown luxury fashion company Balenciaga launched an ad campaign featuring child models holding teddy bears dressed in sexual bondage (BDSM) attire.

After receiving backlash, Balenciaga pulled the campaign, which photographer Gabriele Galimberti titled “Toy Stories,” and released a statement apologizing for the “unsettling documents” displayed in the photos.

“We strongly condemn child abuse; it was never our intent to include it in our narrative. The two separate ad campaigns in question reflect a series of grievous errors for which Balenciaga takes responsibility,” the fashion company said.

The images sparked an outcry from some conservative Christians, including Sean Feucht, Eric Metaxas, and Allie Beth Stuckey.

Founder and leader of “Let Us Worship,” Feucht said, “Balenciaga responds to child ‘BDSM’ photo shoot exploitation scandal by saying: ‘We could have done things differently.’”

Feucht then questioned why there has been no moral outcry from Hollywood, big banks, mainstream media, celebrities, and social justice warriors.

“I honestly think it’s crazy that you have these apparent social justice warriors inside of the church and outside of the church not really saying anything about the Balenciaga situation,” Feucht told ChurchLeaders. “I mean, this is like bold faced exploitation of children, like in our face, like out in the open—the brazen assault, and the mindset that they know nothing’s going to happen to them.”

Questioning where all the big banks that have attempted to cancel conservatives are, Feucht added, “Where’s Hollywood’s response, where’s the mainstream media’s response, where’s the celebrity response, and then sadly worse the church response!”

“It’s wild to me,” Feucht shared, expressing that it’s “revealing to me in America where we’re at this place where they’re trying their hardest to normalize this disgusting, demonic, vile act of pedophilia. And, really, it’s another example of the satanic and demonic attack on our children…their response is basically…like no remorse. They blame the marketing company.”

“Now it’s time for us to rise up! Call it out! Protect our kids,” said the worship leader, who embarks on his “Kingdom to the Capitol” tour in 2023. “We are in the vibe of Jesus’ words he spoke that are recorded in Matthew 18, where he says, ‘Whoever causes one of these little ones who believes in me to sin, it would be better for him to have a great millstone fastened around his neck and to be drowned in the depth of the sea.’”

The Bloody History Behind One of Our Most Popular Christmas Songs

Jessica Mouser

December 6, 2022

carol of the bells — Members of the Ukrainian National Chorus with conductor Alexander (Oleksander) Koshyts. Bain News Service, Public domain, via Wikimedia Commons

It is complex and hauntingly beautiful, a work of musical genius. The original lyrics had nothing to do with Christmas. It emerged amid political violence and oppression. And 100 years later, the country that birthed the “Ukrainian Bell Carol” (also known as “Carol of the Bells”) is suffering hardships that are all too familiar.

“This is a tragic, tragic time in Ukrainian history,” says Lydia Tomkiw, a journalist and second generation American who grew up in a Ukrainian household. “It parallels what was happening 100 years ago, the echoes are there. It’s devastating that we’re seeing it again.”

‘Carol of the Bells’—Not Originally a Christmas Song

Tomkiw, who grew up speaking Ukrainian and playing the bandura, a Ukrainian folk instrument, appeared on the Nov. 27 episode of the podcast, “Hark! The Stories Behind Our Favorite Christmas Carols.” Tomkiw spoke with host Maggi Van Dorn about the history behind “Carol of the Bells,” which Tomkiw has written about at length in an article titled, “Toll of the Bells: The forgotten history of nationalism, oppression, and murder behind a Christmas classic.”

The melody of “Carol of the Bells’ is actually a Ukrainian folk song titled, “Shchedryk,” or “The Little Swallow.” The song predates Christianity, and its purpose was to welcome spring and a new year. The lyrics describe a swallow telling the master of a house to come out and look at his livestock and his beautiful wife. “Shchedryk”’ is still popular in Ukraine today.

Mykola Leontovych, a prominent Ukrainian composer and choral conductor born in 1877, is responsible for arranging “Shchedryk” as we know it, likely basing his composition on a version of the tune that he heard in his childhood. Leontovych then sent the arrangement to Oleksander Koshetz, who directed the country’s national choir, Ukrainian Republic Kapelle.

This was a turbulent time for Ukraine. The Ukrainian People’s Republic was formed in 1918 after the fall of the Romanovs in 1917. President Symon Petliura, wanting to promote Ukrainian culture, decided to send the national choir on tour, thus popularizing “Shchedryk” throughout the world.

From 1918 to 1922, the Bolsheviks carried out the Red Terror, murdering anyone who supported Ukrainian culture. In 1921, Leontovych and his family unwittingly gave shelter to a Soviet agent, who then assassinated the composer. By 1921, the fledgling republic had collapsed.

‘It’s a Miracle’: Kentucky Pastor Preaches 2 Days After 30-Foot Fall

Stephanie Martin

December 6, 2022

Mark Bishop, pastor of GracePointe Baptist Church in Louisville, Kentucky, told congregants on Sunday, December 4, that “the Lord obviously delivered me.” Just two days earlier, Bishop accidentally slid off his roof while trying to fix a storm-damaged shingle. The 30-foot fall left him with a severe concussion but, miraculously, no broken bones or internal injuries.

While thanking worshipers for their love and support, Bishop said prayers made a huge difference. “There was some time there when it did not feel or look very good, at least from my perspective,” he said. “I’m just grateful for the Lord’s deliverance.”

Mark Bishop: ‘God Was Getting the Glory’

The fall left Pastor Mark Bishop unconscious, and he awoke while choking on vomit. Using his cell phone, he alerted his wife, who called an ambulance and started a prayer chain. Although Bishop could talk afterward, he told paramedics the year was 2003. At first the pastor “couldn’t feel anything,” he says, but then “two hours into it, everything started hurting.”

At the hospital, doctors expected to find significant injuries, but the pastor’s neck, back, and lungs were all okay. “It was pretty remarkable,” says Bishop. “I have a bunch of nurses and doctors in my church, and they were saying nobody falls 30 feet without something—broken neck, a brain bleed, or worse.”

Bishop, who served in the army, says his Airborne training may have kicked in as he braced for impact. But he realizes the outcome is nothing short of miraculous. “The nurse said, ‘We don’t know what to say. It’s a miracle.’ I may have been broken when I left my property, but two hours later, not anything was broken and God was getting the glory.”

During a deployment in Afghanistan, the pastor had suffered two concussions, which doctors said would amplify his symptoms from this one. On social media, Bishop’s wife, Kim, writs that he was “extremely disoriented” at the hospital and had “a horrible headache” but “no brain swelling or bleeds.”

Pastor Returns to Work: ‘This Is My Passion’

When doctors advised Pastor Mark Bishop to take several days off to rest, he pushed back. The church’s big Christmas offering was scheduled for December 4; plus, he was kicking off a new sermon series. So he showed up on Sunday, just without the usual stage lights due to a lingering headache.

Bishop says he told his doctor, “This is my calling, this is my passion. If I don’t go, I’ll be at home wringing my hands and watching it on the screen.” At the beginning of Sunday’s message, he told listeners he’d “studied all week for my sermon” and was “not gonna be able to take it easy wondering what’s going on” at church. “I will be much happier here for about two hours and go home than missing today,” he added.

Will Your Church Meet on Christmas Day?

Dale Chamberlain

December 6, 2022

As Christmas quickly approaches, pastors and church leaders are preparing for one of the busiest times of year. Many are planning multiple Christmas Eve services and special events, strategizing about how best to connect with those who will be in attendance for the first (and perhaps only) time all year.

And as church leaders are playing calendar Tetris, seeking to maximize their impact without double booking their churches or their families, many have wrestled with the fact that Christmas day lands on a Sunday this year.

For some churches, it is a foregone conclusion that they plan to meet like normal every Sunday, regardless of what holiday may fall on it. Nevertheless, others are open to thinking creatively about how to adjust their regular Sunday schedule in light of Christmas.

Below are three ways to approach Christmas this year when it comes to your slate of Sunday services, along with some pros and cons of each.

Meet Like Normal

Many churches will opt to meet on Christmas Sunday with their regularly scheduled service or services.

Pastors and leaders of these churches operate under the logic, “If Jesus is the reason for the season, then why would we not meet on the very day that is marked for celebrating his birth?” Further, they do not want to be found guilty of “neglecting to meet together, as some are in the habit of doing” (Hebrews 10:25), even for one day when it is tempting to take the day off of Sunday worship.

Thus, they plan on holding regular services full of Christmas hymns and a special Christmas message.

The benefit of this approach, apart from keeping in line with a particular church’s convictions, is consistency. Meeting on Christmas day can send the message that the church building is a place to gather and worship Jesus every single week, rain or shine.

On the other hand, the number of people who are looking to attend church on Christmas day is dramatically lower than on most other Sundays, so pastors can expect sparse attendance, and it may be more difficult to secure volunteers for key positions in running the service. This can be discouraging for key leaders who are sacrificing more than usual to put on the service, so it is something worth considering.

Adjust Your Meeting Time and Number of Services

Understanding that Christmas is a special time that most families want to spend together to exchange gifts and share a special meal, but still not wanting to completely cancel church services for the day, some churches will opt to simply adjust their service schedule on Christmas Day.

This could mean that a church that normally offers three services will retract to one service. Or, if the church normally meets in the morning, they may opt for an early afternoon service, strategically placing it between meal times, so that church members can spend those special moments with family while still being able to attend a service.

This approach may increase attendance slightly, and it will certainly make it easier for your leaders to secure volunteers. Further, it may also communicate to your leaders that while “doing church” is important, and the congregation has a conviction to meet every Sunday, the operation of church services need not come at the expense of important family time.

‘We Intend To Recover Our Good Name’—VA Pastor Announces ‘Legal Action’ in First Public Appearance Since Prostitution Sting Arrest

Dale Chamberlain

December 6, 2022

John Blanchard, lead pastor of Rock Church International in Virginia Beach, VA, has appeared onstage at the church for the first time in over year, following his arrest in a prostitution sting, which took place in Oct. 2021.

While he did not preach the morning’s sermon, he did announce that he would be pursuing “legal action” in light of the charges brought against him, which were subsequently dropped.

Blanchard was charged with solicitation of prostitution from a minor age 16 or older and using a vehicle to promote prostitution or unlawful sex after being caught in a police operation wherein uncover officers corresponded online with suspects who thought they were speaking with underaged girls.

Blanchard was one of 17 men arrested.

Arrested on a Friday, Blanchard made bail and appeared onstage at his church the following Sunday, only stepping aside from his ministerial responsibilities after his charges became publicly known.

Blanchard was previously accused of the sexual assault of a former assistant in 2018. The survivor pressed charges, though Blanchard was eventually acquitted in 2019.

In October of this year, roughly a year after Blanchard was first arrested, the charges related to his capture in the sting operation were dropped. However, prosecutors can refile the charges at a later date if they feel they had enough evidence against Blanchard.

When Blanchard’s charges were dropped, Virginia State Delegate Tim Anderson, a politician representing the Virginia Beach area, was quick to point out that Blanchard was far from exonerated.

“Maybe he would or would not be found guilty in a court with reasonable doubt,” Anderson, who is an attorney, said. “But innocent, as in nothing happened, he was never there? No way.”

Anderson went on to say, “In my legal opinion, from what I have seen, there’s no excuse not to prosecute this case. If [Blanchard is] found not guilty or if he’s acquitted, that’s one thing. But to use prosecutorial discretion and say nothing happened here, that’s, in my opinion, an abuse of discretion, especially when they went after 15 other people [following the sting operation].”

“Some kind of a deal was made…between the prosecutor and the defense attorney, to let this case go,” Anderson suspects.

For their part, Rock Church has maintained Blanchard’s innocence in the matter, and Blanchard has denied knowing that the site he visited featured pornography or that he saw the message from the undercover officer informing him that the girl he was supposedly speaking with was underaged.

“We have always believed in John’s innocence,” said Bishop Anne Gimenez, who has served as interim lead pastor in Blanchard’s absence, in October after the charges against Blanchard were dropped. “He has spent the time in fasting and prayer and has invested much time in his family and education. We anticipate his resumption of church duties in the near future.”

At the time, Gimenez gave no timetable for Blanchard’s return and did not respond to requests for comment.

Protestors Disrupt Pro-Life Banquet With Obscene Outbursts

Diana Chandler

December 6, 2022

pro-life — A woman is escorted out of a banquet hosted by Capitol Hill Pregnancy Center in Washington, D.C., after she interrupted the event with shouting and obscene remarks. She was one of several protesters who registered as guests for the event under false pretenses. Screen capture from Twitter video

ARLINGTON, Va. (BP) – A crisis pregnancy care center in Washington is reconsidering its admission policy after a group who registered as church members erupted in profanity-laced outbursts at a fundraising dinner Dec. 1.

“These people that were there actually signed up to come,” Janet Durig, executive director of the Capitol Hill Pregnancy Center, told Baptist Press. “They actually registered and we had them seated at a table. This young man emailed and registered, told me which church he goes to, and he registered three young women to come with him. And we seated them at a table that had half a table.”

A handful of protestors, including those at the table mentioned above, arose individually at the event at various times when she was at the podium, Durig said, and yelled profane statements accusing the center of mistreating women and other misdeeds.

Security forcibly escorted the protestors from the event and no injuries were reported.

“We are going to have to come up with a new way to vet people who want to come to our banquets,” During said, “which is a shame.”

Former Southern Baptist ethicist Chelsea Sobolik, senior director of policy and advocacy at Lifeline Children’s Services, was at the event in her personal capacity as a pro-life advocate when the protests occurred.

“It honestly made me so sad. My husband and I were hosting a table. I’ve attended these dinners for a decade,” she said. “The first group of protests were directly to our right, and then the second group was directly to our left. So we were surrounded. Security came right in and escorted them out, and thankfully the program was able to be quickly resumed.

“But it did cause a disturbance,” Sobolik said. “There were protestors outside when people were walking in, but then, I wasn’t expecting protestors to be inside.”

Capitol Hill Pregnancy Center has withstood protestors before. The center offers a number of services free to the public, Durig said, including pregnancy testing, baby clothing and supplies, parenting and child birthing classes and pregnancy loss counseling. Information on abortion options is provided only with permission, Durig said.

“Women who want to keep their baby, in my opinion, have a right to keep their baby,” Durig said. “What’s coming across from groups (who protested) last night is, do they not think keeping your baby is still one of the choices?”

Funds were raised by donations at the event that drew 400 attendees as most protestors did so from the street outside the venue. The center has been able to generate donations without charging admission at fundraising events, Durig said.

“We don’t sell tables. We have table hosts who host the table, and you know that that table host knows the people. But when we’ve had other people come in, we’ve never had a problem before,” Durig said. “They ate our hors d’oeuvres, they ate our meal. The people sitting at the table with them said they talked about how delicious everything was. And then the protests started.”

Pope Tightens Oversight of Vatican-Linked Foundations

Nicole Winfield

December 6, 2022

VATICAN CITY (AP) — Pope Francis on Tuesday tightened control and oversight over Vatican-based foundations and associations in his latest effort to impose international standards of accounting and governance on Vatican offices and affiliated entities.

A new law aims to bring the Holy See into further compliance with recommendations from the Council of Europe’s Moneyval committee, which in April 2021 flagged as problematic the lack of an overarching law governing the creation and administration of foundations registered in Vatican City.

Such foundations draw donations from the faithful, but until recently they had little oversight or accountability.

The new law lays out strict governance, administrative and accounting regulations that put the foundations under the ultimate oversight of the Vatican’s Secretariat for the Economy, with their books subject to review by the office of the auditor general.

The same Moneyval report that flagged the foundation loophole highlighted as a case study the well-known scandal of the charitable foundation of the Vatican’s Bambino Gesu pediatric hospital, which draws donations from around the world.

The Vatican’s criminal court in 2017 convicted the hospital’s former president of diverting some $500,000 in donations from the hospital foundation to renovate the apartment of the former Vatican No. 2, Cardinal Tarcisio Bertone.

Bertone was never charged, and the original charge of embezzlement was reduced to abuse of office after the president’s lawyers argued that the money was intended as an investment to benefit the hospital because the apartment was going to be used for fundraising events.

The Vatican has several foundations and associations that have Vatican City as their legal headquarters, including some Pope Francis created himself and dedicated to past popes and papal initiatives.

Francis was elected as pope in 2013 with a mandate to clean up the Vatican’s murky finances and to bring international standards of transparency and accountability to them. The reform effort has taken years and spawned a few scandals, including a current criminal trial over a past investment in a London property.

Recently, the Jesuit priest credited with helping bring order to the Holy See’s budgeting as prefect of the Secretariat for the Economy, the Rev. Juan Antonio Guerrero Alves, announced his resignation for medical reasons. His deputy, the lay economist Maximino Caballero Ledo, was named to succeed him.

This article originally appeared on APNews.com.

Justices Spar in Latest Clash of Religion and Gay Rights

Jessica Gresko and Mark Sherman

December 6, 2022

Lorie Smith, a Christian graphic artist and website designer in Colorado, right, accompanied by her lawyer, Kristen Waggoner of the Alliance Defending Freedom, second from left, speaks outside the Supreme Court in Washington, Monday, Dec. 5, 2022, after her case was heard before the Supreme Court. The Supreme Court is hearing the case of Smith, who objects to designing wedding websites for gay couples, that's the latest clash of religion and gay rights to land at the highest court. (AP Photo/Andrew Harnik)

WASHINGTON (AP) — The Supreme Court‘s conservative majority sounded sympathetic Monday to a Christian graphic artist who objects to designing wedding websites for gay couples, the latest collision of religion and gay rights to land at the high court.

The designer and her supporters say that ruling against her would force artists — from painters and photographers to writers and musicians — to do work that is against their beliefs. Her opponents, meanwhile, say that if she wins, a range of businesses will be able to discriminate, refusing to serve Black, Jewish or Muslim customers, interracial or interfaith couples or immigrants.

Over more than two hours of spirited arguments, the justices repeatedly tested out what ruling for the designer could mean, using detailed and sometimes colorful hypothetical scenarios. Those included a Black Santa asked to take a picture with a child dressed in a Ku Klux Klan outfit, a photographer asked to take pictures for the marital infidelity website Ashley Madison, and an invented food business called “Grandma Helen’s Protestant Provisions.”

The case comes at a time when the court is dominated 6-3 by conservatives and follows a series of cases in which the justices have sided with religious plaintiffs. Across the street from the court, meanwhile, lawmakers in Congress are finalizing what would be a landmark bill protecting same-sex marriage, legislation prompted by a different high court case from earlier this year.

During arguments Monday the court’s three liberal justices expressed concerns about ruling for website designer and graphic artist Lorie Smith while conservatives suggested support for her.

Justice Neil Gorsuch, one of three high court appointees of former President Donald Trump, described Smith as “an individual who says she will sell and does sell to everyone, all manner of websites, (but) that she won’t sell a website that requires her to express a view about marriage that she finds offensive.”

Smith, who is based in Colorado, doesn’t currently create wedding websites. She wants to but says her Christian faith prevents her from creating websites celebrating same-sex marriages.

Colorado, like most other states, has what’s called a public accommodation law that says if Smith offers wedding websites to the public, she must provide them to all customers. Businesses that violate the law can be fined, among other things.

Smith says the law violates her First Amendment rights. The state disagrees.

A looming question during Monday’s arguments: At what point does an objection to serving someone cross the legal line?

Justice Ketanji Brown Jackson, one of the court’s three liberals, asked whether a photography store in a shopping mall could refuse to take pictures of Black people on Santa’s lap.

“Their policy is that only white children can be photographed with Santa in this way, because that’s how they view the scenes with Santa that they’re trying to depict,” said Jackson, one of the court’s two Black justices.

Jackson’s fellow liberal Justice Sonia Sotomayor said if the court rules for Smith, it would be the first time the justices would say that a “commercial business open to the public, serving the public, that it could refuse to serve a customer based on race, sex, religion or sexual orientation.”

Sotomayor repeatedly pressed Smith’s lawyer on what business owners could refuse to do. “How about people who don’t believe in interracial marriage? Or about people who don’t believe that disabled people should get married? Where’s the line?” Sotomayor asked.

But conservative Justice Samuel Alito, who seemed to favor Smith, asked whether it’s “fair to equate opposition to same-sex marriage to opposition to interracial marriage.” And he pointed to language in the court’s 2015 opinion declaring a nationwide right to same-sex marriage about “honorable people who object to same-sex marriage.”

Amy Grant, ‘Queen of Christian Pop,’ Feted at Kennedy Center Honors

Adelle M Banks

December 6, 2022

(RNS) — The Kennedy Center Honors, on its 45th occasion, recognized singer and songwriter Amy Grant, marking the first time the top cultural distinction was given to a contemporary Christian musician.

“There are stories of tenacity, stories of faith, stories of unfettered creativity and stories of endurance,” said actress and 2002 honoree Chita Rivera at the Sunday (Dec. 4) event that highlighted the “queen of Christian pop” along with actor George Clooney, singer Gladys Knight, Pulitzer Prize-winning composer Tania León and the rock band U2.

“Tonight, we broaden that spectrum to include for the first time ever a contemporary Christian music artist, Amy Grant,” she said. “In her amazing 40-plus years, Amy has logged success after success without ever compromising her faith or her individuality.”

In a brief red-carpet interview just before the black-tie event, Grant said she hoped to live up to the honor in representing the genre.

“Well, I’m a little bit of a rascal; I hope I do them proud,” she said, laughing.

Contemporary Christian singer Amy Grant, center, reacts as she is recognized by President Joe Biden during the Kennedy Center honorees reception at the White House in Washington, Sunday, Dec. 4, 2022. The 2022 Kennedy Center Honorees include from left, George Clooney, Amy Grant, Bono, Gladys Knight, and The Edge. (AP Photo/Manuel Balce Ceneta)

Her arrival at the Kennedy Center came less than five months after a bike accident and hospital stay — neither of which the musician can remember — that forced her to postpone some concert dates.

Grant, who described herself as “doing well,” said she appreciated being back on tour and at the Kennedy Center, even if it felt a little overwhelming after her extended time of rest.

“I felt like I was feeling really confident on my two-mile-an-hour treadmill and then I merged onto Interstate traffic,” she said. “Just did my first show last week. And this has been such a beautiful way to reengage.”

Grant, 61, has six Grammys and more than 20 Dove Awards from the Gospel Music Association. The Gospel Music Hall of Fame honoree signed her first record deal at age 17.

She became the first contemporary Christian musician to have a No. 1 hit on the pop charts with “Next Time I Fall,” a 1986 duet with Peter Cetera of the band Chicago. Five years later, her fame spread with “Baby, Baby,” a hit from her 1991 platinum album “Heart in Motion.”

Pope Unveils Vatican Christmas Tree, Urging Christians To ‘Stay Rooted’ in Jesus

Claire Giangrave

December 6, 2022

VATICAN CITY (RNS) — As this year’s Vatican Christmas tree and nativity scene were unveiled on Saturday (Dec. 3), Pope Francis reminded the faithful to “stay rooted in Jesus Christ” during the holidays.

“The tree teaches us about our roots, the nativity scene invites us to contemplation. Don’t forget these two human and Christian attitudes,” he said.

The domed nativity scene in St. Peter’s Square, sheltering the Holy family, was made in the northern Italian town of Sutrio. The tree is a nearly 100-foot-tall spruce that hails from the town of Rosello, in the mountainous Molise region in central Italy.

A creche from Guatemala was placed inside the Paul VI Hall, where the pope holds his weekly audience.

Normally held in St. Peter’s Square, the Christmas ceremony this year was held inside the hall due to rainy weather.

“The tree, with its lights, is a reminder that Jesus comes to lighten our darkness, our existence, which is often enclosed in the shadow of sin, of fear, of pain,” Francis said during the afternoon audience where official delegations from Sutrio and Rosello and other donors presented their gifts.

“And it inspires another reflection: like trees, men, too, need roots,” the pope said. Only the person “rooted firmly in the ground remains firm, grows, matures, resists the winds that shake him and becomes a reference point for those who watch.”

“This is what the Christmas tree reminds us of: being rooted in Jesus Christ,” he added.

This year’s tree dates back to medieval times and, according to locals, was planted by the Benedictine monks of the Abby of San Giovanni in Verde. Molise is home to some of the most majestic and well-preserved spruces on the Italian peninsula.

Another, larger 200-year-old spruce was originally intended to grace St. Peter’s Square this year, but local environmentalists and forest rangers intervened to save the tree, which is considered a protected species and is located in a nature preserve.

Decorations for Rosello’s tree were handmade by young people from a psychiatric care facility, who worked with elderly residents of a nursing home and local schoolchildren. Their shared effort “was capable of expressing a unique artistry,” said Cardinal Fernando Vergez Alzaga, president of the governorate of the Vatican City State, in his remarks at the ceremony.

The creche in St. Peter’s Square, more than 20 feet high, is made up of 18 life-size wooden statues arranged under a large domed structure, all made without cutting down new trees. As is customary, the scene portrays the daily life and culture of its region, in this case showcasing carpenters and shepherds.

Knowing Your Child’s Current Niche and Why It Matters

Andrew Linder

December 6, 2022

12.06-Knowing-Your-Childs-Current-Niche-Why-It-Matters — Adobestock #386365193

Like any normal kid, I was “into” a lot of different things growing up. As a 7 or 8-year-old, my uncle gave me a massive 3-ring binder stamp collecting kit. And so for a couple of years, I was a stamp-collecting champion trying to fill that impossibly-sized binder.

I remember as a 10-12-year-old, I got into weight lifting…at least for a time. Since I didn’t have any weight equipment and didn’t want anyone to know I was lifting, I hid reused milk gallons filled with water in a closet and pulled them out to lift daily. I was truly convinced that bulging muscles were in my future.

I especially remember being into playing basketball throughout my teen years. I was determined to become the next MJ in the NBA. I had the drive… unfortunately not much of the talent.

Now, over the years as a parent, I’ve come to realize that like me, each of my kids goes through seasons where they have different niches that they are into as well. (Who remembers Beyblades, or Perler Beads, or SpyKids, LOL?)

As I look at my kids’ current niches, they’re still all “into” different things…and guess what? Your kids are too!

What is each of your children’s current niches? Could you tell me? I bet you can.

As parents, what matters to our kids ought to matter to us…

The things that they are invested in give us not only a birds-eye view into their heart but a simple way to connect with them if we’ll take advantage of it.

Quite possibly, unlike anything else, these things allow us to connect with them on a personal level during the different seasons of their childhood. Every child has a current niche, and one of your jobs as a parent is to know what it is and find ways to engage with it.

If you want to engage with your child’s heart, engage with your child’s interests.

If your kids are into sports right now, make sure you’re taking intentional time to play that game of basketball, or throw that football regularly (I’ve played more games of basketball and football in my backyard than my 40-year-old body cares to count or admit).

If your kids are into something artsy and crafty, when’s the last time you created something fun together? Why not break out the beads, the paint, or the sketch pad?

Three Common Idols in Churches

Eric Geiger

December 6, 2022

Here are three common false idols in churches that every church leader needs to know and turn away from.

Hezekiah is affirmed in Scripture as doing “what was right in the Lord’s sight” (2 Kings 18:3). The next verse details what Hezekiah did: “He removed the high places, shattered the sacred pillars and cut down the Asherah poles. He broke into pieces the bronze snake that Moses made, for the Israelites burned incense to it up to that time” (2 Kings 18:4).

Surely people understood a strong, spiritual leader removing the idols (the high places and the Asherah poles) that grabbed the hearts of the people and stole worship from the Lord. They would expect their spiritual leader to insist they stop worshiping other gods. But what Hezekiah did next must have been really unexpected and really controversial. He broke into pieces the bronze snake Moses made—intentionally. Not by accident. Not “I was carrying it and it fell.” To break bronze takes some effort.

Eliminating pagan idols is one thing, but “that was the snake Moses made!” It was the bronze snake God told Moses to make, the one people looked at to be delivered from their snakebites (Numbers 21).

Hezekiah broke the snake because the people were burning incense to it. They were worshiping a bronze snake. Tools for transformation can become objects of worship. In our sinfulness, we can make an idol of just about anything. In our sinfulness, we tend to make idols of things that are important to us. Thus, a bronze snake that God used to bring healing, held by the leader of God’s people during their liberation from slavery, became an object of worship.

False Idols in Modern Churches

Today is not altogether different. God’s people still struggle with taking tools for transformation and making them objects of worship. Here are three common false idols in churches:

1. The False Idols of Place

Because the Lord does a great work in the hearts of His people when they gather, the places of gathering can move from a tool for transformation to an object of worship. Thus, if a leader mentions “relocation,” the leader is essentially threatening to cut a bronze snake into pieces. We must remind people that the building is not the church, that His people are the church. God does not live in the place where we gather; He lives in the hearts of His people.

2. The False Idols of the Past

Because the Lord worked in amazing ways in the past, the past can become an idol where people long for the past more than they long for the Lord. Being grateful for the past is one thing, and worshiping it is quite another. If “former days” were great, they were only great because of the Lord.

3. The False Idols of Programs

Because God changed lives through a program or event, people can elevate a program to an unhealthy place. Programs can become ends in themselves and not tools used in a church’s discipleship process. When this happens, they exist as modern-day bronze snakes.

How can leaders be like Hezekiah? How can modern-day bronze snakes be removed?

Leaders must constantly point people to the person of Jesus. Only He is worthy of our worship and only He can transform hearts. When we help people see the greatness of Jesus, idols look less attractive. As we turn our eyes on Jesus and look full in His wonderful face, the things of this world (place, past and programs included) grow strangely dim in the light of His glory and grace.

Leaders must also continually remind people of the purpose of the church. (Yes, I know it is another “p,” but it fits.) A church exists to make disciples. When a church embraces the mission of making disciples, programs are viewed as tools and not as ends in themselves. When making disciples is what a church is all about, the place is rightly seen as merely a place to help make disciples.

Though the Lord instructed the snake to be made, the Lord affirmed its destruction. And of Hezekiah, the Scripture says:

Hezekiah trusted in the Lord God of Israel; not one of the kings of Judah was like him, either before him or after him (2 Kings 18:5).

Teaching About Sin: Do’s and Don’ts for Sunday School Teachers

Mark Harper

December 5, 2022

Teaching about sin can be challenging. Children’s ministers and Sunday school teachers don’t like to think of kids as sinners. We do what we do because we love children. We love their hunger and “innocence.“

If we’re honest, however, we’ll admit we tend to think of some students as either good or bad. Some obey the rules, while others constantly challenge the boundaries.

Both the compliant and the rebellious children are lost without Christ.

We reward kids who demonstrate good behavior and punish the bad ones. Yet during his earthly ministry, Jesus went out of the way to spend time with the “bad kids.”

Teaching About Sin: Why It Matters

Many kids who grow up in church end up leaving because they feel like they can never measure up. When someone says they left church for that reason, it tells me they don’t understand sin. Or they haven’t experienced God’s grace. Or both.

Some young adults leave church because it has “too many hypocrites.” They’re saying churches are full of people who don’t measure up, which also is true. None of us measures up. We all sin and fall short of the glory of God (see Romans 3:23).

Some churches talk too much to kids about sin. But it’s usually designed to get kids to change their behavior. Big mistake! The point of teaching about sin isn’t to get children to change. It’s to lead them to Christ and let the Holy Spirit change them.

Some churches don’t talk to kids about sin at all. They talk about good virtues and obeying their parents. But this can imply that kids can be good without Christ.

My sin nailed Jesus to the cross. If I don’t understand why Jesus paid this price, I won’t experience God’s grace. In other words, teaching about sin is the only way to understand grace.

Christmas Games: Two Freebies for a Holly-Jolly Youth Event

Michael Bayne

December 5, 2022

How about some free Christmas games? It’s the season for giving, after all. So I want to give away a few fun youth group games from Relevant Student Ministry. Use and adapt these ideas with your preteens and teens this holiday season!

I’ll admit: Youth group Christmas games can be tough to find. Few good new ideas or graphics are available each year. After all, a solid game needs a graphic that works. So here are two games we played with teens, plus the seasonal graphics.

Hopefully I’m also giving you the gift of time with these. (And that’s something every youth minister has on his or her Christmas list.) After all, now you don’t need to make up a youth group game for this week or next.

Enjoy these two free Christmas games for teens!

1. Fruitcake Mayhem

What is Christmas without fruitcake? You could do a million things with this “delicacy.” But what we did was divide the room in two. Then we had two teams up front competing to eat an entire fruitcake. For every piece they ate, they could choose someone in the crowd and make that person come up and eat a piece.

The team that finished first won. Simple, fun, easy. Just make sure kids don’t throw any of the fruitcake. (That may have happened to us!)

2. Living Christmas Tree

We’ve all seen church productions where people climb into a tree shape to sing. So we thought, “Why not make a human being into a tree?” We bought cheap ornaments and decorations. There was enough for two teams of three people to choose someone and then decorate them as a tree. Afterward, we let the crowd vote on the best finished tree. Yea, the activity was pretty great.

There ya go. Two game ideas for a festive holiday. Merry Christmas!

Need more Christmas ideas? Click here to read 18 creative suggestions for youth group Christmas parties. And click here to discover three ways to make the most of the holiday season with teens.

Matt Chandler Returns to Pulpit, Received Neurological Exam After ‘Unguarded and Unwise’ Relationship

Jesse T. Jackson

December 5, 2022

chandler_restoration — Matt Chandler screengrab via YouTube @The Village Church - Flower Mound

Matt Chandler, lead pastor of The Village Church (TVC), a Southern Baptist Church (SBC) in Flower Mound, Texas, returned to the pulpit on Sunday (Dec. 4) after taking a three-month leave of absence due to an inappropriate direct messaging relationship with a woman who was not his wife.

When Chandler stood before the congregation in August and asked them to forgive him for online behavior that he described as both “unguarded and unwise,” the details shared regarding the relationship were vague. Chandler’s messages were not of a romantic or sexual nature, but were said to be characterized by “familiarity” and “coarse and foolish joking.”

Fellow TVC lead pastor and elder Josh Patterson gave a brief report regarding Chandler’s restoration process. Patterson said that the elders navigated Chandler’s situation alongside the church, because they care about accountability.

“As we announced that to you,” Patterson recalled, “we talked about this leave being both disciplinary and developmental. And the plan that the elders created was created prayerfully. It was created through a robust study of the Scriptures.”

Chandler submitted to the elders restoration plan during his time of leave “faithfully, genuinely, and authentically,” Patterson reported.

“We believe, and I’m speaking on behalf of the elders at this point, and again in consultation not just with the elders but with a multidisciplinary team that we’ve engaged with over these last several months, that now’s the time,” Patterson said of Chandler’s return. The date coincided with Chandler’s 20th anniversary as lead pastor of TVC.

“We did not plan for the 20th anniversary. We had all kinds of things planned for this weekend, months and months and months and months and months ago, that we just postponed because we didn’t know when Matt was going to come back,” Patterson shared. “And then as it looked like this was the date, we said, this is the day that the Lord has made. We’re going to rejoice and be glad in it.”

Before Chandler was welcomed back onstage, Patterson said, “I don’t feel any hesitation. I don’t feel any trepidation. I feel excitement. I feel eagerness, and I feel a deep, deep gratitude for our loving Lord, who has shown himself to be mighty in our church.”

“And here’s what I mean when I say that,” Patterson continued. “He has shown himself to be mighty in his grace. He has shown himself to be mighty in his love. He’s shown himself to be mighty in his pursuit. He’s shown himself to be mighty in his seriousness about our hearts and our lives. He’s shown himself to be mighty in his discipline. He’s shown himself to be mighty in his care. And he’s shown himself to be mighty in his restoration. And all of that matters.”

The congregation greeted Chandler with a standing ovation, and at least one congregant could be seen taking a picture of the moment with their cell phone.

“I very much know that the Christian life is a marathon,” Chandler said as the applause died down. “And there are times in that run where you’re uphill in the snow, and not sure if you’re gonna make it. And then there are other times you’re running downhill in the sun, and it feels like nothing could ever hinder your love for Jesus and your bold witness.”

“If, in my foolishness, I created any more weight on you or made this any more difficult on you,” Chandler continued after a pause, “please forgive me.”

Dolly Parton Points Viewers to Jesus, Tells the Devil To ‘Go to Hell’ in Star-Studded Christmas Special

Jessica Mouser

December 5, 2022

Dolly Parton’s new Christmas special is full of reminders that the season is all about Jesus and that we should rely on God for all of our needs. But while religious themes abound, the star-studded show is also a a bit of a hodgepodge. In it, Parton periodically breaks the fourth and even sings a song telling the devil to “go to hell.”

“I hope that I haven’t crammed God or Jesus down anybody’s throat,” says Dolly Parton as the special concludes. “I hate that when it happened to me back [in the day], but it is the season.”

Dolly Parton Shares ‘Mountain Magic’ of Christmas

“Dolly Parton’s Mountain Magic Christmas” released Thursday on NBC. A description on NBC’s website calls the special “a modern-day movie musical about the making of a network TV special.” That is, it is a musical special about the making of a musical special. The show tells the “frenetic backstage story and delightful on-camera results of Dolly’s desire to uplift an exhausted world’s spirits by sharing the unique ‘mountain magic’ she has always found in and around Dollywood at Christmas.”

As Parton’s crew works to achieve her vision, they face challenges to the Christmas spirit that include their set falling apart, their choreographer leaving, and infighting. But all involved finally arrive at a successful “opening number” on the big night—although the true success is what Parton and her crew learn along the way.

The show features songs from stars including Jimmy Fallon, Miley Cyrus, Jimmie Allen, Willie Nelson, Billy Ray Cyrus, and Zach Williams. The latter three men take on the roles of three “wise men” who give Parton guidance throughout the show.

One of the first musical numbers of the special is a rendition of “Go Tell It on the Mountain,” in which Parton announces, “Spread the word! Jesus Christ is born!” She later sings, “He’s alive and I’m forgiven, heaven’s gates are open wide.”

Later in the show, as crew members spar over differences of opinion, Parton observes that while they are all attempting to lift people up, Satan is trying to tear people down. She then launches into a song called “Go to Hell,” in which her backup singers are dressed as choir members and she interacts with a man portraying Satan.

Will Smith: New Film Shows ‘The Power of Faith To…Endure Anything’

Stephanie Martin

December 5, 2022

While promoting his latest film project, actor Will Smith is speaking about faith, freedom, and forgiveness. In “Emancipation,” which begins streaming on Apple TV+ December 9, Smith plays an escaped slave known only as “Whipped Peter.” A photo of the man’s lash-scarred back, published in 1863 during the Civil War, helped expose slavery’s brutality.

Smith says he was intrigued by the story that might lie behind that searing image. Director Antoine Fuqua’s “Emancipation” envisions the beaten man falling into a coma and then meeting God. After Peter escapes from a sadistic overseer in Louisiana, he survives a 40-mile journey through swampland.

‘Emancipation’ Is ‘A Freedom Movie, Says Smith’

Speaking to Trevor Noah November 28 on “The Daily Show,” Smith says he promised his family he “wouldn’t make a slave movie.” Instead, he calls “Emancipation” a “freedom movie.”

The film also explores Peter’s faith, which was elevated to “revelation,” according to Smith. “He walked in the world with a knowledge of the divine, a knowledge of God that is just something that I’ve just desperately wanted to understand and explore.” Of Peter’s ordeal, the actor says, “What he had to endure and what he had to survive, only God could make a man, when you look at those marks on his back, only God could make that possible.”

About his own relationship with God, Smith, 54, said last year, “You can’t get where I get if you don’t love the Lord. You don’t get to sit how I sit, move how I move, if you don’t love the Lord. You’d be seeing a whole lot of other repercussions.”

Actor Grapples With Being ‘a Flawed Human’

Smith is still dealing with the repercussions of his slapping incident at the 2022 Academy Awards. During the live telecast in March, he hit host Chris Rock across the face for joking about his wife’s appearance. Smith, who won the Best Actor award that night for “King Richard,” is now banned from all Academy events for the next decade.

Calling that night “horrific,” Smith told Noah, “I lost it, and I guess what I would say, you just never know what somebody’s going through, you know? I was going through something that night. Not that that justifies my behavior at all.” The actor described “a rage that had been bottled for a really long time,” noting that his father used to “beat up” his mother.

When asked what he’s learned, Smith replied, “We’ve just gotta be nice to each other,” adding he now understands the saying that “hurt people hurt people.” He says he’s “had to forgive myself for being human. Trust me, there’s nobody that hates the fact that I’m human more than me. … I’ve always wanted to be Superman and swoop in and save the damsel in distress, and I had to humble down and realize that I’m a flawed human and I still have an opportunity to go out in the world and contribute in a way that fills my heart and hopefully helps other people.”

Smith encourages moviegoers not to skip the film on account of his previous behavior. The cast and director “created an absolute masterpiece,” he says, “and the idea that they might be denied because of me, that is killing me dead.”

Brian Houston Trial for Sex Abuse Coverup Charge Is Underway

Dale Chamberlain

December 5, 2022

After numerous delays, the trial of former megachurch pastor Brian Houston is underway in Australia, as Houston defends the charge that he intentionally covered up the child sex abuse offenses of his late father, Frank Houston, who was also the megachurch pastor who gave the younger Houston his first opportunities in church leadership.

Houston has pleaded not guilty to one charge of concealing the serious indictable offense of another person. If convicted, he could face up to five years behind bars.

The court is seeking to prove that from 1999 to 2004, Houston willfully covered up the abuses of his father, only disclosing information that could aid in a prosecution after his father had died.

According to NZ Harold, the fact that Houston had knowledge of the sexual abuse is not in question. Instead, Houston’s defense rests on the fact that he had a “reasonable excuse” not to report it, as Houston claims that the abuse survivor did not want to go to the police.

“The prosecution case is that he didn’t report not because of what the complainant wanted but because of other reasons … The primary prosecution case is the reason he didn’t report it was to protect his father and the church,” said Crown prosecutor Gareth Harrison.

The abuse survivor, Brett Sengstock, was allegedly victimized as a child by the elder Houston on more than one occasion in the 1970s. In one such instance, Sengstock alleged that Frank Houston exposed himself to him, masturbating in front of him.

After this encounter, Sengstock told his mother what had happened.

However, Sengstock was discouraged from reporting the abuse by his mother and other family members, who allegedly told him that a legal dispute would reflect poorly on Christians in the public square. Rather, the matter should be settled outside of courts.

Sengstock told the court that he felt “indoctrinated” by the church, which contributed to his years-long silence regarding abuse.

Sengstock further alleged that, sometime in the late 1990s, he agreed to “forgive” the elder Houston in exchange for $10,000, codifying the agreement by signing a dirty napkin at a McDonalds where he had agreed to meet with Frank Houston.

Missional Meditation

4 Christmas Lessons From Joseph of Nazareth

1). Poor Joseph–God didn’t get his approval before acting.

‘Carol of the Bells’—Not Originally a Christmas Song

Mark Bishop: ‘God Was Getting the Glory’

Pastor Returns to Work: ‘This Is My Passion’

Meet Like Normal

Adjust Your Meeting Time and Number of Services

False Idols in Modern Churches

1. The False Idols of Place

2. The False Idols of the Past

3. The False Idols of Programs

Teaching About Sin: Why It Matters

Enjoy these two free Christmas games for teens!

1. Fruitcake Mayhem

2. Living Christmas Tree

Dolly Parton Shares ‘Mountain Magic’ of Christmas

‘Emancipation’ Is ‘A Freedom Movie, Says Smith’

Actor Grapples With Being ‘a Flawed Human’

New Articles

New Podcasts