Sometimes I Write

I’ve been reading about Santa on a few other blogs. The debate continues so I might as well contribute my two cents worth. Like my friend Jared, I wasn’t allowed the pleasure of living in the fantasy world where a jolly man in red came down my chimney to leave me presents for being a good girl. My mom had been devastated when she learned that her parents had lied to her about Santa all those years and she decided to project her fears on me and my brothers. (I forgive you Mom.);) She has always told us that there was no Santa, so I was confused and a little dumbfounded the Christmas we were all at my grandma’s house and my mom and Uncle had a fight because I made his daughter cry when I told her there was no Santa Claus and that our parents bought all the presents. I thought everyone knew – I just didn’t know any better. My mom’s lesson was a good one – always tell the truth – but a little sad to me as an adult when I watched the magical wonder in the face of a child we loved as he opened his gifts. I vowed then to let me kids believe – even for a little while.

Fast forward to married with children. Benny and I had to decide what we would tell our kids. We wanted to mix our upbringings a bit and form our own traditions. We decided we would open gifts from each other on Christmas Eve, and Santa would come after we were all asleep and leave a single, unwrapped gift for each child under the tree. You see, Santa has no need to wrap gifts because he and his helpers took special care in getting something very special for each child and it would only be under the tree a short time. On Christmas morning we would wake up to see what Santa had brought and spend the day being thankful for what we receive, especially the ultimate gift of Jesus.

Backing up a bit, I was also raised to NOT celebrate Jesus at Christmas time. Chalk that up to some very legalistic teaching from the church I grew up in. Their stance was that it was wrong to celebrate Jesus’ birth on a day that we couldn’t be sure was the actual day he was born. They also believed it wasn’t his birth that we should celebrate, but his death and resurrection. (Common sense would dictate that you can’t die if you’re never born, duh!) It was a very confusing message to me growing up – we should celebrate Jesus every day but the one the world celebrates Him on. what??? Talk about taking Christ out of CHRISTmas!

I also have a friend who thinks that talking about Santa at Christmas will make kids think that since Santa is a myth and we talk about Jesus at Christmas, maybe he’s a myth too. Again, I say what??? The thought never occurred to me. I don’t think there is any comparison between Santa and Jesus, and the distinction is real to my kids as well. I guess I could see that happening if you only talk about Jesus at Christmas time, but Jesus lives at our house year round – so it’s not an issue. LOTS of my friends who are parents struggle with what to tell their kids. I get that. So what do we do? Sing carols about snowmen that come to life and sleds pulled by flying reindeer, or carols about the best news that came to earth. It’s the difference between fantasy and reality – and I believe both are o.k. when you can differentiate between the two. (I’m also a Harry Potter, LOTR, Narnia fan too – for the same reasons…I know the difference between the two and can enjoy both.)

Max is seven years old. Last week we had the Santa talk. He brought it up. Our conversation went something like this: (Me in Blue)

Mommy, is Santa Claus real?
What do you think?
(smiling) If I tell you what I think, do you promise to tell me the truth?
Yes.
I think he is.
O.K. then.
Well?? Are you going to tell me the truth?
Max, I always try to tell you the truth.
What would you say if I told you that Popa and I are Santa?
You mean you guys buy all our presents?
(I nodded yes) How do you feel about that? Are you o.k. with that?
Yeah, I guess so.
Max, we let you kids believe in Santa because it’s fun to think about magical things and the possibility of a man loving children so much that he wants to bring them toys and give them good things. That’s why Popa and I play Santa every year – we want to give you good things. But you know that’s not WHY we celebrate Christmas, right?
(rolling his eyes at me) YES! I know, it’s because Jesus was born, right?
Right. Don’t tell your brother and sister about us being Santa, o.k.? They’ll be old enough to talk about this soon enough. Let’s let them believe a little longer, o.k.? Did you know there really was a man named Nicholas who brought toys to children a very long time ago? We could look up some information about him if you want to.
Yeah. Who eats the milk and cookies we leave for Santa?
Your Popa does.
Can I stay up late on Christmas Eve and help you guys? I could be Jr. Santa and eating the cookies could be my job…can we do chocolate chip this year?
Hey! Are you guys the Easter Bunny too?
Yep…and the Tooth Fairy.
Then where are all my teeth?

And the conversation went on and on…;) That’s the way things roll around here. We’re doing some new things for Christmas this year as well. We have a kit called, “What does Jesus want for Christmas?” It’s a little nativity set and has activities you can do with your kids. It’s pretty cool. We also decided to practice Advent this year and join the many others who spend time looking forward to the coming of Christ. Each parent has to decide what they want to do and not cave so easily to what others think, celebrate, or shun.

So, yes Max – there is a Santa Claus…me. Hey, I have the name for it. My first name is Nikalas (pronounced Nick-uh-lus) and my last name is Nowell (which is pronounced Now-ull, like Powell with an N) BUT, it was pronounced as Noel in old English – and in many of the old hymnals, as in “The First Nowell (Noel)” Seriously, I can’t make this stuff up…look it up.

Let me add one more thing. My kids got to BE Santa today. We delivered Christmas gifts to children who are part of the Angel Tree program.

I have all these posts floating around in my head that can’t seem to make it to my fingertips. I’ve been working on a single post for over a week now and it has turned into this monstrous soap box on the failings of the…oh never mind. I’m not ready for the screaming and eye rolling that would happen if I posted it…and there is YOUR reaction to think about as well. 😉 So, back to the old stand by of what’s happening at the Nowell Hacienda.

We spent last week staying up late watching movies, sleeping in only to find all three children happily lounging in front of the TV, and contacting our support team to find out whether or not they intend to continue their support. Up until now I haven’t had much to do with the money end of our ministry. That’s Benny’s area. So as we’ve been updating our donor lists and preparing to raise the additional support for the next year, we’ve been talking about who might like to join our team, and being thankful for those already on it. I was hurt (I’m not sure if that’s the emotion called for in this situation) to learn that a few of our friends had stopped sending their monthly pledges months ago, before their year long commitment was up. WHY? I wasn’t so much upset that I didn’t know, I was upset that these were people I had counted on and they had offered no explanation why they discontinued their support. Thankfully, God provided through other people. Sadly, there have been times I too have failed to follow through on my good intentions or commitments, so I can’t be too hard on them. It reminds me of something a friend once said about marriage. It’s not about commitment but about a covenant – commitments are too easily broken – but a covenant is MUCH harder to break. Good point huh? But it has nothing to do with what I’m talking about here.

I am grateful for EVERYONE that has given to our family so we could do the work God called us to do. I like Jared’s idea of “owning a missionary” – really being involved with our family by knowing our needs, praying for us, and giving financially to make what we do possible if not just ALOT easier. There are a lot of strange (and false) ideas out there about mission work – especially state-side missions. Some of the things we’ve heard and read are:

1. Missionaries should take a vow of poverty. They should not need or want a desirable salary because God wants us to suffer a bit for His cause. They should be grateful for what they get and not complain. Number of children and necessary expenses for them are of no real consequence. Besides, wasn’t Paul a tentmaker?

2. Missionaries are people who go to third world countries. If you serve in a missionary role in the U.S. you’re not really a “true missionary”.

3. Missionaries families are a second priority, the first is the Mission itself. The family should be expected to take a back seat and just be thankful for the “leftover hours” when the “important work” is done. And that work is never done…

Please tell me you read that list and thought to yourself, “Who are these crazy people who think such nonsense?” It is stuff like this that gave “PK’s” a reputation in the first place. That’s Preacher’s Kids. I can also add Youth Minister’s kids to that as well…and missionary kids. My friend Paula was telling me about a book she read that was written by missionary kids. It chronicled their journey through life as a child in a missionary family and I think it included stuff like my list above. I’ll ask her for the title and list it in the next post. For now I’ll leave you with these thoughts and a few questions. Do you agree with any of the above statements. If so, can you explain why?

I got news this morning that my friend Debbie’s son Nick was killed in Iraq yesterday. He was 23 and leaves behind a young wife. My grief for her is so raw. I never met Nick, but I am thankful for the bravery he showed everyday while fighting to protect my freedoms and help people who needed him. Debbie’s family is in shock and I am at a loss as to how I can help. She has a husband who is not a believer, and two pre-teen children. Please keep them in your prayers along with Nick’s wife as they grieve this tremendous loss.

My friend Rebecca sent me a link to a website that I now pass along to you. It’s a FREE service that sends printed Thank You postcards to our troops serving overseas. It only takes a minute, so please contribute to this much needed boost of love for those like Nick who lay their lives on the line to protect our freedom.

www.letssaythanks.com

Max taught himself how to ride his bike. The kid is amazing…and a little annoying now that he wants to ride it in the snow too. All the talk about the ice on our street and cars not being able to stop very fast, and him still learning control, are lost on him. He doesn’t care, he just wants to feel the wind in his hair as he pedals to his heart’s content. He has decided he wants a mohawk again. I actually paid him $2.00 to wait until after Abi takes our family Christmas picture. Yeah, yeah, no “Parent of the Year” award again this year. I’m sure I’ll live.

Zoe was the most beautiful little MARY in her Christmas program for Friday School. She kept waving at us and being territorial with the baby Jesus in the manger. She wanted him left alone and ofcourse the other little kids wanted to touch him too. Do you think the real Mary was like that? “No way, you go wash those dirty, sheep smelling hands before holding my son!” Somehow I doubt it, but who knows? 😉 I joked that having her first “starring role” as Mary would be a hard act to follow in the years to come. “So what kind of acting experience do you have?” “Well, in my first role I played the mother of God…”

Pete is killing me! I bought a candy dispenser at ARC for fifty cents, and tonight I filled it with M&M’s. Starting tomorrow, he gets to dispense some candy everytime he goes potty and his pull-up is still dry. He will be 3 in a few weeks and it’s about darn time he learns to stay dry. I am not above bribery, as you can tell by my story. I’m just praying it works!!! Please God! Let it work!

Speaking of God…Friday morning the van started making an awful noise. I called Benny and he told me to come home since I was close by. I drove another 3 blocks and called him back to tell him to come and get me. I had a bad feeling about the van. He came to get me and drove the van around the parking lot and it wasn’t making the noise, so he told me to follow him home and I could take the car. So I followed while he drove the van. About 4 blocks from our house, I watched in shock as the front right wheel shot off the van and rolled down an embankment into a park. I said WHEEL, not tire. ALL of the pins (or lug bolts if that’s what you call them) had snapped off. Benny was safe, and it happened next to a park so no one or nothing was around to get hurt or damaged. That was good – it could have been bad. Thankfully we have emergency roadside assistance with our car insurance, so the tow truck was there within 30 minutes. Hopefully our van will be ready to pick up tomorrow. It’s a $300 + repair.

Here’s the cool part of the story: We immediately prayed with the kids and thanked God for keeping Benny safe and asked Him to provide the extra money we needed to get the van fixed. We prayed as a family again for God’s provision that night before bed and again Saturday night. This morning at church, Benny was talking to a friend about it and the guy gave us $100.00 to put towards the repair. Wow! Then, we hadn’t checked our mailbox yesterday, so we got the mail on the way home and we had an envelope from some friends on our financial support team. They had forgotten to send their monthly check for us to Dry Bones, so were sending it to us directly. They also sent a check for $200.00 for our family as a Christmas gift. Add it up! We got to talk with our kids about God hearing our prayers and providing for our needs. How awesome is that?! It still amazes me (not surprises me) how He works through His people.

Thank you God for my crazy and funny family. Thank you for providing for our needs and some of our wants as well. You are so good to us and we praise your name. Thank you for coming and being a part of an awesome worship service this morning. I meant every word I sang and said. Thank you for my friends and thank you for my life. Please lead me on in MY journey towards completeness in You. Thank you!

As I’m posting this after midnight, today – December 4th – is one of my best friend’s birthdays. Happy Birthday Linda! I love you so much!

This is the article I submitted for the next Dry Bones newsletter which will be mailed out in January. I wanted to share it here because these things have really been on my heart lately. As you’re moving forward in life, sometimes it’s nice to look back and see how far you’ve come and how God has grown you through the trials and triumphs. The original article was twice as long and Matt politely told me he loved it but I needed to condense it – ALOT. So, this is the edited version from my long-winded self. As always, I welcome your comments.

As we prepare to start a ministry in the Boulder area, I can’t help but look back at all we have learned since our move to Denver and how we’ve been changed by our experiences here. God placed a love for the “throw away people” in us long ago, and moving here has allowed us to put everything we’ve learned up until now into practice in a very practical way. Though there is not enough space here to share everything we’ve learned during our time with Dry Bones, there are a few truths I felt were important to relay to you – friends and supporters of this ministry.

1. Never judge a book by its cover. It’s easy to make assumptions about others based on appearance, first impressions, or even lifestyles. Working with street kids has taught me that it’s always worth taking a closer look into who a person is. The people I’ve met on the streets have been mostly friendly, willing to talk, and looking for the same basic needs I enjoy – love, family, and a place to belong. They are mistreated all the time – people crossing the street to avoid them, looks of disgust with accusations like, “Why don’t you get a job?”, sexual propositions for pay, and more. It’s hard for them to trust, but they begin to – even if just a little – when you consistently look past their appearances and their language and see the child of God hidden in the many layers of who they are, and treat them accordingly.

2. It’s not about being homeless. That is a symptom of the problem, not the problem itself. Getting the street kids into an apartment and off the streets is no more our end goal than the church getting people to baptism is the final goal. There is more – for both. There is relationship with the One who made them, loves them more than any human possibly could, and has a plan for their life. We can help people find shelter and food, but nothing is more important than loving them to Jesus, the living water, and the One who can sustain them. Meeting the physical needs opens doors to being able to help meet the spiritual needs as well. It’s not just about where you sleep. There are many Christians who sleep on the streets.

3. Jesus said “GO”, not “invite them to come to you”. This is a hard concept because it requires you to go to places you might not be comfortable going. As much as people crave answers and meaning, sometimes there is no strength to “pull yourself up by the bootstraps” and get on with living. By us going to the streets and being with the street kids on their turf, relationships are forged and perceptions are changed, on both sides. Sometimes they come to church or Bible Study with us, or to our homes for meals, but here’s the point: They would never have come if we hadn’t first gone to them.