Ratone
Registered: 12/01/05
Posts: 3,046
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Reply with quote | #1 |
Greetings skate friends & BDS family!
I hope that you are all doing well and I am looking forward to seeing some of you in Cali this Christmas. I will be celebrating Christmas differently this year and I want to invite you to join me in this conpsiritous (not sure if this is a word or not) adventure.
I will be participating in the Advent Conspiracy and it is based on the idea that the consumerism and materialism so often associated with Christmas is not in any honoring to God when thousands of our brothers and sisters are dying around the world from a lack of basic needs in general.
It is based on four ideas
1. Spend Less (money that is)
2. Give more (relaionally and spiritually)
3. Worship Fully (how often does the American spirit of Christmas get in the way of truly worshipping Christ) and
4. Love All (This means giving the majority of the money that i would spend on Christmas to the poor and marginalized, My church takes up an offering that goes to the building of wells in India.) It is about giving to those truly in need to bring life and hope and not just so that we can accumulate a bunch of "Stuff."
I beleive it is the way of Jesus -being more concerned about the welfare and justice of others than our own.
So though it might sound weird and peculair i will not be accepting any material gifts this year. That doesn't mean I am not celebrating Chrsitmas, I am just celebrating it differently. I will do my best to either make gifts for people or give gifts of relationship.
Please take the time to watch the Advent Conspiracy video (2-ish minutes http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=eVqqj1v-ZBU
Thank you for listening and I also invite you to join me in this experience or at least check out the cause. Otherwise, I love you all and am looking forward to seeing many of you soon.
Grace and Peace,
-JAY
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CO
Registered: 04/24/09
Posts: 655
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Reply with quote | #2 |
celebrating differently this year alright. goin' here to celebrate X-mas; |
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Dodo
Registered: 08/06/03
Posts: 962
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300hpdavid
Registered: 05/06/05
Posts: 6,307
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Reply with quote | #4 |
I am not a religious person, but I understand what Jay is saying. I will more than likely continue on with a "traditional" Christmas, but having met Jay, I can say, "Kudos to you Jay!"
Jay has never pushed his religious beliefs, at least not that I have ever seen, and I still do not see this invitation as any sort of "pushing", but just what it is, an invitation.
Good on Jay for doing what he feels is right, and not being afraid to toss ideas out there.
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HBO
Registered: 06/18/06
Posts: 3,047
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Reply with quote | #5 |
I'm just looking forward to seeing this years Christmas card from the Vonesh family!!!
If you get 'em from Jay and family, you understand. Too funny. 
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crisco92107
Registered: 03/04/09
Posts: 99
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Reply with quote | #6 |
Christmas gets more commercialized every year.Makes me wanna puke seeing Christmas shit in all the stores before we even celebrate Halloween. |
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rogerdoct
Registered: 08/25/04
Posts: 3,753
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Reply with quote | #7 |
Jay, that is awesome! Great message... It disgusts my that the retail store here had their Christmas stuff out before it was even Halloween. The commercialization of the holiday season really distracts from some of the joy and true meaning of the special time of year...
Roger "Doc". 
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Shovelheadave
Registered: 10/03/07
Posts: 3,401
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Reply with quote | #8 |
Quote: Originally Posted by Ratone
1. Spend Less (money that is)
2. Give more (relaionally and spiritually)
3. Worship Fully
4. Love All
Words to live by, not only this Christmas Season but, all year long. |
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skikatdaddio
Registered: 11/28/07
Posts: 736
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Reply with quote | #9 |
Awesome Jay! Its an amazing thing to find out there is a purpose for ones life. That your life could be used by God to be a blessing to someone. Not just the masses but one here and one there. I read this the other day......
WALKING ON A BEACH WAS AN ELDERLY MAN. HE WALKED WITH A CANE, CAREFULLY LOOKING OVER THE BEACH THAT THE RECEDING TIDE HAD LEFT EXPOSED. EVERY NOW AND THEN HE WOULD BEND OVER AND PICK SOMETHING UP AND TOSS IT INTO THE OCEAN. AS ANOTHER WATCHED THIS, HE BECAME CURIOUS AS TO WHAT THE OLD MAN WAS DOING SO HE CAME CLOSER AND SAW THAT THE OLD MAN WAS PICKING UP STAR FISH THAT HAD BEEN BEACHED BY THE RECEDING TIDE AND TOSSING THEN BACK INTO THE WATER BEFORE THEY DRIED UP AND DIED. THE YOUNG MAN BECAME CURIOUS AS TO WHY HE WAS DOING THIS AND SO HE APPROACHED HIM AND ASKED, "WHY ARE YOU DOING THIS, THERE ARE ENDLESS MILES OF BEACH AND THERE ARE MILLIONS OF STARFISH, SURELY YOU DON'T THINK YOU CAN SAVE THEM ALL!?" WHAT DIFFERENCE DO YOU THINK YOUR EFFORTS WILL MAKE?" SLOWLY THE OLD MAN BENT OVER AND PICKED UP ANOTHER STARFISH, AND AS HE TOSSED IT INTO THE WATER HE LOOKED AT THE YOUNG MAN AND SMILED, THEN SAID, "IT MAKES A DIFFERENCE TO THE ONE I JUST TOSSED BACK INTO THE WATER! IT DID NOT MATTER THAT HE COULDN'T SAVE THEM ALL ... HE DID WHAT HE COULD KNOWING SOME WOULD BE SAVED! THOUGH WEAK AND INSIGNIFICANT HIMSELF, HE WAS CONFIDENT THAT WHAT HE DID MATTERED TO SOME! – SOURCE UNKNOWN
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ISLANDSK8R
Registered: 05/07/05
Posts: 8,035
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Reply with quote | #10 |
Right on Jay. not much into the consumerism thing myself.
Quote: Originally Posted by COcelebrating differently this year alright. goin' here to celebrate X-mas;
Have fun co, I spent a night partying in PR on my way to Barbados back in the mid 80's.......from what I remember I had a pretty good time.  |
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