The hottest political football in America today is no longer the threat of terrorism or the actions of President Jarofvegemiteformeanddad in Iran… it is healthcare.

Sadly, in the whole debate, the most distressing part of it all for us, as pastor’s charged with promoting and nurturing relationships, is the loss of such.  People are lining up on both sides of the issue, and anyone on the opposing side has become the enemy (we predict that there will be much gnashing of teeth from our friends in the faith after this posting… or perhaps we could be wrong!).  Friendship and respect, faith and reason, has been summarily dismissed depending on what team people have lined up on.  The very fact that such a thing is happening within the church between people on both sides is a damning indictment on all of us.  It’s nothing more than sin in the guise of partisan politics.

With that said, it’s ok to hold views – perhaps even strong views – on this issue, and on both sides of this issue.  So, in the spirit of adding to the debate, we would like to offer both our views, and the view of the United Methodist Church (according to our social principles) on this subject.

In doing so, let me first state our position on this.  Yes, we are in favor of a socialized form of healthcare in the United States.  Our views are based on actual experience under such (not just speculation or conjecture), and the knowledge that without the benefit of such a scheme, Mike would now be dead, Amy would be permanently crippled, and our family would be bankrupt.  That is in no way an overestimation or overstatement of the facts for our particular family. 

Let us start by addressing some of the really really stupid statements in this current debate.  We won’t even pose the accusations leveled … merely, we will just provide the answers as we know them.  We are not nazi’s.  We do not admire Hitler.  Our country of citizenship is absolutely democracy.  We’ve never been called before a death panel.  We choose our own doctors.  Conservatives can and do embrace socialized medicine.  The NHS in England and Medicare in Australia is not the invention of Satan designed to destroy the world.

We believe strongly that there currently exists a moral imperative in the USA for healthcare reform.  We think that is a statement that most of us agree with, no matter what side of the debate you may or may not fall on.

We choose to pay for our own health insurance here in the United States.  Like many people, we find the burden of such cumbersome and difficult.  Over a ¼ of our gross income each month goes toward healthcare.  Unfortunately for Mike, no matter how hard we work, or how much we pay, he is considered largely uninsurable under the current US health care system.  Thus the scourge of a ‘pre-existing condition’.  Even if we doubled our premiums, he would still not be covered.  This means that if one of us breaks an arm, then we can get it set and it won’t cost us thousands of dollars (merely hundreds instead).  But if Mike has another bout of ketoacidosis, we need to choose between financial destitution and maybe even the loss of our home in bankruptcy, or treatment of a condition that can lead to coma and then death.  1 in 10 cases of ketoacidosis end in death.  In the past 9 years, Mike has  had this condition twice (as a juvenile insulin dependent diabetic, type 1 - https://www.google.com/health/ref/Type+1+diabetes).  The last time Mike developed ketoacidosis, he prayed a whole lot and managed it himself without going to hospital – knowing that if he did go to the emergency room, he would not be covered by our health plan.  This is a daily reality for millions of people in the USA whether they have private insurance or not.

Any reform to the healthcare system needs to begin with tort reform.  The financial judgements handed out to victims of errant health care providers are excessive and ridiculous.  Millions are handed out for injuries that seem small and sometimes even self inflicted.  Yes, there needs to be a system of compensation in place for such events, small or large – but there needs to be some limits as well.  No-one deserves $2 million dollars for the mistake, as horrid as it is, of having 13 teeth extracted instead of three. http://www.thestate.com/crime/story/905995.html .  And as distasteful and abhorrent as I find the actions of Aetna (a large HMO), the death of a man at age 44 after being denied appropriate medical coverage by his health plan is not worth $120.5 million dollars for his widow.  http://www.chiroweb.com/mpacms/dc/article.php?id=35136

Yes – compensation needs to be paid when things go horribly wrong, but there needs to be limits on such compensation.  As the payouts go out, the premiums go up.

So, any debate, at least in our opinion, should begin with solid tort reform.  People think that it is the health care providers (doctors and dentists etc) that are pocketing these high premiums we pay – in reality, it’s probably the lawyers!

We believe a 2 party system could work in America, and keep both the private funds happy, and the poor healthy.  This is how the Australian system seems to work.

Firstly, there will always be abuses in every system, private or public.  The mantra that ‘the government is incapable of running healthcare’ is a moot point, especially considering the private sector can’t run it properly either!  There will never be a perfect system.  The government already runs some form of socialized healthcare – medicare, VA – and yes, there are problems.  But nothing we consider insurmountable with good, improved governance.   At present, many are saying, “don’t let the government interfere with my healthcare, let them play around with our war hero’s and elderly instead”.   We don’t understand why people are willing to put their faith and health in the hands of the private sector which answers only to shareholders, but not in their duly elected government representatives who are answerable to the people, and can be voted out at the next election!

As a funny side issue here, in a recent town hall meeting, a participant in the debate called out, “don’t let the government get its hands on my medicare”.  Erm???!!!!!!

A basic level of healthcare, we believe, needs to be extended to all Americans and American immigrants, regardless of income, race, gender, sexual preference, religion, or creed.  If you have a heart attack, you need treatment without losing your home.  If you have diabetes, you need ongoing care.  If you break your arm, you need to have it set.  In Australia, such a system is funded by a 1.5% tax levy on your income.  This levy is means tested.  So consider for a moment… you earn $75000 per year.  You pay $1000 per annum for health care.  I am paying close to that per month in the USA for sub standard healthcare that will still leave me destitute if things go more horribly wrong than just a broken arm. 

On top of a basic system, you can have a private system as well.  Australia also has such a system.  You can choose a more comfortable standard of care (for instance, you can get a private room in hospital instead of a ward) if you are willing to pay for it.  The Australian government offers substantial tax breaks and rebates for those who choose to pay for private health insurance.

Some of the arguments against a basic level of socialized health care puzzle me.

The argument that you cannot choose your own doctor.  Well, if you attend an emergency room with a life threatening condition, you don’t choose your own doctor under the best private system in the world!  You get whoever is on!  In Australia, you choose your own General Practitioner.  In England, you choose your own doctor in your local area under the NHS.  

The argument that the have’s should not subsidise the have not’s is patently and absolutely unscriptural.  Here  is perhaps where we hold our strongest beliefs in this debate.  We do not understand how the followers of Jesus can claim that they have no mandate to care for the least of these.  Scripture cannot be more clearer in this regard.  “…care of widows and orphans” “…what you do for the least of these you do for me”.

The argument that socialized medicine will cause the USA to become like Nazi Germany, or that death panels will adjudicate your life or death, is, to be frank, appalling.  And if you have engaged in the use of such inflammatory statements, then shame on you.

The argument that socialized healthcare means that citizens and legal residents are paying for the care of illegal immigrants is again a moot point, and a topic for a different debate.  How a country cares for its citizens and residents, and how it cares for its visitors and guests (legal or otherwise) should be separated.  However, it is our opinion that in the very least, illegal immigrants seeking medical care should receive basic care, in particular regard to communicable diseases.  Would you like someone with an untreated infectious disease to infect you?  The way we treat others, regardless of immigration standing or country of origin, shows a care for humanity and basic human rights.  However, immigration and healthcare are 2 separate (yet sometimes coinciding) debates.

The argument that the church should be responsible for caring for the least of these and not the government has 2 facets and sides.  Firstly, yes, the church should.  But the church doesn’t.  And the church won’t (on a wide reaching scale).  Yet we don’t believe that the bible’s prescription for caring for the least is for the church alone.  It is a societal command.  Care for each other.  Leave no one behind.  A nation that does not care for its poor is a poor nation. 

The argument that my money shouldn’t help other people is again moot.  For instance, we have a socialized road system (your money pays for other people to drive on the road).  If your argument is as such, then your use of an interstate should be user pays.  Every time you pay tax you are contributing to a social system.  So why is healthcare any different?  In our current system, the have’s are already paying for the have not’s.  High premiums and medical costs are as they are in some part not just to excessive tort costs, but to cover the cost of indigent, uninsured and underinsured (like me and many others through no fault of our own) who cannot afford a doctor and do not seek medical help until they have become seriously and expensively unwell.  This is an issue of public health as well.

We have a dual system at work in terms of education in this country.  Public and Private… and we believe the same can exist for healthcare.

The United States is already a socialized country… with socialized roads, socialized education and much more.  Socialized healthcare changes nothing in terms of who we are (and yes, we are now a ‘part’ of you – we’ll show you our green cards if you like!!). 

That is our basic position on the subject of healthcare reform.  Don’t hate us for it, or abuse us for it – that shows more about your character than ours.  Do engage us in debate.  Likewise, we covenant that we will not place our friendship with you aside should you disagree with us – even vehemently.  And Bob, if you are reading this, we know by now you are foaming at the mouth – but we love you anyway!  J 

Now, as the title of this very long essay suggests, we wish to lay out the basic belief system of the United Methodist Church (as we understand it).

Firstly, the issue of healthcare is not just today’s hot potato.  Rev. John Wesley was a passionate advocate of health care for all regardless of your ability to pay or not.  In fact, Wesley himself spent much of his life in pursuit of this cause.  This may surprise you, but none the less, it is true.

Wesley ran free health care clinics for the poor, dispensed medication, and wrote extensively on the subject.  He did so because he despised the fact that the poor had no access to doctors or medicines.  Thus the result of a user pays healthcare system.  He even advocated higher taxes on the wealthy in order to support the poor. 

John was at war with healthcare providers of his day, who were used to charging like a wounded bull for their services.  They saw Wesley trying to undermine their greed and were angry about it.  And the same continues today in America some 300 years later.  HMO’s (stress – NOT ALL, but many) are all about money money money.  It’s not about healthcare, it’s about the bottom line.  It’s not about wellbeing, it’s about shareholders.   And the modus operandi of many of these providers is to deny service to make more money.  Wesley would still be appalled.  Yet many in this country seem to think that this system is a fair and proper way to continue.  http://archives.umc.org/umns/intlnews_archive.asp?mid=881&story=8494A02B-4F8F-4ED1-86DA-08125E50C0E5

The United Methodist Church, within which we are now clergy, has released a statement of social principle (Book of Discipline, 162/V, 2008) on the issue of healthcare.  I believe this statement is absolutely infused with the spirit of Christ, and would have wholehearted endorsement from Wesley.

Are you (should you be United Methodist) free to disagree with the social principle of your church?  Absolutely you are.  We wouldn’t be who we are as a country or as a worldwide church without such.  But none the less, below is what we say collectively as a church, having arrived at this position after much prayer and careful consideration.   Let us leave you with it.  Grace and peace to you.

Rev. Mike and Rev. Amy Rayson, Pleasant View TN – 1 September, 2009.

UMC Social Principle, 162 part V.  Health is a condition of physical, mental, social, and spiritual well-being. John 10:10b says, “I came that they may have life, and have it abundantly.” Stewardship of health is the responsibility of each person to whom health has been entrusted.

Creating the personal, environmental, and social conditions in which health can thrive is a joint responsibility—public and private. We encourage individuals to pursue a healthy lifestyle and affirm the importance of preventive health care, health education, environmental and occupational safety, good nutrition, and secure housing in achieving health. Health care is a basic human right.

Providing the care needed to maintain health, prevent disease, and restore health after injury or illness is a responsibility each person owes others and government owes to all, a responsibility government ignores at its peril. In Ezekiel 34:4a, God points out the failures of the leadership of Israel to care for the weak: “You have not strengthened the weak, you have not healed the sick, you have not bound up the injured.” As a result all suffer. Like police and fire protection, health care is best funded through the government’s ability to tax each person equitably and directly fund the provider entities.

Countries facing a public health crisis such as HIV/AIDS must have access to generic medicines and to patented medicines. We affirm the right of men and women to have access to comprehensive reproductive health/family planning information and services that will serve as a means to prevent unplanned pregnancies, reduce abortions, and prevent the spread of HIV/AIDS. The right to health care includes care for persons with brain diseases, neurological conditions, or physical disabilities, who must be afforded the same access to health care as all other persons in our communities. It is unjust to construct or perpetuate barriers to physical or mental wholeness or full participation in community.

We believe it is a governmental responsibility to provide all citizens with health care.




** please note. This essay is not written expressing the view point of the members of Palmyra United Methodist Congregation. Each member is free to believe that which they believe on this issue. Such belief does not, will not, can not, and shall not interfere with the pastoral relationship we enjoy with them in any way. This essay is our collective viewpoint, and is offered for the benefit of education and discussion.

Happy New year everyone!!

I had a lazy day today and created this  (a videograper I am NOT!!!)

Enjoy!

Mike

Dear Sam

It's hard to believe this is my second Christmas letter to you.  Wasn't it just a few weeks ago I wrote you your first Christmas letter?

Much has happened this year Sam – things you would have enjoyed, and some that would have made you sad.  It seems as if you have missed out, but I know (that I know) that what you have missed you really need not miss at all, for the joys of this place must pale in comparison to the eternity you are embraced in.

I'm not sure whether I should start with the good stuff or the bad stuff.  Perhaps if I clear the air first, I can end on a positive note.

Ministry has been hard this year son.  The continual telling of the Jesus story in you, and sharing of the hope of resurrection you have already encountered and been enveloped by in its fullness has, in a strange way, left me very tired and quite broken.  Some people have taken advantage of the vulnerability we feel, and have sought to hurt us.  Other's – once friends – simply walked away from us after you were buried, never to return.  Some immediately, some over time.  Yet whilst such people have left us feeling discarded and broken, there are some who offer counterbalance in this mess.  Saints in the Kingdom of God. 

This year Sam, literally tens of thousands of people across the world in many countries have heard me preach and sing.  And of those, thousands have reconnected with Jesus – or found some measure of healing in the presence of Jesus in our story.  For though you are gone my dear son, you are still very much present, and the faith of Christ in you shines on.  With the amount of honest tears shed by hurting people at concerts and services this year, I should take out shares in Kleenex!

I am reading a book at the moment called "Lament for a Son" by Nicholas Wolterstorff.  He lost his son Eric in a dreadful accident over 20 years ago.  In his book he writes of people who have walked away from his family, or have ignored the 20,000 pound elephant in the room… (as some have chosen to do with us).

"Your tears are salve on our wound, your silence is salt".

Laura recently turned 11.  You are both the same age now.  That was a hard day for me… with a harder one still to come.  January 23^rd 2009.  On that day, she will be exactly the same age as you – 11 years, 1 month and 16 days.  The following day, I shall no longer have 'an older son'.  In some ways, you will always be my eldest – but in other ways you won't be.  I am proud of the way your sister is facing the world.  She still hurts for you, but even so, she faces the world with dignity and grace.

Oliver nearly joined you in glory this year.  Thanks God (for my sake) he is still with us.  After his attack, Bob and Rita gave him a t-shirt that read – "scars are just tattoos with better stories".  I know that he misses his older brother – especially when he is at a complicated juncture in some weird video game.  I must be getting old – I can't help him!  But you always knew how to work those things out.

Earlier in the year, Mum, Laura, Oliver and I went on a family vacation to Europe.  It was amazing!  Walking through Rome, I kept thinking of just how well you were mastering Italian before you left us.  And you would have laughed at your Dad's lame attempt to speak it!  We saw such sights as the Coliseum, the Roman ruins (even an original Roman Senate inscribed stone), the Trevi Fountain and the Spanish Steps.   The Vatican was quite stunning – although sad at the same time.  So much wealth, so much power, so much excess – but still, the poor outside the city walls begging for spare change.

We ate more pasta and pizza than I've ever eaten in a lifetime!  And then some!  Mum and I also drank our way through gallons of coffee.  It was all so good.

On that same trip, we spent time in England and Sweden as well.  We spent time with many who love you.  And in your memory, I teased the Swede's with my impression of the Muppet's Swedish Chef!   Yes it was a little rude, but if you were with us, it would have been your voice singing 'bork bork bork'!

In July of this year, we bought a house.  Yep – our first ever house (that we own).  It is in Pleasant View, just a couple of miles from the church.  You would love it!  It's big, and spacious, and our old house would fit into it twice over and then some!  It has upstairs (the bedrooms, the kitchen etc) and downstairs (the home theatre room and the recording studio). 

We have also added 3 additions to the household.  Olivia came to live with us in May.  Yes – you guessed it, your brother named her!!  She came as therapy for Oliver.  She's a scraggly looking black and white dog (of unknown parentage) who loves to chew things and run around the back yard of our new house.  She has lots of love to give!

Then Cooper came to live with us in July.  Cooper the cat (the wonderful wonderful cat).  And soon after Coop moved in, whilst I was in England, your Mother adopted a stray!  Her name is Annie (the cat, the wonderful wonderful cat).  We worry about Annie… she likes to lick you when you are asleep.  If we ever die in the house, she's going to eat us piece by piece!

When last I wrote to you, I had just finished recording "The Cloud" – a CD of songs written in and around your death.  Well, I've just finished another CD, called "Even So:1".  It won't be ready to ship out til later on next month, but I'm really excited about it.  Mum, Laura and Oliver helped me to record it.  Laura sang with me on 'It Is Well' – a hymn we sang before we buried you with Nanna Brooks.  And Oliver and Laura both helped me record your favourite hymn – Come Children Join To Sing.  It's not the same as the Colin Buchanan version that you loved so much, but it's bright and happy and joyful still!

With the end of 2008, it has occurred to me that had we still been in Australia, life would be changing dramatically for you.  You would be preparing, after the summer break, to transition from primary school into high school.  Wow – imagine that, me – the Dad of a high-schooler.  That's just scary!  And with your birthday early next year, another transition – 13.  A teenager no less.  I wonder often if you would have turned into a moody sullen teen, or have simply sailed through with few battle scars.  I guess I'll hang on to my romanticized idea that you would have been close to perfect (though let's face it – you would have probably been bloody difficult to live with!).

I just missed out on being able to do all the Dad things with you at this age… holding you down and squeezing that first pimple!!  Hahaha.  Don't worry; I keep stalking Laura – constantly on zit patrol!  And whilst most people who just read that went "ewwwwwwwwwwwww" – I absolutely know you were laughing!

It feels like, Sam, that we as a family have been under relentless spiritual attack from all quarters, and for a long time.  Perhaps it is because the presence and power of Jesus in your story is so compelling and life-giving that there are some who would like to 'shut us up' for good.  Who knows… what I do know is that Romans 8 echo's the words of the Psalmist… (44:22)

"We face death all day for you.  We are like sheep on their way to be slaughtered. "

I think in many ways I understand perhaps what was going through the Psalmist mind when he wrote that.  We live in the very real presence of death each day – we are stalked our whole lives by evil.  But far be it for us to dwell on the power of sin and death, or to allow its tentacles to reach in and destroy us.  For whilst Paul echoed that Psalm, he also wrote in the same chapter…

So, what do you think? With God on our side like this, how can we lose? If God didn't hesitate to put everything on the line for us, embracing our condition and exposing himself to the worst by sending his own Son, is there anything else he wouldn't gladly and freely do for us? And who would dare tangle with God by messing with one of God's chosen? Who would dare even to point a finger? The One who died for us—who was raised to life for us!—is in the presence of God at this very moment sticking up for us.

Though the weapons of evil and others continue to hurt us Sam, with God's help they shall not prosper.  For (to quote more from the Bible), "no weapon formed against us shall prosper".

That's it for another year Sam.  Mum and I are so very proud of you (and of the man you would have become).  Tomorrow it will be Christmas... and we will miss you Son.  We will miss you terribly.

Til we meet again in glory…

Dad.

"Some people feel guilty about their anxieties and regard them as a defect of faith but they are afflictions, not sins. Like all afflictions, they are, if we can so take them, our share in the passion of Christ."  C.S Lewis

"The friend who can be silent with us in a moment of despair or confusion, who can stay with us in an hour of grief and bereavement, who can tolerate not knowing… not healing… not curing… that is a friend who cares."  Henri Nouwen

"There is sacredness in tears.  They are not the mark of weakness, but of power.  They speak more eloquently than ten thousand tongues.  They are messengers of overwhelming grief, and unspeakable love".  Washington Irving

Amid the egg nog, the pretty lights, and the fat guy in the red suit cometh the 'tunes of the season!'.

"Even So:1" is now finished. (well, it needs to go to the manufacturer, but essentially, it is finished). Please enjoy 3 of the new songs from the album on my 'Myspace' music site - www.myspace.com/mikerayson .  Add one of the new songs to YOUR profile, and tell all your friends to order a copy!

O For a Thousand Tongues to Sing - a new contemporary twist on my favourite Wesley Hymn.  I'm sure if John thought of the new refrain, he would have used it!!!!

Come Children Join To Sing - kudos to Colin Buchanan  for first playing this song in this way.  I've added a new chorus.

Softly and Tenderly - featuring not just the guitar genius of Mr Tommy Emmanuel, but his vocal talents as well.  This is one of 2 duets on the new project, and I wrote the words to the second verse especially for him to sing.

More later - let me know what you think (either by comment, myspace message, or email).

AND REMEMBER TO ORDER THE CD ONLINE AT www.myspace.com/mikerayson .  Free Shipping until (and including) December 24th to Australia, England, and the USA.

Grace and peace... Mike

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BE SURE TO CHECK OUT THE PREVIOUS BLOG AND MAKE YOUR PURCHASES PRIOR TO CHRISTMAS EVE!  MERRY CHRISTMAS EVERYONE - GOD BE WITH YOU

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Seems everywhere you turn this year, someone with a sad look in their eye and (usually) a mournful voice is saying... "Christmas won't be quite as good this year"!

It's a phrase repeated over and over (with different variations) on TV, talk shows, on blogs and in conversations over coffee. It's the economy, it's the war, it's the....

Isn't it sad that we equate the season of Advent with how we are feeling in any given year. With the global downturn and the miserable forecast - Christmas won't be quite as good this year.

But of course... Christmas is all about Santa and his reindeer and the sleigh and naughty or nice lists and presents and... sorry kids, Santa needs to pull in his belt and remember to take his metaformin. It's a tough one chillin's! Christmas won't be quite as good this year.

Then there are the loved ones we have lost or will mourn again around the table. And of course - because of the dearly departed, Christmas won't be quite as good this year.

Usually there is turkey and ham and stuffing and a veritabel mountain of food on the table for lunch on Christmas day, but you know, this season we may have to have a smaller ham - the Christmas bonus from work wasn't as large this year as it was last. Christmas won't be quite as good this year.

Am I trivialising the pain that people feel especially close to the holidays. Heck no... I'm the poster child for pain, and I feel it too.

But WE are trivialising the message of Christmas everytime we keep the radio or television on and listen to another broadcaster say that 'Christmas won't be quite as good this year'. WE are trivialising the message of Christmas when we are totally consumed by the feeling of loss and grief and say 'Christmas won't be quite as good this year'. And WE are trivialising the message of Christmas when we proclaim to the world, ESPECIALLY when Christ followers proclaim to the world, that Christmas won't be quite as good this year.

The message of Christmas has never changed. Immanuel - God is with us! THAT is the message of Christmas. Nothin more, nothing less. Christmas will be brilliant this year - because God is with us. Christmas will be the best ever, because God is with us. Christmas will be special becuase God is with us.

Anything less makes a mockery out of the Advent season Ebennezer!

MIKE RAYSON CHRISTMAS SALE AND PRE-CD LAUNCH ON NOW!

Who needs a new power drill, another bottle of perfume, or (as my mother would say) a "wigwam for a goose's bridle!"

The hottest item for sale THIS year is a Mike Rayson CD.

We've dropped some of our prices, and totally abolished shipping from now until December 24th.

But here's the BESTEST NEWS OF ALL!!!

Included in this once a year, get it while its hot, Christmas spectacular is the brand new album...

FEATURING some of the greatest hymns and songs of the church...

HERE I AM LORD (I The Lord of Sea And Sky)

O FOR A THOUSAND TONGUES TO SING

THE SPIRIT SONG

SOFTLY AND TENDERLY (a duet with Tommy Emmanuel)

IT IS WELL (with my soul) (a duet with Laura Rayson)

...and a brand new 'KYRIE', written by Mike Rayson.

Together with liturgy by Bishop N T Wright; St Patrick's Breastplate; the Wesleyan Covenant Prayer; readings from Romans, Luke, John, Isaiah and the Psalms; and voices from around the globe - Joanne Lester (Traeger) in Sydney, Len Firth in Adelaide, Rev. Tony Miles and Lizzie Crow in London, Amanda Baranski and Tammy Mathews in the USA...  This is a worship CD not to be missed - a complete 'service' from beginning to end.

Best of all, this new CD features the world famous, grammy nominated guitarist "Tommy Emmanuel" - plus a vocal solo from the man himself.  Check out his webpage at www.tommyemmanuel.com - and after you've finished Christmas shopping here, go and Christmas shop some more there!! (I reccomend the Centre Stage DVD!!). 

EVEN SO:1 - Just $15 US, £12 UK, or $25 AU!

**EVEN SO WILL NOT SHIP UNTIL JANUARY 2009!

ALL OTHER CD's GREAT FOR CHRISTMAS!

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THE CLOUD - with the Nashville String Machine, Jerry McPherson, Blair Masters and Tommy Emmanuel.  Just US$15, £12, or AU$25.

Songs include... The Cloud, Save Me, You Carry Us and There's Hope!

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SOMETIMES HUMAN - with Peter Shurley.  Just US$15, £10, or AU$20.

Songs include... The Joinery Shop, Hey Joe, and Because You Love

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Merry Christmas from MRI Ministries.

*This offer is for US, UK and Australian residents only.  For other international orders, please email info@mikerayson.net

Ok I admit it!  I like to watch TV!

I'm not a TV junkie, and the television does not control my life... but all the same, there's nothing that relaxes me more than a good storyline and a glass of diet Pepsi with vanilla (in no particular order).

One of my favourite TV shows is House M.D, starring Hugh Laurie.  Laurie, though many Americans would not be aware of this, was long one of my favourite actors before House hit our screens several years ago.  He was Rowan Atkinsons sidekick (alongside Tony Robinson) in all of the Black Adder series.  He's also (true fact here) not American - but has perfected the accent brilliantly.  He's a Brit!  (although there was a definate mish mash of both accents going on last night on Conan O'Brien).

Last night - the final House for 2008, was simply hilarious!

(Australian and other non US readers - spoilers are contained after this line)

Long story short (and this will probably sound less funny on your screen than it was on my screen!). A young lady had seen House in the clinic suffering headaches (and a few other minor maladies).  House very quickly asked her how many weeks she was pregnant!

Pregnant!  She claimed that she and her boyfriend had never, well, you know... this was impossible!  In fact, she went and got said boyfriend.  

In the end, after running some tests, House convinced her (and the boyfriend) that she was suffering a rare case of parthnogenesis - the second recorded case in all the world.  Basically, her body had impregnated itself, and she was going to have the second 'virgin birth'!

OK - I found it funny... so much so that Amy had to come into the room to see what was going on!

But literally a couple of scenes later, the plot changed dramatically.  So much so, that I was reaching for the tissue box.  Now I am not usually an emotional wreck, but last night the storyline (another pregnancy story, in which the 16 year old mother died but her baby lived) really got to me.

From side splitting laughter to tears of sorrow in just a few minutes. 

And it was then I heard that still small voice whisper...

'Now you see how I work through you'.

I'm a methodist - commonly known as the 'frozen chosen'.  God doesn't speak to methodist's...does he????????? 

Now not such an earth shattering moment for the world, but certainly a big eye opener for me.

I have been gifted in many ways by my creator.  I have a fairly well developed, if not perhaps a little too sarcastic, sense of humour.  I would contend my wife Amy is better at the sarcasm and one liners than I am, but I think fairly quickly on my feet, and can generally come up with something to make company laugh!  If you've ever seen me perform, then you've seen me interact with people in this way.  Some shows that I have done requires a spatula to get people off the ceiling!

But, as quickly as we laugh, I begin to tell the story of Sam - and within minutes, I often have a very teary eyed congregation in front of me reaching for the Kleenex.

I get why people cry, and I guess when you tell the story often, you become a little desensitised to it.  But I still fail (because I am a man!) to see how I have the power to make people laugh in one hand, and cry in the other.

But last night I realised that I really don't.  It is God at work through me - through my story - affecting and infecting people with His story.  In fact, the very present reality of Christmas is played out in the lives of those in front of me everytime I perform.

The reality of Immanuel...

'So the Lord's promise came true, just as the prophet had said, 'A virgin will have a baby boy, and he will be called Immanuel,' which means 'God is with us.'   CEV

Each year, we approach the cute little kid in the manger, and we talk about peace on earth, and goodwill to all men.  We remember the wide eyed shepherds, and the 3 eastern kings with their impractical gifts (I mean, diapers, wipes and formulae would have been more helpful than gold and frankinstein and myrhh... ok, frankinscense, but frankinstein sounds cooler).

We sit around our Christmas tree's unwrapping gifts, sipping hot chocolate and singing songs about red nosed reindeer and listening to Bing Crosby opine about snow on Christmas day (just like the one's he used to know).

And in all of it, we completely miss the truth of Christmas.

It's not about the presents, the nativity set, the star in the sky, the shepherds, the magi, the snow, the poinsettia's, the fruit cake, or even the hot summers day (in Australia!!). 

It's also not really about a little bouncing baby boy (with halo) in a food trough, or the fat guy in a red suit, or more food than we can poke a stick at.

The meaning of Christmas runs far deeper and much wider than just the story of Jesus birth (as miraculous and wonderful as that story is) or the popular myths that we espouse around the world alongside it.

Christmas is a promise.  Immanuel.  God with us. 

God with us - when life is hard.

God with us - when gas prices are high.

God with us - when we think the world has forgotten us.

God with us - when the economy tanks.

God with us - when we do stupid things at the staff Christmas party.

God with us - when our marriage falls apart.

God with us - when a child dies.

The miracle of Christmas is not the actual nativity story (nor is it found on 34th Street)... it is the incarnation.  The word (Jesus) made flesh.  God among us, God with us.

St Athanasias (4th century) had much to say on the subject on the miracle of incarnation and the promise of Immanuel wrapped around it..

He became what we are that he might make us what he is.

His words were closely echoed some 1550 years later by CS Lewis...

The Son of God became a man to enable men to become sons of God.

It's not enough to marvel at the baby in the manger - the very son of God, Christ the King, the one who was and is and is to come, came - in the personhood of a human baby.  He entered into our pain, our skin, our very lives and lived among us.  At times he got a little angry, hungry, worn out... he laughed, trod on a few toes (I dare you to go up to your pastor this week and call him a hypocrite and a snake!), enjoyed the company of friends, wept real tears at the death of a close friend...

This baby belongs not in the manger.  This miracle belongs not just at Christmas.  The promise of Immanuel, God with us, our very present 'help in times of trouble'. 

Though I disagree with some of St Augustine of Hippo's work and writing (the man who introduced greek logic into spirituality - but that's a blog for another day), I found this quote especially helpful...

He by whom all things were made was made one of all things. The Son of God by the Father without a mother became the Son of man by a mother without a father. The Word Who is God before all time became flesh at the appointed time. The maker of the sun was made under the sun. He Who fills the world lay in a manger, great in the form of God but tiny in the form of a servant; this was in such a way that neither was His greatness diminished by His tininess, nor was His tininess overcome by His greatness.

Don't be distracted by the tiny baby... for the one who lies in the manger is truly great - truly miraculous - truly human.  He is, God With Us - Immanuel.  The one who knows our every sorrow and pain, our every groan and our every grin.  He, who (according to Phillipians) was made a little lower than the angels, entered into our world - and saw through our eyes - felt through our feelings - thought through our thoughts.

Christ the King, Christ the Servant.  Immanuel - with us, eternally!

Despite our efforts to keep him out, God intrudes. The life of Jesus is bracketed by two impossibilities: “a virgin’s womb and an empty tomb”. Jesus entered our world through a door marked,”No Entrance” and left through a door marked “No Exit.”
– Peter Larson

I've been dreading today.

More than any other birthday, or Christmas, or family celebration.

Even as I write this, I should be at church, but I just couldn't face listening to and hearing happy people wishing my daughter happy birthday.

Laura is 11.  Born December 7th 1997 in Port Lincoln.

The Diments looked after Sam whilst we whisked up to the hospital (and no, I didn't get lost THIS time!) and anticipated her birth.  Again, we had chosen deliberately not to know the sex of our newest family member, and were still discussing names.

I'm not sure we came to any great conclusion either during labor.

But then, the princess of my life came into living breathing existence... and the name "Laura".  My Grandmother had died 3 weeks prior, and her name was Lorna - Lorna Kathleen.  But frankly, none of my children were ever going to be called Lorna (sorry Grandma!) - so she become Laura... Laura Kathleen Joy.

Yes - 3 given names.  You see I have the standard 1 middle name, but Amy's parents were a little on the weird side and had given her 3 middle names - so we compromised and gave each of ours 2!

So, why is it 11 years later that I am avoiding her birthday.

Well today, she reaches a difficult number.  Had she been 10, or 12, then it wouldn't be a difficult day at all.  But 11...

She is now the same age as her brother.

And soon, she will be that little bit older.  On January 23rd, Laura will turn 11, 1 month and 16 days.

The time is counting down now until I no longer have an older son.  And it feels as if in some way he will become less significant, less important, and less real.

To those who believe the journey should be easier by now - its not.

To those who think Jesus can make it all better - he can't.

To those who think I should stuff my own thoughts away for the sake of my kids - you don't know what you are talking about.

To anyone tempted to say 'but he'll always be your eldest son' - please don't.

For today, just weep with me again.

And Laura - when you read this (and I know one day you will) - I love you more than I could ever love another little girl in the world.  And I'm sorry I stayed home to cry instead of going with you to church this morning.  I am proud of you for who you are and who you are becoming.

In the words of Spafford... Even so, it is well with my soul.

Welcome to Black Friday in the USA.

NEW YORK DAILY NEWS, FRIDAY 28th OCTOBER

"A Wal-Mart worker died after being trampled when hundreds of shoppers smashed through the doors of a Long Island store Friday morning, police and witnesses said.

The 34-year-old worker, employed as an overnight stock clerk, tried to hold back the unruly crowds just after the Valley Stream store opened at 5 a.m.

Witnesses said the surging throngs of shoppers knocked the man down. He fell and was stepped on. As he gasped for air, shoppers ran over and around him.

"He was bum-rushed by 200 people," said Jimmy Overby, 43, a co-worker. "They took the doors off the hinges. He was trampled and killed in front of me. They took me down too...I literally had to fight people off my back."

The unidentified victim was rushed to an area hospital, where he was pronounced dead at 6:03 a.m., police said.

Before police shut down the store, eager shoppers streamed past emergency crews as they worked furiously to save the store clerk's life."

MIKE ADAMS, NATURAL NEWS

"There's probably not a better scene that exemplifies American culture today: A 34-year-old Wal-Mart worker was trampled to death by 200 crazed shoppers this morning as they rushed into the store at 5:00 am to cash in on special discounts.

The mob of shoppers reportedly "took the doors off the hinges," injuring three other people in the stampede. They didn't even stop for emergency crews that were later treating the Wal-Mart employee on the scene -- they just kept rushing past, trying to get their share of the Wal-Mart discounts on "Black Friday," the biggest shopping day of the year.

Just how jacked up is American culture, anyway, when rushing to get some shopping done is more important than stopping to pick someone up off the floor and save their life? The herd mentality has taken over. Literally. All the advertising, commercial brainwashing, brand imprinting and the push to get people to own more stuff has led to this insane reality where people think that shopping is the key to happiness, and they're willing to do anything to get it.

Of course, this mentality isn't limited to America, but I think America exemplifies it best when we witness stampeding Wal-Mart shoppers killing a fellow human being.

I suppose now they'll have to post big signs on the Wal-Mart front doors: "Please don't trample employees." Or, better yet, the Wal-Mart employees should just be issued electrified cattle prods, and the shoppers can be corralled into branding chutes where they're branded with ID numbers and fitted with ear tags. This would allow Wal-Mart security cameras to identity which members of the herd are responsible for causing the most death and destruction.

After all, if the people are going to act like cattle, we might as well treat 'em like cattle.

It should be noted here that even though the Wal-Mart shoppers stampeded over a human being, they did not stampede over their coveted consumer electronics or big-screen TVs. No merchandise in the store was harmed in the stampede, which just goes to show you: To the herd, the value of a human life is LESS than the value of consumer electronics."

Sometimes, its not even worth adding your own thoughts to those of others that sum up your feeling succinctly. 

So, I'll make this brief.

Who's to blame?  Wal-Mart?  The Mob?  The US government for allowing the economies of the world to collapse under their watch and contributing to the current 'gotta getta bargain' mentality?  Or you and I?

I tend to think you and I need to take a good share of the blame.  If we were not so damn greedy, a family in New York would not be grieving today.

God help us - God help us all.