Anger: Is it in you?

In general, I do not consider myself to be an angry person.  I like to think of myself as laid back, easy going, and only angered by extreme offenses. 

What about you?  I would bet that you would not consider yourself to be a person who is easily angered.  Anger is not something that we like to readily admit about ourselves but something that we are quick to notice (and possibly point out) in others.

I must stop and point out that there is such a thing as righteous anger.  One such example of this is when Jesus clears the temple after he witnesses the sinful and abusive ways that the people were using his Father's house.  He was angered by the sin of the people.  This is not the anger I am referring to in this post.  The anger that I am referring to is the one caused almost always by our selfishness.  For instance, we get angry when we don't get our way or when we have some sort of injustice carried out upon us.  This happened to me just this past week.

One day last week, I arrived at church on a typical weekday morning to find no parking spots out front.  The parking spots were not occupied by cars.  Instead, they were all taken by large delivery trucks, which are not allowed to park there in the first place.  This is actually a regular occurrence, but for some reason this really made me angry.  I'm not certain why this upset me so much that day, but it did.  I ended up parking just a little ways down the street and walked to my office infuriated.  I didn't say or do anything outwardly, but I was boiling on the inside.

It was not until I settled in my office that God's Spirit started to convict my heart and speak to me.  God led me to a specific passage of Scripture: James 1:19-20.  It says, "Everyone should be quick to listen, slow to speak and slow to become angry, for man's anger does not bring about the righteous life God desires."  This verse spoke to my heart and God used it to humble me.  It is amazing how God's Spirit leads us to specific Bible verses when we need them.  That is why it is so important that we read God's Word daily.

What makes you angry?  When your parents tell you no or when they ask you to do something?  Homework?  Your brothers/sisters?  Inconsiderate people?  Make sure to do a self analysis and ask God to reveal areas in your life where anger has control of you. 

And remember, "man's anger does not bring about the righteous life God desires."

"What To Do When God Is Silent"

Here is an excerpt from an article about listening to God:

"When Jesus told Thomas, 'Blessed are those who have not seen and yet have believed' (John 20:29), I think He was saying something like, 'Blessed are you who still believe in me but don’t hear me all the time, or don’t always experience the kind of religious pomp and circumstance that makes you feel warm and fuzzy.' ”

To check out the rest of the article, click on the title of this entry.

Also, check out 1 Kings 19:9b - 18.

Goodbye To Another Dear Friend And Sister

As I have mentioned before, one of the most difficult things about living in Dubai is that we constantly are forced to say goodbye to our friends and loved ones as they move away from Dubai.  In January, we will say goodbye to another dear friend and sister: Ginny Sze.  For last month's church newsletter I asked Ginny to answer the following questions.  Check out what she said.

Name: Ginny Sze (I know you're wondering how to pronounce that. It's like the letter "Z" hehe)

School: Universal American School

Favorite Bible Verse: "Consider it pure joy my brothers, whenever you face trials of many kinds, because you know that the testing of your faith develops perseverance. Perseverance must finish its work so that you may be mature and complete, not lacking anything." James 1:2,3,4

Plans when leaving Dubai: I'll be moving back to Brazil in January and finishing highschool there. I'm in my junior year.

Involvement in 180 Degrees: I started leading worship a while back when our dear worship leaders left us! :( I was pretty nervous at first, but it's been really awesome and the girls (Charmaine, Hannah and Johannah) have also been leading every week and they make things easier. It's great being able to serve God by giving to the youth group instead of just getting from it.

What I'll miss the most about Dubai: Definitely my friends. I'm surprised by the strong friendships I've created in this short time. Before moving here a year and a half ago, I didn't want to leave my friends in Brazil. Now that I came and met so many amazing people, I look back and think about what I would've missed out on if I hadn't come. I've learned so much about trusting God with my future and knowing that the tough times I go through are not in vain. Through that, I mature and learn to lean on Him.

History of Santa in the U.S.

Santa Clause in America

17th Century: Dutch immigrants brought with them the legend of Sinter Klaas, which is the Dutch pronunciation of Saint Nicholas. Because of pronunciation difficulties, this name was quickly changed to Santa Claus as the legend spread to other cultures and languages.

1773: Santa first appeared in the media as St. A Claus.

1809: Washington Irving, writing under the pseudonym Diedrich Knickerbocker, included Saint Nicolas in his book "A History of New York." Nicolas is described as riding into town on a horse.

3 years later, Irving, revised his book to include Nicolas riding over the trees in a wagon.

1821: William Gilley printed a poem about "Santeclaus" who was dressed in fur and drove a sleigh drawn by a single reindeer.

1822: Dentist Clement Clarke Moore is believed by many to have written a poem "An Account of a Visit from Saint Nicolas," which became better known as "The Night before Christmas." Santa is portrayed as an elf with a miniature sleigh equipped with eight reindeer which are named in the poem as Blitzem, Comet, Cupid, Dancer, Dasher, Donder, Prancer, and Vixen. Others attribute the poem to a contemporary, Henry Livingston, Jr. Two have since been renamed Donner and Blitzen.

1863: Illustrator Thomas Nast created images of Santa, based on Moore’s poem, for the Christmas editions of Harper's Magazine. These continued through the 1890's.

1920's: The image of Santa had been standardized to portray a bearded, over-weight, jolly man dressed in a red suit with white trim. Used to be monk’s cloak.

1931: Haddon Sundblom, illustrator for The Coca-Cola ™ company drew a series of Santa images in their Christmas advertisements until 1964. The company holds the trademark for the Coca-Cola Santa design. Christmas ads including Santa continue to the present day.

1939 Copywriter Robert L. May of the Montgomery Ward Company created a poem about Rudolph, the ninth reindeer.

1949: Johnny Marks wrote the song "Rudolph the Red-Nosed Reindeer." Next to "White Christmas" it is the most popular song of all time.

1997: Artist Robert Cenedella drew a painting of a crucified Santa Claus. It was displayed in the window of the New York's Art Students League and received intense criticism from some religious groups. His drawing was a protest. He attempted to show how Santa Claus had replaced Jesus Christ as the most important personality at Christmas time.




Santa had his humble beginnings in Saint Nicholas (see the post "History of Saint Nicholas") but eventually grew to become a consumeristic giant. In many ways, Santa has replaced Jesus during Christmas time. May this never be the case.

Instead of focusing on what we will get (or what Santa will bring us) this year, let us focus on what we can give to others. Let this be our attitudes and our lifestyles year around. Let us be encouraged by the life of great people like Saint Nicholas, but let us never forget that Jesus Christ is our ultimate example of how we should live our lives. The gift he gave was his own life. Why? Because he loved, and still loves, us! Let us go and do likewise.

History of Saint Nicholas

Saint Nicholas - the history of Santa Clause is traced back to this man.

Ø Born around 280 AD

Ø Modern day Turkey

Ø Christian monk and priest

Ø Known for his giving spirit

o Gave away all of his inherited wealth

o Traveled countryside helping poor and sick

o Didn’t like to be seen while giving gifts, so he came late at night

o Helped 3 sisters from being sold into prostitution and slavery

§ Provided money for a dowry so they could be married

§ This money was placed in their stockings as they hung drying in front of fireplace

Ø Many legends starting about him

Ø Annual feast was conducted in his honor on date of his death: Dec 6

Ø Later, made a saint in Catholic Church

(Make sure to check out the post titled "Santa Clause in the U.S.)

"Grown Up Christmas List"

I must admit that my favorite Christmas song is the "Little Drummer Boy." Even in summer time, I sometimes catch myself humming the tune or singing the familiar "pum, pum, pum."

However, I recently heard a Christmas song that I really liked and have been listening to it over the past few days. It is called "My Grown Up Christmas List." I've been listening to the Michael Buble' version but there are other good versions out there. The song has a powerful message. It describes our "childhood fantasies" about Santa and our childish wants from him. Then, it switches and speaks of the narrator's grown up Christmas list, which is filled with care and concern for others and not about his own selfish wants. Good stuff! May we never worry about what we will get from others, but instead worry about what we can give.

Check out the following link to the song along with a touching video about homelessness:

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=_7zRtLptyc4

Here are the lyrics as well:

"Grown Up Christmas List"

Do you remember me?
I sat upon your knee
I wrote to you with childhood fantasies
Well, I'm all grown-up now
Can you still help somehow?
I'm not a child, but my heart still can dream

So here's my lifelong wish
My grown-up Christmas list
Not for myself, but for a world in need

No more lives torn apart
That wars would never start
And time would heal all hearts
Every man would have a friend
That right would always win
And love would never end
This is my grown-up Christmas list

What is this illusion called the innocence of youth?
Maybe only in that blind belief can we ever find the truth

No more lives torn apart
That wars would never start
And time would heal our hearts
Every man would have a friend
That right would always win
And love would never end

This is my grown-up Christmas list
This is my only lifelong wish
This is my grown-up Christmas list



What's on your Christmas list this year?

Podcast - Spiritual Highs

This is a follow-up and review of our 180 Friday School discussion from a few weeks ago.

Click on the title above to access the audio file.

"Why We Sometimes Don't Pray"

The apostle Paul teaches us to "pray continually" or as I memorized it, "Pray without ceasing" (1 Thess. 5:17). This is a lofty standard that the apostle has given us. I'm not so certain Paul was commanding us to go to our prayer closet and stay there praying continually, only to come out for food and a bathroom break.

I think a part of this command is for us to have a constant realization of God's presence in our lives. Since God's Spirit lives inside of us (1 Cor. 3:16), He is always with us. It's just that we often forget He is with us, and we certainly cannot talk or communicate with Him if we don't even have a realization that He is present with us. Therefore, I think the command to "pray continually" is a command for us to have a constant awareness of God's presence with us and to live out our daily lives in constant conversation with Him (which will most often happen inaudibly).

With all of that being said, check out the following article on some of the reasons "Why We Sometimes Don't Pray."

Podcast - Introduction

Click on the Blog title above to access the very first 180 Degrees Podcast.