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My first Advent calendar was in a shoebox. Numbered doors round the outside walls, flaps tucked back in to reuse it each year. But the exciting bit was inside. A 3D tableau of the nativity scene. A window at one end looking in to the box. And masses of stars cut in the lid, their light shining down on the scene inside. It was magical. I loved it. The nativity at the centre. But it told me nothing at all about the real Christmas.
Modern-day Advent calendars are exciting too. They’re centred on something beginning with “Ch” – not Christ but chocolate. Most don’t mention Christmas – they’re about Barbie, Transformers or a favourite Disney character. So is this a rant about the commercialisation of Christmas? No. But hopefully a gentle nudge to reclaim Advent for Christ.... continue reading
One of the most depressing truths about suffering from CCS is that it stops us loving others.
The Bible is full of warning stories which are essentially examples of CCS run riot. Take the historical story of Joseph and his brothers, for instance. Joseph’s father, Jacob (also called Israel), “loved Joseph more than any of his [eleven] other sons” (Genesis 37 v 3). And to show this, he gave Joseph, and only Joseph, “an ornate robe”.
How did his brothers respond? When they “saw that their father loved him more than any of them, they hated him” (v 4). They compared themselves with Joseph on the basis of their father’s love, came off worse, and were filled with envious hatred.
How did Joseph respond? He shared his dreams with them: “We were binding sheaves of corn out in the field when suddenly my sheaf rose and stood upright, while your sheaves gathered round mine and bowed down to it” (v 7).
Why did Joseph choose to share his dream in which he ruled his older brothers? Maybe he was simply young and naĂŻve. But probably he wanted them to know that, compared to them, he was greater, more successful, and headed for more significance than them. While his brothers show the symptoms of looking-up comparison, he displays the symptoms of looking-down comparison.... continue reading
The way we spot the existence of CCS in us is via the signs—the feelings—it produces.
When you compare yourself with someone and they come off better than you, how do you feel?
And when you compare yourself with someone and come off better than them, what feelings does that produce?
When we compare ourselves with others, we’ll either “lose” or “win”. If we lose, we’ll find ourselves doing a “looking-up comparison”. We might think: “Her children are so much better behaved than mine” or: “She’s so much more confident than me” or: “I wish I had her house”.... continue reading
One place it happens to me is in a shopping centre. When another woman around the same age as me passes by, I give them a quick up-and-down scan. It’s just a two-second appraisal. And as I look at them, I see that they’re doing the same thing with me—a quick sideways glance.
What are we doing? We’re comparing ourselves with each other. How does my figure match up with hers? Does she look more or less stylish/cool/effortless than me? Do I look as good as her without having spent the money she clearly has? On all these measuring scales, do I win, compared to her? Or lose?... continue reading
The word "catechism" may conjure up for you images of a world gone by, with musty prayer books and children repeating answers to questions couched in ancient language.
Redeemer Presbyterian Church in New York City and The Gospel Coalition have just released a modern catechism on iPad that could change the way we think about this.
New City Catechism aims to help adults and children memorise a 52-point exposition of the Gospel. One for each week of the year. The app encourages adults to learn a full version of the answers, and there is a shorter question and answer that is suitable for children to learn, which uses a subset of the words in the adult version. This makes it easier for children to "upgrade" to the adult version at the appropriate moment.
The catechism was written by Tim Keller and Sam Shammas at Redeemer, but contains a wealth of supporting material to the basic question and answer, including: a Bible verse; a prayer; an extended quotation on the theme of the question from one of the great theologians of the past; and video comment from a contemporary pastor, including Don Carson, Mark Dever and John Piper. You can download a PDF of the full catechism here.
This is a superbly thought out app, with a wealth of riches to be enjoyed as an adult, and a very worthwhile exercise to build into family life. If you've got an iPad, download it for free at the Apple app store. If you haven't got an iPad - this may be a worthwhile reason for buying one!
Two extracts from Scene Seven: Simeon—"A sword will pierce your own soul"
There’s only one old man who gets a mention at Christmas. He wears red… brings the presents… and, bizarrely, often pops up at random points in nativity plays. Santa Claus may not be real (sorry if that’s news to you) but he’s pretty popular. Of course, Santa was nowhere to be seen at the first Christmas. But there was an old man at the heart of the real events. Not Santa, but Simeon. And Simeon didn’t do presents.
But he did do predictions…... continue reading
An extract from Scene Two: the angel—"Christ the Lord"…
Christ: not just a surname
What job had this royal baby come to do?
“Today in the town of David a Saviour has been born to you; he is Christ the Lord.”
God had given his Son Jesus two jobs. He was (still is, in fact) Christ.
For years, I thought “Christ” was Jesus’ surname. I assumed that Joseph and Mary were Mr and Mrs Christ, and so Jesus’ full name was Jesus Christ.
But actually, “Christ” is a title, not a name.... continue reading
It may feel a bit early to start thinking about Christmas (though of course the decorations are starting to appear in the shops, and most children under the age of 10 are starting to compile their wish-lists…), but this week on the blog we've got some posts about TGBC's just-launched Christmas evangelistic title, Christmas Uncut. It's worth thinking about now, so that come December you know whether you're going to give it away, and who to.
Here's author Carl Laferton talking about why he wrote Christmas Uncut, what's in the book, and what he's hoping for this December…
All this week, you can buy Christmas Uncut for just $1.99. Simply enter the code "uncutdeal" as you check out. Why not read it in October, pray about giving it away during November and buy in some more copies, and then give it to non-Christian friends and family in December?
Tomorrow on the blog we'll feature an extract from the book.
It may feel a bit early to start thinking about Christmas (though of course the decorations are starting to appear in the shops, and most children under the age of 10 are starting to compile their wish-lists…), but this week on the blog we've got some posts about TGBC's just-launched Christmas evangelistic title, Christmas Uncut. It's worth thinking about now, so that come December you know whether you're going to give it away, and who to.
Here's author Carl Laferton talking about why he wrote Christmas Uncut, what's in the book, and what he's hoping for this December…
All this week, you can buy Christmas Uncut for just ÂŁ1. Simply enter the code "uncutdeal" as you check out. Why not read it in October, pray about giving it away during November and buy in some more copies, and then give it to non-Christian friends and family in December?
Tomorrow on the blog we'll feature an extract from the book.
