Merry Christmas!

Last night we were fortunate to have Yoshi Kato over for Christmas supper. Yoshi is a seminary student from Japan. Afterwards, we went to 10th Pres for the annual Chrismas Eve service, where we heard Stuar Neill sing--one of the world's best tenors according to Pavarotti. It was spectacular.

I awoke this morning to the smell of freshly made cinamon rolls. I jumped out of bed and found Christina to be the culinary culprit--fast at work in the kitchen like a little Christmas elf. Enjoying our first Christmas together as newly marrieds we are still carving out our own traditions, but filled stockings and wrapped presents seem to be shared alike. We are off to church, an ironically unusual event for Christmas morning, but one all the more important.

Merry Christmas and God Bless!

New Hymn for Advent

The following is a new hymn entitled “Grace Carol.” It was recently written by Phil Graham Ryken, the pastor of Tenth Presbyterian Church in Philadelphia. What a breath of fresh air it is to find a worship song written by a pastor/theologian. Listen to the words as they exalt the Lord Jesus....Merry Christmas everyone!

Joseph, see the Holy Child,
Born to Mary, mother mild;
Call him Jesus, Adam's son --
Now in Christ our God has come;
Call him brother, close of kin --
Human nature, without sin.
Born to us, a fallen race,
God Incarnate, gift of grace.

Shepherds, run to Bethlehem,
Seek the babe outside the inn;
Shepherd in the manger lies,
Born to comfort all your sighs;
Unto you the Savior lives,
For the sheep His life He gives.
Born to save our sinful race,
Jesus leads us by His grace.

Eastern kings, your glory bring,
Royal treasure for the King;
King of all, the Son is giv'n,
Destined for the throne of heav'n;
Raised on high, the Christ will reign,
Conquer sin and death and pain.
Born to govern Adam's race,
Jesus rules, the King of grace!

Jesus--Brother, Shepherd, King,
Sinners, let your voices ring!
God made flesh, the Living Word,
King of Kings and Mighty Lord,
Faithful Shepherd, David's Son,
Christ, Messiah, Holy One--
Born to save His chosen race,
Jesus gives us grace on grace.

Happy Birthday Dad!

What so special about today? Of course, on this day 64 years ago a swarm of 360 Japanese warplanes descended on the U.S. naval base at Pearl Harbor in a ferocious assault. December 7th is, as FDR put it, "a day that will live in emphany." But December 7th will always be historically significant for another reason. On December 7, 1945, my father, Alex Graham, Jr., was born. So, here's to you dad! Happy 60th birthday!

Some megachurches cancel Sunday services

Sunday is for opening presents...

According the Philadelphia Inquirer, the country's megachurches will not gather for corporate worship on Sunday, Dec. 25th, because it inconveniently falls on Christmas day. However, David Wells, a professor at Gordon-Conwell, provides the Inquirer with a telling comment about the situation. Here's the link to the article Philadelphia Inquirer

Turkey Day Delight

Greetings friends and family. The Graham clan has recovered from its inaugral turkey-day banquet, and, apart from a minor oven FIRE, which was speedily extinguished thanks to baking soda and Christina's cat-like reactions, the evening was delightful. We had the pleasure of entertaining four guests: Dr. Barron Ellebey, my parents, and John Ferguson. The following day, we decided to burn off some calories, so we drove to Geno's in south philly for some cheesesteaks. I'm not sure what makes Geno's so good, but after standing in line for 45 minutes in the freezing cold--not to mention heartburn and a pint sized injection of artery plaque--I was ready for some Pepto.

Saturday we ventured to the Big Apple (F.Y.I., NYC is named the "Big Apple" after a dance with the same name, which originated in Columbia, SOUTH CAROLINA). I forgot how breathtaking Manhattan is, especially for bumpkin-folk like myself. While there, we stopped by Broadway and caught a play, "Dirty Rotten Scoundrals," starring John Lithgow. It was funny, but Lithgow is forever typecast in my brain--he'll always be an alien!