Christmas Choices
Author: Jim Elliff

You don’t have to celebrate Christmas. There is no command in the Bible to remember the time of Christ’s birth—not even a hint of it—nor is there any illustration of that happening in New Testament days. As far as we can tell, the Apostles never had a Christmas meal together, or a special worship meeting on that day.

Love - More!
Author: Jim Elliff

You can never love too much. You can dote too much, cuddle too much, stare at a picture too much, and even fix more cookies than are acceptable, but you cannot love too much.

The Binding of Satan as Seen in the Birth (and Survival) of Jesus
Author: Daryl Wingerd

Jesus once said, "No one can enter the strong man's house and plunder his property unless he first binds the strong man" (Mark 3:27). The "strong man" Jesus was alluding to was Satan, and his house was this world—Satan's realm of influence and power. 

The Foreign Devil Who Baked Virginia Tea Cakes: The Irrepressible Lottie Moon
Author: Susan Verstraete

John A. Broadus called Charlotte (Lottie) Diggs Moon "the most educated woman in the South." She came from a wealthy family, had a successful career in education and was rumored to have an offer of marriage from one of her professors. So how did this four-foot, three-inch Civil-War era Southern belle find herself alone in inland China, three days' journey from any other English-speaking person, baking Virginia tea cakes for children who called her a "foreign devil"?

The Two Pictures of Christmas
Author: James McAlister

I gaze at two differing pictures of Christmas. The first, a photograph my wife discovered tucked away in an old book, hints of the 1940s. It's Christmas morning, and five smiling children radiate the pleasure of having a few simple gifts arrayed before them, fully satisfied.