Happy Christmas Dear Reader,
I often wish I could know the men who forged the foundation
of the church. There are many questions
I would ask them. Faith is so easy for
us but these men were persecuted because of their beliefs. I risk acceptance in some circles for my
faith. These men risked their lives.
Of these the standout for me is Nicholas of Myra. He was a wealthy man who gave away his wealth
to help the poor and sick in his town.
He loved them as Christ did. He
gave gifts to others. Yesterday was Saint
Nicholas Day. We get much of what we do
surrounding Santa Claus and Father Christmas from this man.
Hanging stockings or putting out shoes is a tradition
related to Saint Nicholas even though we have moved the practice to Christmas
Day. The thing that I love is that the
idea of giving is not just connected to Christ but to a wealthy man who chose
to give all he had for the sake of those in need.
If Christmas is about giving and not getting then it is
beautiful. It grows each time we give
out of love and grace. The history of
this man encourages me. It motivates me
to give more. One can read more about
him from the Saint
Nicholas Center web page. One of the
ways I fight the greed that infects the season is by remembering how the gift
giving started.
Gifts of the Magi and gifts from Nicholas are the root of
the giving in my heart. The gift of God
of his Son moves me to give. All of this
is on my mind and I prepare to give good gifts to my family. Focused on this it is very easy to avoid the
avarice and stress of the shopping and preparing.
Wishing you joy in the journey,
Aramis Thorn
Mat 13:52 So Jesus said to them, "That is why every writer
who has become a disciple of Christ’s rule of the universe is like a home
owner. He liberally hands out new and old things from his great treasure
store."
( ͡° ͜ʖ ͡°)
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