Winter in Liberty Lake has so far felt very classic. There’s snow on the ground, nearly everyone here skis, and Jess and I have enjoyed the cold nights sitting in front of the fireplace. We spent most of today relaxing and watching the snow fall – only venturing out once to get a cup of coffee and a few groceries.

Now that Jude is a year old we are starting to talk about traditions more. What will we do during the Christmas season? What role (if any) will Santa play? It’s interesting realizing that I’m at a similar place my parents were 28 years ago and I find myself picturing them having similar conversations.

I’m enjoying my last minutes of free-time before I go to bed - actually, last minutes for about the next week. I’m leading worship at 4 services over the next two days and then following that up with leading worship and teaching on Dec. 30. With my downtime tonight I’ve been reading about prominent Christian leaders in the US and the issues, discussions, and critiques that surround them. It’s interesting to me as I find myself at this point in my life, smack in the middle of evangelical culture. Whether I like it or not the label of evangelical would be the one that best describes me although probably not very accurately in a lot of ways, which I don’t have time to get into. I may try and muster up a thought provoking Christmas post in the next day or so but if I don’t and you are one who thinks that this time of year is about celebrating some myth, whether Santa or Jesus. I recommend that as part of your New Year’s resolution you read this book.

Peace.

P.S. I’m still wondering who my Russian reader is.