Advent Conspiracy

So I know Christmas day is tomorrow and this is all probably a bit late for this year but I thought it was about time I did a quick blog about this because it's an excellent idea not just for Christmas time but for all year round and birthdays, etc.

It's annoying (and if it's not then it should be) how we (the richest people in the world) waste a load of money buying each other more unnecessary (and often completely useless) stuff at Christmas.  If Christmas has anything to do with Jesus at all (which it mostly doesn't these days but maybe it should) then it should be good news to the poor as much as to anyone else - maybe even more than to anyone else. 

It's easy enough to make Christmas (or any time we feel like buying presents) a decent opportunity to really help the poor.

Check out the Advent Conspiracy

And a great way to actually do what they're suggesting is by using Oxfam Unwrapped to buy people presents that change and save lives.  Check out the TV ad here.

Let's take Christmas back!  Let's change it and make it about something better and maybe we'll encounter God in the process.

Matthew 25:31-46

Snow day

[Photo from BBC]

So last night we had about 6 inches of snow - brilliant!  But why does so much in this country grind to a halt when it snows?  For what it's worth, here are my 3 theories...
  1. People get stupid.  Maybe because it's less frequent (in the SW at least), people forget that when there loads of slippery snow and ice around, you have to drive a bit slower and maybe not try and tackle big hills.  Loads of cars stuck on Haldon Hill this morning apparently.  What were they thinking?
  2. People get scared.  Probably because of the stories of stupid people, other people get too scared to go out and do anything at all because of all the accidents.  I know it's not safe for everyone to go out but most people could manage it if they used their brains and were more careful.  Most other countries that get more snow than us seem to manage.
  3. It's fun!  Why carry on working if you can play in the snow and get away with it?  And why go out at all if you can stay in and watch Die Hard?  Exactly.