Despite concern over the negative influence of media on young people, Christian parents are likely to spend more than $1 billion on media products this Christmas season, a new survey showed.
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Survey: Many Christian Parents Choose to Satisfy Children Over God
By
Nathan Black
Christian Post Reporter
Tue, Nov. 20 2007 11:39 AM EST
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savedby grace - Sorry, I haven't checked this post in a while. If you see this and want to help, contact me at pastorpablito54@yahoo.com
God bless.
can anyone out there give me a biblical basis for celebrating christmas. Mark ch7 v7 Howbeit in vain do they worship me, teaching for doctrines the commandments of men.
Most of the Christmas gifts (ipods included) that will be bought this winter will have been made in China. If our Christian brothers and sisters there can have work I guess its not a bad thing; but we should recognize the persecution of the hands that make the wrapped gifts that are stacked under our decorated trees.
HampsteadPete, you try and make a strong argument. But you lack understanding. We were once sinners, and Christ yet died for us to change us from what we were to something new. Now understand this, when a person first comes to God for salvation, they bring all of the bad baggage with them. God is able to convert even the most retched of us. God is trying to save us. Now do you really understand Abraham, I thought I did. But Abraham was not raised to believe in God. His father was a pagan. But when the voice of God came to him he obeyed. When God calls will you obey, He changes times and seasons.
fallen_miracle, you should use wisdom when speaking. The Bible tells us not to take the word of God for granted. You will allow the "world" into your kids to satify their desires. But God said the desires of the flesh are sinful all the time. These desire could overtake them, and then you'd lose them in the end. I guess their salvation means nothing if only to satify the evil nature.
Let kids be kids.
pastorpablito:
Bless you for your comment. I live in a rural community which is somewhat behind big cities as far as 'entertainment' goes. My daughter's teacher asked her high school class to name the essentials of life. The majority of the class said 'a cell phone'.
I have told my children throughout their lives, that even though we are not rich by the standards of the US, we are very rich compared to the rest of the world. I hope everyone that has a shelter over their head and a full belly has taken the time to be thankful for the blessings that God has given the U.S.
pastorpablito, if you could direct us where to send donations, perhaps we can help support your ministry.
You know sometimes we as Christians need to be like HampsteadPete. If a non-Christian could do radical act why we, the followers of the Living God could not?
First to love God and then our kids!
Here in Finland (‘the international office’ of Mr. Santa Claus), most parents (Christians as well) spent so much money for kid’s and closed familie's gifts at Christmas times. It’s a Finnish tradition that a parent or a grant parent will hire a man to be a Santa, just for handing over all the gifts what the members of family have bought for.
Normally, stresses and headaches are following the parents after that.
It is a good idea to buy gifts for our love ones, but if we do it for we have to do that and thinking “what my families will think if I did not make it?” while our packets almost flat or just enough for daily need that it is not good, is it!? “Buy now, pay later” of a critic song by Scott W. Brown is good to be listened everyday some days before Christmas time, I think!
I am a Christian father of two kids. I am fine with Santa as long as we put the LORD and Santa in the right position. It’s very annoying me (as Christian) when Christian parents forgot to thank to the LORD and in the sometime telling to there children (without thinking) to giving thank to the Santa who did not spent any cent of euros for the gifts what we got from.
In this case, I do agree with HampsteadPete, who said, “By all means, let's return to the real meaning of the winter solstice celebration, and along the way, and get the religion out of it!”
So, let we love the LORD our God with all our heart and with all our soul and with all our mind.
For this is the great and first commandment, and teach more to our kids to love God.
You are kind of fighting human nature here, as religion often does. "Christmas" originated as a preemption of a pagan festival noting the winter solstice. The 25th of December was picked for the supposed birthday of Jesus to entice pagans to convert to christianity without losing their own winter celebrations. Most of the important gods in the religions of Ishtar and Mithra already had their birthdays on December 25th, so it was really a no-brainer to adapt the date.
When you created your christmas around festivals honoring other sun gods, the baggage came along with it, and every time I see a whine about "returning to the REAL meaning of Christmas," what flashes into my mind is a picture of Stonehenge!
Of course you didn't stop with the winter solstice, you went ahead and preempted the vernal equinox and called it "Easter." Did you ever wonder where the name "Easter" comes from? It is the name of a pagan (Norse, in fact) goddess, one of the pantheon that was honored on that day.
By all means, let's return to the real meaning of the winter solstice celebration, and along the way, get the religion out of it!
We as Christians must imitate our Lord, we must do exactly as He did. He didn't have all the stuff we have available to us today, he said poverty was the way to go. He knew that we'd get hung up on the offerings of this world, that is why he asked the rich man who had all to sell what he had and follow Him. Hmmm. Food for the soul. I exhort you my friends to ditch the videos, games and electronic offerings of the world, the entertainment offerings. They distract us from Jesus. Let us live like the disciples and the Blessed Virgin Mary, who through it all, focused wholly upon HIM, the Lamb of God. I pray your hearts will be set afire with love of Christ and that the Holy Spirit will lead all who read this to the undeniable Truth: Jesus is Lord!
Parents need to quit taking their kids to Disneyland etc. for vacation and should start taking them on third world country short term mission tours. I live in a third world country and I have children knocking on my door everyday that would love nothing more for Christmas than a full belly and a pair of shoes. What a country our US has turned into where people stand in a line for days to be able to buy the latest, greatest, newest, shiniest, fastest cell phone (with MP3 Player!) because the 5 they already have just aren't good enough. No wonder the other countries of the world hate us so much. We waste more food than most countries even have. We each spend more on electronics, video games, DVD's, and downloadable music in one year than most people in the world earn total for the year.
I don't exclude myself as sit typing on my laptop, on the internet and listening to my MP3 player while their are people in this very community that may only get one meal today, if it's a good day!
I am better than I once was, but I'm not as good as I should be. At least now I've learned to question most of my purchasing decisions.
Have a Happy Thanksgiving.
PLEASE MAKE THIS CORRECTION TO MY POST (by Honesty): The Scriptures tell us that to IF YOU LOVE THE WORLD, THE LOVE OF THE FATHER IS NOT IN YOU. Sorry for the typo. That sounds radical, but Jesus was talking about where your treasure lies. Today's worldliness has corrupted the church. Come out from among them and be separate says the Lord God.
The culture is tainted and getting more so every day. We live in a post Christian era. We are headed towards a one world government one world religion. What are we doing to strengthen and prepare our children to have the kind of character it will take to stand? The Scriptures tell us that to if you love not the world, the love of the Father is not in you. Be in the world but not of it. Sometimes a simple choice can ruin your future and inheritance. Christians, this is a wake up call. Jesus says Repent quickly, before your lampstand is removed. His requirements are not burdensome. He wants to remove your burdens not add to them. He says take His yoke upon you and learn of Him, for His burden is easy and His yoke is light. How much do you love Him?
Kind of like:
Your walk talks and your talk talks, but your walk always talks louder than your talk talks.
These tensions revealed by entertainment gift purchases only mask the underlying problem of the lack of Christian discipleship within the family. When parents are not modeling radical Christian discipleship, the children are less likely to be radical disciples themselves. Generally speaking, the roosters are merely coming home to roost... or "the apple does not fall far from the tree."
My kid's getting a lump of coal!
Oh wait, I don't have any kids!
Seriously though, how about sharing LOVE of Christ this Christmas and not materialism and "things"!!