Me and Charlie Brown

You might remember (I just cannot remember if I told you) that a few weeks back I paid a visit to the ER that indicated possible sinus infection and also some possible abscesses between the lower sinuses and the root of a few teeth. Well, a root canal today to take care of the one abscess went very well and things "look good," according to my dentist, the good Mr. Dr. Fischer (his wife is also a DDS). And apart from the shot that deadened the right side of my nose, this too has proven to be uneventful.

I have enjoyed watching the moon of late. Here in NOVA (northern Virginia), over the last few days as the moon approached full phase, there have been beautiful, light, whispy clouds passing by, providing a wonderful canvas for the moon to paint its reflection onto. This time of year with the approaching holidays, and the sky looking as it does, I am reminded of two Peanuts specials: "It's the Great Pumpkin, Charlie Brown," and "A Charlie Brown Christmas."

These two holiday specials I have neglected for a number of years. I always enjoyed them as a child . . . I still do, I've just not been faithful to watch them every year. My first memory of the Christmas special was around the time I was five or six. My dad's company gave a Christmas party for the families, but I was sick, and so Mom and I stayed home and watched the Peanuts Christmas special and "The Little Drummer Boy" in claymation.

These specials, likely more than any other, helped focus me as a child on the greatest announcement ever uttered: "And the angel said to them, 'Fear not, for behold, I bring you good news of great joy that will be for all the people. For unto you is born this day in the city of David a Savior, who is Christ the Lord. And this will be a sign for you: you will find a baby wrapped in swaddling cloths and lying in a manger.' And suddenly there was with the angel a multitude of the heavenly host praising God and saying, 'Glory to God in the highest, and on earth peace among those with whom he is pleased!'" I always liked Linus' soliloquy in the special.

And I liked the music. Vince Guaraldi Is the artist behind those great jazz tunes like "Christmas Time is Here," "O Tannenbaum," "Skating," and "Linus and Lucy." my own elementary school experience is tied to these songs so that I am always taken back to my fourth grade class whenever these songs play. It is a certain innocence that is conveyed by these songs in contrast to the kid smarts of the Peanuts gang that I find appealing. But I digress.

Life . . . all of life, really does come down to the announcement from Luke's gospel above and what you do with him. There is no more important question than this, for our response leads to either our eternal death or it leads to our eternal life in him. Believing on him does not immediately result in the easy life. But belief in him leads us in his way - the way marked by suffering, and eased by his grace and mercy as we confidently call on him for strength and peace.

I pray asking God to move in you to experience his Advent this season fresh as you open your heart to him.