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Phyllis Tickle shares a story of a time when she was speaking at an Episcopalian church in Georgia: 

After she was done speaking–-and the adults stopped arguing–-a 16 year old boy lined up to ask her a question, “Mam, there is a question I just have to ask you.”

“Well, what would that be?” she inquired.

“It’s about the Virgin Birth……I just don’t understand.”

Ready to launch into an explanation of the Virgin Birth, she paused for a moment and asked, “What is it that you don’t understand?”

He answered, “Well, I just don’t understand what the adults are arguing about.  I believe in the Virgin Birth.  It’s so beautiful, it just has to be true; whether it happened or not.” 

Did you hear that?  “I believe in the Virgin Birth.  It’s so beautiful, it just has to be true; whether it happened or not.”  This is an example of a postmodern philosophical and theological statement from the lips of a 17 year old boy.  This is how he breathes and organizes reality; on a completely different plain than his parents and grandparents.  He simply could not understand their argument. 

In another re-telling of this story, the clergy hearing it ended up arguing about the boy’s comments.  The irony…

I have an annoying mental habit when it comes to songs lyrics, especially with worship songs: I find myself re-writing the lyrics in my head. I think I do this in part because I am not good enough to write an entire song on my own, so I play off the talents of others and then make my own version of their song (can I do that?). I will then sing my new Jeromy version in-step with the others who are singing the original (annoying, I know). Sometimes it is my way of personalizing the song, like changing “us” to “me”. Sometimes it is my way of correcting the song (I told you it was an annoying habit), like changing “How great is our God” to “How great is God”…because after all, he is not ours, we do not own him, he is simply God. But most of this just takes place in my own little mental world…until now. I am coming out of the lyric-altering closet and declaring boldly that “My name is Jeromy Johnson and I am a lyric-alterationist (a new word).”

But this Christmas season, it has gotten way out of control. It has spilled over into the holy and sacred realm of Christmas Carols––the untouchables…for most lyric-alterationists that is, but not this one. Oh no, not me. I have left the entry level songs and have moved on to the strong stuff now. I have lyric-altered O Come All Ye Faithful. Now put the wood and rope and matches down. There is no need to get hasty with the “burn ‘im at the stake” mantra…I only altered two lines. Even I have my limits and know when to walk away. I am afraid, though, that my two lines might change the title. But let’s make a deal, call off the dogs and I’ll concede the title for these two lines, OK? Now for the two-line alteration…here it is:

O come all ye sinful,
Broken and dejected
Oh come ye, O come ye to Bethlehem;
Come and behold him, born the King of angels;
O come, let us adore him,
O come, let us adore him,
O come, let us adore him, Christ the Lord.

That’s it. See, not so bad, was it. Did you catch the alteration? Instead of limiting the beholding and adoring of Jesus to just the faithful, joyful and triumphant (which would be like two people on earth, one of whom would be Jesus himself, and I am not sure how to theologically approach Jesus beholding and adoring himself…unless, of course, there are mirrors in heaven and Jesus is more vain than we once thought…but I seriously digress into Jeromy-is-making-no-sense-ville), I feel that everyone who is sinful and broken and dejected ought to be invited into our beholding-and-adoring-of-Jesus club.

So for those who want to behold and adore Jesus but never felt like you could because only the faithful-joyful-triumphant bunch could, well, now there is a Christmas Carol and club for you. Welcome to the beholding-and-adoring-Jesus club, from one sinful-dejected-broken human to another. ‘Tis the season after all…

Oh and by the way, if you are a fellow closet lyric-alterationist, cheers and come on out……we need your words.

God’s goodness can be found under every rock and beneath every tree throughout the world…even in the world of finance. 

I began working as a contract employee for a software project at Franklin Templeton Investments (FTI) just over a month ago.  Like most times in life, it seems, the blessing I have received at FTI (or witnessed) far outweighs the blessing I feel I have given.  You know what I mean?  Like when you go on a mission trip to a third-world country to serve and love the poor, and you come away enriched, blessed, and touched beyond all that you could have imagined.  The environment at FTI is very multicultural and religiously diverse (Hindu, Muslim, Atheist, Jewish, Christian…), which in itself, for me, is a blessing.  But the blessing I’ve see extends well beyond the diversity and lies in the goodness I see expressed everyday. 

It is expressed in the laughter, cordialness, and overall respect shown to each other.  It is expressed by the sick feeling I have from eating all the homemade cookies and fudge and toffee people have made and brought into the office.  It is expressed in the emails that flash across my computer screen and the lists posted all over the walls communicating opportunities for people to adopt families by helping provide for their basic needs, such as clothes, food, and toys for the kids.  It is expressed in the adoption of a village in Africa.  It was expressed this morning through two $50 gift cards that my family needed desperately.  These expressions are simply the ones that I have physically seen or experienced…how much more if all the unseen, done-in-secret things were seen? 

These expressions of goodness have encouraged me, taught me, and at times, humbled me.  They feed God’s spirit in me to do good, if only for goodness sake (though I know Who it is I do it for).   

So next time you look at the Stock Market ticker and see “BEN“…be reminded that even in the fast pace world of investments, goodness is happening behind the scenes in small and quiet ways; much like a seed of mustard or a tiny amount of yeast in bread. 

Have a good Christmas!

This one took me a second and then I laughed really hard, knowing that I probably shouldn’t be….

My favorite Holiday drink is Eggnog Latte, though I am now reconsidering…