Christmas is about love. It is so easy to be cynical about love, to be hurt by what looks like love, to give up on ever being truly loved. What is love, sang Tina Turner, but a second hand emotion? When we are hurt, our heart can shut down. We can grow cold and jaded, singing with Tina: “Who needs a heart when a heart can be broken?” Sometimes in my life, my heart has grown cold. Sometimes I lose my passion. That is when God has broken in and renewed my heart with his love. I remember one time when he literally baptized my heart with love. It seemed like I was walking in an ocean of God’s love and healing. I wish that I could live there daily.
Love means many different things to many people. For some, love is expressed through gift-giving. We can thank the three wise men bringing gifts for the flood of presents given every Christmas. But love is more than just giving people gifts. Love is also about quality time. We live in a frantically busy culture, particularly on the North Shore, where it seems like there is never enough time to do all that we want to do. It is so easy in our task orientation to lose the relational focus. Love stops to listen. Love puts down the newspaper and the cell phone to give true face-to-face time. Love is curious, open and present. Love is willing to change. Love is willing to grow. Love is willing to admit that we are often wrong.
Love chooses to encourage when everyone else is tearing down another person. Love, in the words of 1 Corinthians 13, never gives up on you, always believes in you, always takes a chance on you. Love realizes that sticks and stones do break our bones, that words will hurt and crush us. Love says no to bullying. Love grieves over the tragic loss of Amanda Todd. Love never gives up, never lets go, always speaks blessing. Love adds value. Love cares. Love respects. Love allows you to be yourself.
Love doesn’t just talk the talk. It walks the walk. Love is practical, down-to-earth. Love is a cup of cold water, the gift of a meal, a roof over our head. Love is the washing of another’s feet, the wiping of their brow. Love is meeting people’s needs. Jean Vanier, founder of the L’Arche Community, said that love doesn’t mean doing extraordinary or heroic things. It means knowing how to do ordinary things with tenderness. The Great Physician said that he came not to be served but to serve and to give his life as a ransom for many. Love is the way of the cross, the way of suffering, the way of unselfishness.
Love is both a verb and a noun. To say that God is love is true, but it can feel abstract. What if God put love into action by entering our neighbourhood? What if God came down at Christmas? What if Christmas is actually about God embracing us?
This Christmas I invite you to look again at the baby in the manger, the Christ child. Ask yourself if love came down at Christmas. Ask yourself if this love might touch your heart. The greatest is love. May love fill you, your family and your friends to overflowing during this Advent/Christmas season.
The Rev. Dr. Ed Hird, BSW, MDiv, DMin
-an article previously published in the Deep Cove Crier/North Shore News
P. S. Click this Amazon link to view for free the first two chapters of our new novel Blue Sky.
“I’m afraid there’s been an accident…”
Sandy Brown and her family have just moved to Spokane, Washington where her husband, Scott, is pastoring a new church. With a fresh start, Sandy is determined to devote more time to her four children. But, within weeks of settling in their new life, the Brown family is plunged into turmoil.
Sandy receives shocking news that her children aren’t safe, which brings back haunting memories of the trauma she experienced as a girl. Then, the unthinkable happens…
A brutal attack puts Sandy on the brink of losing everything she’s loved. Her faith in God and the family she cherishes are pushed to the ultimate limit.
Is healing possible when so many loved ones are hurt? Are miracles really possible through the power of prayer? Can life return to the way it was before?
Blue Sky reveals how a mother’s most basic instinct isn’t for survival… but for family.
If you’re a fan of Karen Kingsbury, then you’ll love Blue Sky. Get your copy today on paperback or kindle.
-The sequel book Restoring Health: body, mind and spirit is available online with Amazon.com in both paperback and ebook form. Dr. JI Packer wrote the foreword, saying “I heartily commend what he has written.” The book focuses on strengthening a new generation of healthy leaders. Drawing on examples from Titus’ healthy leadership in the pirate island of Crete, it shows how we can embrace a holistically healthy life.
To receive a personally signed copy within North America, just etransfer at ed_hird@telus.net, giving your address. Cheques are also acceptable.
-Click to purchase the Companion Bible Study by Jan Cox (for the Battle of the Soul of Canada) in both paperback and Kindle on Amazon.com and Amazon.ca
-Click to purchase the Companion Bible Study by Jan Cox (for the Battle of the Soul of Canada) in both paperback and Kindle on Amazon.com and Amazon.ca
To purchase any of our six books in paperback or ebook on Amazon, just click on this link.
What is it about Christmas time that brings out the best in us? 33% of all charitable giving by Canadians is given during the December Christmas season. One of my favorite Christmas movies is ‘It’s a wonderful life’ where Jimmy Stewart plays the part of a generous but discouraged businessman who discovered that he really was making a positive impact.
Written by Frank Capra in 1946, the movie was initially seen as a box-office flop. It did not win one Academy Award Oscar, but later went on to become one of the one hundred most popular movies of all times. It is now seen as the number one inspirational North American movie ever made. You will remember how the Christmas angel Clarence had to earn his wings by helping out Jimmy Stewart (aka George Bailey). George was so discouraged at Christmas that he was about to jump off a bridge. Clarence the delightful angel showed George what an amazing impact his generosity was making, and how much poorer his town would be without him.
Generosity is never wasted. Love is never wasted. Goodness is never wasted. Sometimes it feels like we are not making a difference, but Christmas reminds us that love wins over despair, love wins over darkness, love wins over emptiness. At the heart of Christmas is a tiny baby, the Christ child, born in a manger. God so loved the world that he gave his only son. Christmas is about giving. God gave. We give. Everyone wins when we are generous at Christmas and year-round.
The Rev. Dr. Ed Hird, BSW, MDiv, DMin
-an article previously published in the Deep Cove Crier/North Shore News
P. S. Click this Amazon link to view for free the first two chapters of our new novel Blue Sky.
“I’m afraid there’s been an accident…”
Sandy Brown and her family have just moved to Spokane, Washington where her husband, Scott, is pastoring a new church. With a fresh start, Sandy is determined to devote more time to her four children. But, within weeks of settling in their new life, the Brown family is plunged into turmoil.
Sandy receives shocking news that her children aren’t safe, which brings back haunting memories of the trauma she experienced as a girl. Then, the unthinkable happens…
A brutal attack puts Sandy on the brink of losing everything she’s loved. Her faith in God and the family she cherishes are pushed to the ultimate limit.
Is healing possible when so many loved ones are hurt? Are miracles really possible through the power of prayer? Can life return to the way it was before?
Blue Sky reveals how a mother’s most basic instinct isn’t for survival… but for family.
If you’re a fan of Karen Kingsbury, then you’ll love Blue Sky. Get your copy today on paperback or kindle.
-The sequel book Restoring Health: body, mind and spirit is available online with Amazon.com in both paperback and ebook form. Dr. JI Packer wrote the foreword, saying “I heartily commend what he has written.” The book focuses on strengthening a new generation of healthy leaders. Drawing on examples from Titus’ healthy leadership in the pirate island of Crete, it shows how we can embrace a holistically healthy life.
To receive a personally signed copy within North America, just etransfer at ed_hird@telus.net, giving your address. Cheques are also acceptable.
-Click to purchase the Companion Bible Study by Jan Cox (for the Battle of the Soul of Canada) in both paperback and Kindle on Amazon.com and Amazon.ca
-Click to purchase the Companion Bible Study by Jan Cox (for the Battle of the Soul of Canada) in both paperback and Kindle on Amazon.com and Amazon.ca
To purchase any of our six books in paperback or ebook on Amazon, just click on this link.
I love Christmas Carols. Even when I feel dead to everything else about Christmas, Christmas Carols seem to wake me up from within. Music has an amazing way to slip past even the most hardened heart.
Christmas is one of those traditions that won’t go away, and yet so often seems off kilter. It so often seems to lack purpose and focus. The John Grisham movie Christmas with the Kranks symbolizes the angst of people swallowed by Christmas-related paraphernalia. Christmas Carols are ideal for helping us regain focus at Christmas.
Randy Stonehill poignantly sang: “I wonder if this Christmas they’ll begin to understand that the Jesus that they celebrate is much more than a man…” The first purpose of Christmas is to bring pleasure to God, otherwise called Worship. That is why at Christmas so many of us love to sing: “O Come let us adore him, Christ the Lord”. For many years, Christmas to me was just about eating turkey and getting presents. Being dragged to church on Christmas Eve or even worse Christmas morning seemed like a serious intrusion into an otherwise good festival. As I have refocused on the real meaning of Christmas, I hear afresh the Christmas Carol singing: “O Come, all ye faithful, joyful and triumphant, O come ye, o come ye to Bethehem”.
Year after year, Christmas miraculously brings friends and families back together. When I was younger, I enjoyed spending Christmas with my grandparents and family, but didn’t fully realize what a wonderful gift this was. The second purpose of Christmas, I have discovered, is fellowship. At the heart of lasting fellowship is great food, lots of fun, and deep listening. God put us here on earth to learn how to love each other. Christmas is a great time to do that. Christmas is a time when like shepherds summoned to his cradle, we leave our flocks and then flock together.
I never realized when I was young that Christmas was meant to transform me. Years later I discovered that all that joy at Christmas had a third purpose: to make me more like Christ, which is Discipleship. As that great Christmas Carol puts it, “Good Christian men, rejoice, with heart and soul and voice! Now you need not fear the grave: Peace! Peace! Jesus Christ was born to save!” There is a joy released at Christmas that can radically transform anyone’s life if we will let it. That is why the Good Book says that the Joy of the Lord is our strength.
Christmas for me as a young person was about getting bigger and better presents. Years later I have discovered that Christmas is really about giving. Giving is not just about presents, but mostly about our hearts. The fourth purpose of Christmas is about serving others, especially the poor. Good old Scrooge learnt this lesson the hard way at Christmas. As Good King Wenceslas put it, “Therefore Christian men be sure, wealth and rank possessing, ye who now will bless the poor, shall yourselves find blessing.” We may not like the three wise men have gold, frankincense, and myrrh to give, but when we give from our heart, Christmas becomes real to another hurting person.
When I was younger, I thought that Christmas was about me. In fact, I have discovered that Christmas is about others. That is why the fifth purpose of Christmas is “Go tell it on the mountain, over the hills and everywhere; go tell it on the mountain that Jesus Christ is born”. Christmas is too good to keep it to ourselves. Christmas is the kind of fun and laughter and joy that everyone needs more of. Do you know anyone who needs cheering up? Do you know anyone who has lost direction? If you do, I encourage you to reach out and bring others this Christmas to a joyful Christmas Eve service near you.
The Rev. Dr. Ed Hird, BSW, MDiv, DMin
-previously published in the North Shore News/Deep Cove Crier
P. S. Click this Amazon link to view for free the first two chapters of our new novel Blue Sky.
“I’m afraid there’s been an accident…”
Sandy Brown and her family have just moved to Spokane, Washington where her husband, Scott, is pastoring a new church. With a fresh start, Sandy is determined to devote more time to her four children. But, within weeks of settling in their new life, the Brown family is plunged into turmoil.
Sandy receives shocking news that her children aren’t safe, which brings back haunting memories of the trauma she experienced as a girl. Then, the unthinkable happens…
A brutal attack puts Sandy on the brink of losing everything she’s loved. Her faith in God and the family she cherishes are pushed to the ultimate limit.
Is healing possible when so many loved ones are hurt? Are miracles really possible through the power of prayer? Can life return to the way it was before?
Blue Sky reveals how a mother’s most basic instinct isn’t for survival… but for family.
If you’re a fan of Karen Kingsbury, then you’ll love Blue Sky. Get your copy today on paperback or kindle.
-The sequel book Restoring Health: body, mind and spirit is available online with Amazon.com in both paperback and ebook form. Dr. JI Packer wrote the foreword, saying “I heartily commend what he has written.” The book focuses on strengthening a new generation of healthy leaders. Drawing on examples from Titus’ healthy leadership in the pirate island of Crete, it shows how we can embrace a holistically healthy life.
-Click to purchase the Companion Bible Study by Jan Cox (for the Battle of the Soul of Canada) in both paperback and Kindle on Amazon.com and Amazon.ca
-Click to purchase the Companion Bible Study by Jan Cox (for the Battle of the Soul of Canada) in both paperback and Kindle on Amazon.com and Amazon.ca
To purchase any of our six books in paperback or ebook on Amazon, just click on this link.
“Christmas is coming, the geese are getting fat, please put a penny in the old man’s hat” Who can think of Christmas without the joy of Christmas carols? Everyone wants joy at Christmas. Everyone wants to be loved, to be cared for, to be remembered. There is no lonelier time of the year than Christmas spent alone. Sometimes we try too hard to be joyful at Christmas. I usually find that the harder I try to be happy, the more self-obsessed and miserable I become.
‘Joy to the World!’ Why is Christmas often the high holiday for alcoholics and the chemically dependent? Perhaps because people feel this ‘moral burden’ at Christmas to be joyful at all cost. Joy for many is like the elusive butterfly that is just out of reach. They can almost grab it and suddenly it is gone again. All the Christmas presents, all the eggnog, all the tinsel, and all the Christmas lights just don’t seem to be able to produce that strange phenomenon of joy.
‘Joy to the World!’ Joy is like being tickled. In the same way that you can’t tickle yourself, you can’t ‘pull up your bootstraps’ and conjure up joy. Joy can’t be forced, manipulated, controlled, psyched up, or packaged. Joy is a gift, a free gift, an overwhelming gift from the most generous giver in the Universe. Joy is the true heart of Christmas because Christmas is both about the joy of giving and the giving of joy.
‘Joy to the World!’ Have you ever noticed how you can’t fake laughter? Laughter too is a gift, a gift of joy, a gift of freedom. Can you imagine how sad a Christmas Dinner would be without laughter? Many of us have such a stern view of Jesus that we can’t imagine him laughing or joyful. Yet Jesus was at his best when he hung out at parties with some of the most unexpected people. We forget that Jesus, being Jewish, made use of Jewish humour and hyperbole to shock people into thinking. Can you imagine how racy Jesus’ story was about the prodigal Jewish son who ended up working for a pig farmer? And yet he used that now famous story in Luke Chapter 15 to remind us that no matter how messed up we become, we can always come home to the Father’s arms. That’s the true joy of Christmas.
‘Joy to the World!’ Joy and sorrow are neurologically linked in a way that few of us expect. How true it is that ‘those who sow with tears shall reap with songs of joy’. Unless we grieve the losses of life, true joy never comes. Alcohol and drugs merely postpone our doing the hard grief-work that awaits each of us. Is it a coincidence that the symbol of drama is the twin masks of Greek comedy and tragedy? How true it is that ‘weeping may last for a night but joy comes in the morning’. The price of really enjoying this Christmas may be paying the price of grieving the loss of our parents in death, our ex-spouse in divorce, or our children in heartbreak.
‘Joy to the World!’ Shakespeare in ‘The Taming of the Shrew’ said: ‘frame your mind to mirth and merriment, which bars a thousand harms and lengthens life’. The ancient Proverbs said ‘A merry heart does good like medicine, but a broken spirit dries up the bones’. More and more scientists are discovering that joy and laughter are scientifically good for you. Joy and laughter strengthen our immunity systems, reduce our stress levels, and alleviate chronic pain.
‘Joy to the World!’ Isaac Watts back in 1719 wrote the unforgettable Christmas Carol ‘Joy to the World! The Lord is come: Let earth receive our King’. This Christmas, let joy fill our hearts, let the King fill our lives, let the baby Jesus fill our homes. This Christmas ‘let every heart prepare him room’. Joy to you and your families this Christmas!
The Rev. Dr. Ed Hird, BSW, MDiv, DMin
-previously published in the North Shore News/Deep Cove Crier
P. S. Click this Amazon link to view for free the first two chapters of our new novel Blue Sky.
“I’m afraid there’s been an accident…”
Sandy Brown and her family have just moved to Spokane, Washington where her husband, Scott, is pastoring a new church. With a fresh start, Sandy is determined to devote more time to her four children. But, within weeks of settling in their new life, the Brown family is plunged into turmoil.
Sandy receives shocking news that her children aren’t safe, which brings back haunting memories of the trauma she experienced as a girl. Then, the unthinkable happens…
A brutal attack puts Sandy on the brink of losing everything she’s loved. Her faith in God and the family she cherishes are pushed to the ultimate limit.
Is healing possible when so many loved ones are hurt? Are miracles really possible through the power of prayer? Can life return to the way it was before?
Blue Sky reveals how a mother’s most basic instinct isn’t for survival… but for family.
If you’re a fan of Karen Kingsbury, then you’ll love Blue Sky. Get your copy today on paperback or kindle.
-The sequel book Restoring Health: body, mind and spirit is available online with Amazon.com in both paperback and ebook form. Dr. JI Packer wrote the foreword, saying “I heartily commend what he has written.” The book focuses on strengthening a new generation of healthy leaders. Drawing on examples from Titus’ healthy leadership in the pirate island of Crete, it shows how we can embrace a holistically healthy life.
To receive a signed copy within North America, just etransfer at ed_hird@telus.net, giving your address. Cheques are also acceptable.
-Click to purchase the Companion Bible Study by Jan Cox (for the Battle of the Soul of Canada) in both paperback and Kindle on Amazon.com and Amazon.ca
-Click to purchase the Companion Bible Study by Jan Cox (for the Battle of the Soul of Canada) in both paperback and Kindle on Amazon.com and Amazon.ca
To purchase any of our six books in paperback or ebook on Amazon, just click on this link.
Sandy Brown and her family have just moved to Spokane, Washington where her husband, Scott, is pastoring a new church. With a fresh start, Sandy is determined to devote more time to her four children. But, within weeks of settling in their new life, the Brown family is plunged into turmoil.
Sandy Brown and her family have just moved to Spokane, Washington where her husband, Scott, is pastoring a new church. With a fresh start, Sandy is determined to devote more time to her four children. But, within weeks of settling in their new life, the Brown family is plunged into turmoil.
Edhird's Blog 