» advent Dave Longstreth

And you can say there’s no such thing as…

but as for the Longstreths we “believe.” Believe in what? A plump old man with a white beard and a kind face? Are we talking about Santa here or God?

For so many what’s the difference.. I’m sure many think about God looking much like “Santa” minus the red coat and pipe.. But that’s cool – God is a giver of gifts.. Here are some more similarities between God and Santa..

He is all-knowing.. He can travel the world in a single night and He doesn’t even need timezones.. God even has a bunch of elves or maybe angels helping Him to do what He does for the world..

Let me go on.. God also thinks Christmas is important – after all that represents the day He gave the whole world a gift.. And with the many skeptics who start to figure out the “truth” behind the Santa conspiracy — God, too, finds Himself on the receiving end of a lot of doubt, disbelief and skepticism.

So can Santa be a practiced tradition for the purpose of both entertainment and metaphor in our households? Well it is in mine.. What about telling the lie to my kids? Hmmm. Well if I told you I never lied to my kids before I’d be lying..

I’ll be home at …
We’ll get a puppy next year …
There’s nothing to worry about, everything will always be okay…

Look up the meaning of lying.. Really.. It’s not gonna mention Santa Claus..

This year’s hottest new toys can be found on this list myrcc.us/uRnA7Z.. Now say what you’ll say about “consumerism” and the true meaning of Christmas etc etc bla bla bla– but there’s something even bigger than these buzz words/phrases behind this one..

If your kid wants (or asked Santa Claus for) one of these toys- and like my kid’s toy request- it’s sold out EVERYWHERE online and in physical stores — how crazy are you gonna get to pull through for them (or for Santa to pull through)??

Now we’ve all heard stories right?! I’m reminded of Dwight Schrute’s entrepreneurship in one the office episodes where he buys up a bunch of the hot new toys of the year only to resell them at a much higher price..

So what would you do? How much would you pay? Ten percent more? Half and again? Double? More?? How many hours would you search the web for it? How many miles would you drive to get it?

Would you do the unthinkable and get it from those shady websites that don’t have credible customer reviews? (if so– your poor kid’s gotta good chance of gettin’ nuttin’ for Christmas)..

Imagine if we were so militant about chasing after hope, peace, joy, and love!

Luckily we found Braden’s hot new toy at Target right when a few came in on the truck.. Great timing.. This year as families and friends all over the world light our “advent candles” consider what it means to put a flame to the wick of those four advent themes of hope, peace, joy and love!

Wishing you a warm and hopeful Advent season..

—Dave Longstreth

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