{"id":741,"date":"2017-12-11T11:48:00","date_gmt":"2017-12-11T17:48:00","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/mypeacezone.com\/its-baby-jesus-and-santa-time-2\/"},"modified":"2019-02-18T10:12:24","modified_gmt":"2019-02-18T16:12:24","slug":"its-baby-jesus-and-santa-time-2","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/mypeacezone.com\/?p=741","title":{"rendered":"It\u2019s Baby Jesus AND Santa Time!"},"content":{"rendered":"<div class=\"\" data-block=\"true\" data-editor=\"1ljg\" data-offset-key=\"8lhsd-0-0\" style=\"background-color: white; color: #1d2129; font-family: Helvetica, Arial, sans-serif; font-size: 14px; white-space: pre-wrap;\">\n<div class=\"separator\" style=\"clear: both; text-align: center;\">\n<a href=\"https:\/\/1.bp.blogspot.com\/-WZzn4VAt2zo\/Wi2WkcVzeaI\/AAAAAAAAbEg\/N8L8qclaESQQBI5Jg_I6Xlgw0k0UT9VaACLcBGAs\/s1600\/Christmas%2BSanta%2BBaby%2BJesus%2B2.jpg\" imageanchor=\"1\" style=\"clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;\"><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" border=\"0\" data-original-height=\"900\" data-original-width=\"720\" height=\"320\" src=\"https:\/\/mypeacezone.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2017\/12\/ChristmasSantaBabyJesus2.jpg\" width=\"256\" \/><\/a><\/div>\n<div class=\"_1mf _1mj\" data-offset-key=\"8lhsd-0-0\" style=\"direction: ltr; font-family: inherit; position: relative;\">\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<div class=\"\" data-block=\"true\" data-editor=\"1ljg\" data-offset-key=\"rrt2-0-0\" style=\"background-color: white; color: #1d2129; font-family: Helvetica, Arial, sans-serif; font-size: 14px; white-space: pre-wrap;\">\n<div class=\"_1mf _1mj\" data-offset-key=\"rrt2-0-0\" style=\"direction: ltr; font-family: inherit; position: relative;\">\nWhen I put Santa and Jesus in the same paragraph in my post a few days ago, I honestly quivered. It made me stop and think about how we boosted the support of  \u201cSanta Claus is Coming  to Town\u201d to our children since they were infants and could barely see or hear.  They learned that a mysterious guy in a red and white suit could see them when they\u2019re sleeping and are awake.  He even sees them when they\u2019re good and bad, so we reinforce that they\u2019d better be good\u2026.for goodness sake.  We even take them to see Santa and encourage them to tell him what they want for Christmas.  And, if that\u2019s not enough\u2026..we tell them that he\u2019s coming down the chimney and he\u2019ll show up with their wishes \u2013 so they must be sure to leave cookies for him because he\u2019ll be very hungry as he flies in a reindeer-driven sleigh, delivering his gifts to children all over the world.  And, to further spoofing our innocent children, many folks will go to their rooftops and make stomping sounds, while they are ringing sleigh bells.   <\/p>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<div class=\"\" data-block=\"true\" data-editor=\"1ljg\" data-offset-key=\"ak85m-0-0\" style=\"background-color: white; color: #1d2129; font-family: Helvetica, Arial, sans-serif; font-size: 14px; white-space: pre-wrap;\">\n<div class=\"_1mf _1mj\" data-offset-key=\"ak85m-0-0\" style=\"direction: ltr; font-family: inherit; position: relative;\">\nAs you just read that paragraph, did it cause your brain to go \u201cTILT\u201d?  It sure did mine, because for years I led my own children to believe in the myth of Santa Claus and his reindeer. Not until I became a grandmother did I realize how untruthful I had been to my children.  What a shame that their role model &#8212; modeled dishonesty.  How could I expect truthfulness from my children when I was being untruthful.  It&#8217;s one thing to encourage imagination and another&#8230;.outright dishonesty.  <\/div>\n<\/div>\n<div class=\"\" data-block=\"true\" data-editor=\"1ljg\" data-offset-key=\"3mjtd-0-0\" style=\"background-color: white; color: #1d2129; font-family: Helvetica, Arial, sans-serif; font-size: 14px; white-space: pre-wrap;\">\n<div class=\"_1mf _1mj\" data-offset-key=\"3mjtd-0-0\" style=\"direction: ltr; font-family: inherit; position: relative;\">\n<br data-text=\"true\" \/><\/div>\n<\/div>\n<div class=\"\" data-block=\"true\" data-editor=\"1ljg\" data-offset-key=\"ajdjc-0-0\" style=\"background-color: white; color: #1d2129; font-family: Helvetica, Arial, sans-serif; font-size: 14px; white-space: pre-wrap;\">\n<div class=\"_1mf _1mj\" data-offset-key=\"ajdjc-0-0\" style=\"direction: ltr; font-family: inherit; position: relative;\">\nNow, as a much wiser woman who thrives on honesty and truth, I look back and think \u201cWhat were we thinking?\u201d    I desire to be 100 percent honest in all my ways, so that those who follow my lead, are led closer to THE LIGHT than are being led astray. Truth is TRUTH \u2013 NOT stretching the truth, or \u201cIt\u2019s so cute to see those little wide eyes of wonder.&#8221;<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<div class=\"\" data-block=\"true\" data-editor=\"1ljg\" data-offset-key=\"daug0-0-0\" style=\"background-color: white; color: #1d2129; font-family: Helvetica, Arial, sans-serif; font-size: 14px; white-space: pre-wrap;\">\n<div class=\"_1mf _1mj\" data-offset-key=\"daug0-0-0\" style=\"direction: ltr; font-family: inherit; position: relative;\">\n<br data-text=\"true\" \/><\/div>\n<\/div>\n<div class=\"\" data-block=\"true\" data-editor=\"1ljg\" data-offset-key=\"d5nlq-0-0\" style=\"background-color: white; color: #1d2129; font-family: Helvetica, Arial, sans-serif; font-size: 14px; white-space: pre-wrap;\">\n<div class=\"separator\" style=\"clear: both; text-align: center;\">\n<a href=\"https:\/\/3.bp.blogspot.com\/-7cBdOmi262U\/Wi2WsRzDCEI\/AAAAAAAAbEk\/aCSGmCnSwroefN-w29MDzaj6n8HKVtprQCLcBGAs\/s1600\/Outdoor%2BMary%2BJoseph%2BJesus.jpg\" imageanchor=\"1\" style=\"clear: right; float: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: 1em;\"><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" border=\"0\" data-original-height=\"960\" data-original-width=\"720\" height=\"320\" src=\"https:\/\/mypeacezone.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2017\/12\/OutdoorMaryJosephJesus.jpg\" width=\"240\" \/><\/a><\/div>\n<div class=\"_1mf _1mj\" data-offset-key=\"d5nlq-0-0\" style=\"direction: ltr; font-family: inherit; position: relative;\">\nYou may think this is a crotchety ole&#8217; gal\u2019s reality, but, in reality, it\u2019s the closer I get to the Baby in the Manger Who Became my Savior, the more I want to be like Him \u2013 full of grace and TRUTH.  John 1:14 says \u201cThe Word (Jesus) became flesh and made his dwelling among us. We have seen His glory, the glory of the One and only Son, Who came from the Father, FULL OF GRACE AND TRUTH.&#8221;<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<div class=\"\" data-block=\"true\" data-editor=\"1ljg\" data-offset-key=\"3q63n-0-0\" style=\"background-color: white; color: #1d2129; font-family: Helvetica, Arial, sans-serif; font-size: 14px; white-space: pre-wrap;\">\n<div class=\"_1mf _1mj\" data-offset-key=\"3q63n-0-0\" style=\"direction: ltr; font-family: inherit; position: relative;\">\n<br data-text=\"true\" \/><\/div>\n<\/div>\n<div class=\"\" data-block=\"true\" data-editor=\"1ljg\" data-offset-key=\"4lbe4-0-0\" style=\"background-color: white; color: #1d2129; font-family: Helvetica, Arial, sans-serif; font-size: 14px; white-space: pre-wrap;\">\n<div class=\"_1mf _1mj\" data-offset-key=\"4lbe4-0-0\" style=\"direction: ltr; font-family: inherit; position: relative;\">\nMy little \u201cHoly Family\u201d and sign that says \u201cBorn this day, a Savior Who is Christ the Lord\u201d seems like a meager attempt to celebrate THE ONE \u2013 that Christmas is really all about.  Maybe someone will see it and hopefully it will draw their attention to think about the real Reason for the Season, but no question it\u2019s lost amidst the gigantic Santa inflatables around the neighborhoods. Here\u2019s the truth that MUST be told to our families and especially to our children, from infancy and on.  No question that the imagery of jolly old Santa provides many moments of Christmas joy \u2013 especially when we\u2019re propping those little ones in his lap for that annual Christmas photo.  The mythical Santa was clearly founded in a man who honored Jesus Christ with his life and his possessions. St. Nicholas gave freely of his riches to benefit those who were less fortunate than himself. &#8220;Giving\u201d is clearly one of Christianity&#8217;s guiding principles in Scripture &#8212; to care for the poor.  <\/div>\n<\/div>\n<div class=\"\" data-block=\"true\" data-editor=\"1ljg\" data-offset-key=\"9avus-0-0\" style=\"background-color: white; color: #1d2129; font-family: Helvetica, Arial, sans-serif; font-size: 14px; white-space: pre-wrap;\">\n<div class=\"_1mf _1mj\" data-offset-key=\"9avus-0-0\" style=\"direction: ltr; font-family: inherit; position: relative;\">\n<br data-text=\"true\" \/><\/div>\n<\/div>\n<p><\/p>\n<div class=\"\" data-block=\"true\" data-editor=\"1ljg\" data-offset-key=\"d7coa-0-0\" style=\"background-color: white; color: #1d2129; font-family: Helvetica, Arial, sans-serif; font-size: 14px; white-space: pre-wrap;\">\n<\/div>\n<p><\/p>\n<div class=\"\" data-block=\"true\" data-editor=\"1ljg\" data-offset-key=\"6g5b2-0-0\" style=\"-webkit-text-stroke-width: 0px; background-color: white; color: #1d2129; font-family: Helvetica, Arial, sans-serif; font-size: 14px; font-style: normal; font-variant-caps: normal; font-variant-ligatures: normal; font-weight: 400; letter-spacing: normal; orphans: 2; text-align: start; text-decoration-color: initial; text-decoration-style: initial; text-indent: 0px; text-transform: none; white-space: pre-wrap; widows: 2; word-spacing: 0px;\">\n<div class=\"separator\" style=\"clear: both; text-align: center;\">\n<a href=\"https:\/\/3.bp.blogspot.com\/-ZQD4U173S2I\/Wi2W0uuf21I\/AAAAAAAAbEo\/jKqIPVNNSGM1I-jPm3Y4mNzRqP0qmG7MgCLcBGAs\/s1600\/Santa%2BKneeling%2Bat%2BManager.jpg\" imageanchor=\"1\" style=\"clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;\"><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" border=\"0\" data-original-height=\"546\" data-original-width=\"736\" height=\"237\" src=\"https:\/\/mypeacezone.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2017\/12\/SantaKneelingatManager.jpg\" width=\"320\" \/><\/a><\/div>\n<div class=\"_1mf _1mj\" data-offset-key=\"6g5b2-0-0\" style=\"direction: ltr; font-family: inherit; position: relative; text-align: left; white-space: pre-wrap;\">\n\u201cMommy, Is There Really a Santa Claus?\u201d is a question that families ponder each year.  I pray you ask for God\u2019s wisdom and how best to explain to them in \u201cgrace and truth\u201d.  1 John 3:18 &#8220;My little children, let us not love in word, neither in tongue; but in deed and in TRUTH.&#8221;  .And if TRUTH is told \u2013 may we give our families a True Story of love, peace, hope, joy, and compassion \u2013 the TRUE Christmas Story.  What is easier to believe \u2013 Santa Claus or that God loved us so much that He sent His only Son to earth as a baby, to a lovely couple and the shepherds and wise men came to see him and when  they saw him, they worshiped him because he was the newborn King who would set them free &#8211; WHO SET US FREE.  Yesterday my pastor said &#8220;Christmas IS NOT a holiday.  It is a HOLY DAY!  May we honor the HOLY One Who really did come to give us the greatest gift &#8212; Himself.&#8221;<\/div>\n<\/div>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>When I put Santa and Jesus in the same paragraph in my post a few days ago, I honestly quivered. It made me stop and think about how we boosted the support of \u201cSanta Claus is Coming to Town\u201d to our children since they were infants and could barely see or hear. They learned that&hellip;<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_coblocks_attr":"","_coblocks_dimensions":"","_coblocks_responsive_height":"","_coblocks_accordion_ie_support":"","footnotes":""},"categories":[1],"tags":[600,537,4263,4264,455,606,4265,607,4266,4239,610],"class_list":["post-741","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","hentry","category-uncategorized","tag-baby-jesus","tag-christmas-story","tag-dishonesty","tag-grace-and-truth","tag-holy-family","tag-john-114","tag-reindeer","tag-santa-claus","tag-santa-claus-is-coming-to-town","tag-the-word-became-flesh","tag-truth"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/mypeacezone.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/741","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/mypeacezone.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/mypeacezone.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/mypeacezone.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/users\/1"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/mypeacezone.com\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fcomments&post=741"}],"version-history":[{"count":1,"href":"https:\/\/mypeacezone.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/741\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":7633,"href":"https:\/\/mypeacezone.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/741\/revisions\/7633"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/mypeacezone.com\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fmedia&parent=741"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/mypeacezone.com\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fcategories&post=741"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/mypeacezone.com\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Ftags&post=741"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}