The Wonderful Gift, Our Son

17 years ago today, to the day in fact, my life and the life of my family changed forever. It is a day we still recognize and honor as a continuation of Christmas, but before I get too far ahead of the story, I need to go back to the beginning, the beginning of why it is all so important. But be forewarned, the story is not a short one, but it is one worth the read, and one that will let you know of the power of love, especially during this, or any other Christmas Season.

Growing up the way I did, I always knew I wanted a large family. Of course I never got that wish but I got what God gave us. My daughter Marathana was our first gift from God. We had our daughter after we had been married going on two years. I wrote about her in another blog, but wanted to designate the blog today to our gift some 17 years ago. My wife and I knew we would want other children, but with college and everything else we did not know how that would happen.


My daughter was approaching 3 or 4 years of age and we lived in Hillsboro Kansas where I attended Tabor College. We decided, after not having another child for some time that we would consider adopting a child. During this time we began our efforts of trying to adopt with The Villages Inc., an adoption agency for needy children. We were so excited, there was one little girl we were interested in. She was beautiful with shoulder length brown hair and wore glasses. She was older than our daughter and while it was a different way of growing a family it was one we pursued.

It was a pursuit we ended up regretting because the agency drug the procedure on for over a year, never telling us after they had shown us the little girl as to why the adoption procedure was not moving on. It was some time later that my wife and I that learned it was because of my background of being an abused child. There was believed an abused child would become an abusive parent. This hurt as much as the abuse I received as a child. Not only had I been mistreated by people who were supposed to love me, now I was being treated by a system and policy that assumed guilt without the checking out facts. My wife and I were so upset we put off the possibility of adopting or having children for several years.

It was now some years later and we lived in Greenville South Carolina. I had a great job I loved at Gateway House and the future looked promising. It was during this time my wife and I decided to begin the pursuit of adoption again. We went to an agency called Bethany Christian Services that handled adoption of children across the country. They had an office in Greenville and we thought we should again make the effort to adopt.


This time, with this agency, things were much different. We were assured that while we would have background checks done on us, that if I had indeed become a new person from my youth, we would be able to adopt a child. We were also assured that cost would not be a factor for our family as the agency would work with us. We learned a lot of other things regarding adoption though; we learned about the difficulty, we learned about the children, the number of children not adopted and a whole host of other things. We had hope.

One of the things we learned early on was that if adopting a white child that the process could be quite expensive, and last for some time. We were told some families have to wait over 10 years when requesting a white male child, a little less for a female. My wife and I, along with our daughter, had spent a great deal of time talking about this and we knew we were going to adopt a "Special Needs Child" or a child having difficulty being placed for one reason or another. In our research we discovered children of black and white backgrounds were among the most difficult to adopt. There were other issues within the Special Needs category; it could be a child with medical issues, an older child not yet placed, or any other number of variables. We requested from the agency though, a child having among the most difficulty to place, and age was not a factor. We were even willing to adopt an HIV/Aids baby. We specifically stated, we want the child hardest to place, and we know that is often a mulatto child and we are willing to accept a child like that.

That process of initial applications, interviews and so forth lasted a couple of weeks. We were given assurance we would likely have no trouble adopting a child, we were asked to come up with $500 if we did adopt to handle the court costs, and the church we were attending had gladly agreed to cover this. We did not know how long it would be, but we thought; "There is hope."

Time moved on and we were approaching the first year after the application process. We had heard nothing and assumed the adoption was likely not going to happen, just like the previous adoption had not happened. God had a Christmas miracle in store for us though; we just did not know it yet.

I had continued working at Gateway house when one day I received a phone call from a social worker at Bethany Christian Services. I will never forget that call. The phone call came in on Friday December 15, 1989. On the phone was a social worker, I can almost remember to this day the conversation, word by word.

"Mr. Furches, this is Nancy with Bethany, you had done an application at our agency for an adoption." She would state.

"Yes Mam, it was close to a year ago but my wife and I did do a request for an adoption." I replied, my heart pounding, not knowing if she was calling to deny, or to move ahead, or what.

"Well Mr. Furches, we wanted to know if we could schedule a home visit with you as soon as possible. We need to come by the house, check out everything and meet again with your wife and daughter. Would that be possible?"

"Yes Mam." I replied, starting to stumble a little with words because I knew the bad options had gone out the window. "When would you like to schedule it?" I asked, fully expecting she would reply sometime over the course of the next month.

"Well Mr. Furches," she responded, "Would it be possible to come by your house tomorrow?"

At this time I was more than nervous, I was ready to hit the floor. I knew the house was not up to our approval, as most any family we wanted to make sure everything was ready, so I asked, "Would it be possible to do that on Monday? I have to call my wife and I know she will want to clean up the house a little."

"Sure Monday will be fine, will say, 7:00 be okay?" She asked

"Yes Mam, that will be fine." I answered

"Fine, see you on Monday, December 18 at your house; are you still living at the address on Fernleaf Drive?" She asked.

"Yes Mam, that is correct." I responded,

"Great" she replied, "I'll see you Monday."

We ended the conversation and I had to almost run to my supervisor at the time, Donny Smith and ask if it was okay for me to call my wife. He stated fine, that I needed to make sure I did that and so I called. I think as I recalled the story to her, she was as dumbfounded as I.

I can't think of a slower weekend in my life than that particular weekend. It seemed as if Monday afternoon was going to ever arrive, but it eventually did.

Nancy arrived on time, at first things were different than I expected but the meeting went on. The meeting was at our house, a split level in a community just outside of Greenville called Travelers Rest. Our family had worked diligently on the house over the weekend including Marathana who was excited about the possibility of a new brother and/or sister. Nancy began to ask questions, questions I didn't fully understand as to why she was asking. Many were questions asked before in previous interviews at the agency. Yet, she continued to ask some of those same questions, questions about my background, our family's involvement with church, about our faith and on and on. None of them were offensive or upsetting, just strange to see repeated.

After about an hour Nancy indicated the meeting was about over, my wife and I, somewhat confused, asked the question; "so are we being considered for a child?" Nancy’s response was something that would last with us for a long time.

"Yes you are, we actually have a child, and I am not supposed to tell you this, but a small infant boy born on November 28. The situation surrounding his birth is somewhat difficult. I know you had stated in your initial interview that you would be willing to adopt a special needs child. Well this child was born at home. We know his birth mother was 15 or so when she got raped by two young black men. The story is she was delivering beer to the brothers, and was raped; she isn't sure which one is the father. The young lady had actually gone in to obtain information regarding obtaining an abortion and went into Bethany who talked her into having the baby and taking care of all of the costs associated with the pregnancy. The agency has tried to identify the father via testing and both deny the episode of the events. That doesn't surprise us though because of the nature of the pregnancy. We know the child was born at the girls' home, in the bathroom. Apparently the mother of the girl didn't know she was pregnant until the delivery. Everything related to the birth tested out fine with the infant tests. The paramedics arrived at the home and the baby boy was in great health. We would like to do placement as soon as possible. How soon do you think you can have a nursery ready?"

My wife and I were between shock, and excitement. We did not know what to expect or say at this point but I still tried to answer Nancy's question. "I don’t know when do we need a nursery ready?" I asked.

"Could you have one ready as soon as tomorrow?" She asked back.

At this point, my wife and I had gone through close to a year not hearing anything back, and all along the while assuming our effort to adopt a child would be as our last effort, something good we desired that just would not happen. Yet, feeling this and knowing my wife Mary Jane felt the same thing by observing her body movement and eyes, I responded. "I don't know about tomorrow, but we could have a nursery ready by Thursday." I realized this was Monday night; Christmas was one week away. The last thing we expected with this short of a notice was the gift of a new child into our family. It was totally unexpected. We didn't have paint, a crib, nothing for a newborn. Nancy was great and very pleasant with her response.

"I think Thursday will be fine. Expect to hear from me in the next couple of days but I really don't expect any problems. Just get the nursery ready, it looks like you are going to have the opportunity to have a baby boy for Christmas."

We prayed, and that night, my family was in shock, we couldn't believe what had just happened.

As the week went on we had not heard from Nancy, I was starting to get a little worried again, as was my wife so I decided to call Nancy on Thursday while at work. As I called I found out we indeed did have the chance to go and look at and adopt this little infant boy. She asked if we would be willing to wait until the Tuesday after Christmas, December 26 because the foster parents wanted the opportunity to have the baby with them over Christmas. The infant was called Jake by the foster family, he did not have an official name yet. I stated we could wait until Tuesday and made plans to meet at the Adoption agency.

To be honest, I do not know what Christmas day was like that year. In less than a week, we had gone from a 3 member family to suddenly getting ready to likely have a fourth member and a son at that. We were open to either a son or a daughter, but to be honest, as I had told the agency, it would be great to have a son. It was as if from one Christmas to the other, God had heard our prayers, our requests, and answered them. God was getting ready to give our family a Christmas we would never forget.

The following Tuesday finally arrived. We arrived at Bethany Christian Services around 9:00 AM. We realized and fully knew this little boy would be of milado (black/white) heritage and we were fully expecting a dark skinned little boy with nappy hair. We had been told in the past that sometimes one of the biggest shocks to families adopting mulatto children is that they were light skinned. We had thought about that and while skin tone did not matter, it was something that was still a surprise when we first saw baby Jake.

We went into a private room to get information on the baby, and to meet with the foster parents. We had never done anything like this. The excitement and electricity filled the air. One of the first things we noticed was the curly hair on the baby, and the fact that his skin was more olive color than dark brown or black as we had expected. We also noticed the baby was very small. Even at nearly a month in age, the child weighed less than 9 pounds. Our daughter when born weighed over 9 pounds and was approaching 11 pounds at one month of age. We were not used to a baby this small. The meeting went on for about an hour and a half. We knew we wanted the boy.

At the conclusion of the meeting, the staff at Bethany, including Nancy informed us we could go home and think about this adoption over a couple of days. We replied we did not need to think about it, we wanted our son. After a few moments of discussion, they encouraged us as to at least go eat lunch, then decide if we wanted the child. We stated we would and that lunch meeting lasted all of thirty seconds.

Across the street from Bethany was a Burger King Restaurant. My wife and I went in, and to be honest, I do not recall if I ate anything or not. I sat down across from Mary Jane, and asked her, "What do we need to talk about?"

"I don't know" She responded, "I want the baby."

"Yea, me to," I replied emphatically. I think that was the jest of our conversation, we waited around at Burger King for about an hour talking about our new son and how God had met our dreams, and then went back to Bethany. Upon our return, we met again with the Foster Family, and the administrators at Bethany. After a few questions, filling out some paper work. We were literally handed a child to be our own. It was a feeling I will never forget.

When asked about deciding on a name for the child, we knew right off the bat what the name would be as we had discussed it when we first started the adoption process some years before. In fact, Mary Jane and I had discussed child names even before getting married for both a boy and a girl. We had always wanted to name a son Nathaniel Seth if we had one and my grandfather had recently passed. His name was William and we decided on the name Nathaniel William Seth Furches. It was not long afterward we learned the name meant, Anointed Gift of God. Nathan for our family would always be a reminder to the goodness and love offered by God to our family, even when things at times seem tough.

The first couple of years were not easy. Nathan had gone through some fairly serious health issues that had required surgery, and one of those health issues was a life threatening event. We struggled during those times early in that first year, and the subsequent years to come. He lived his first years in South and North Carolina, he was born in Charleston South Carolina, but would end up growing up in Oklahoma and Kansas.

For 17 years now, we have had a celebration in our family that concludes on December 26. On that day we keep back one present for each member of the family from Christmas and open it as a family. As I type this, we are going to my daughters' house in Newton Kansas to celebrate the day. It is a reminder of the day Nathan came to our family, and a reminder of the day God completed our family. We are also reminded of the gift God gave to earth for all of humanity.

A lot has happened over those 17 years, some good, and some bad. Among the greatest joys of that time is being there to hold my sons hand as he prayed the prayer to receive Christ into his life. It was at a Power Team presentation and we only went because he had ring worm and was unable to wrestle at an AAU National Championship tournament in Tulsa. Then there was the time I had the honor of baptizing him at our church in Owasso Oklahoma. We have had other things happen most of the enjoyable ones were related to spiritual accomplishments, and family.

Nathan has not only been a blessing to me and my family, but to many whom he has come to know. His story has appeared in various publications and he has had feature articles written about him in various magazines. I still say, he is a child of God, and a gift from God. He has turned into a fine young man among many other things. I am honored to call him son, but even more honored that God was willing to give my family an incredible gift, at Christmas on that Christmas 17 years ago.

Today is the last blog/article in the Christmas series. I thank those of you for reading them. I also appreciate the prayers and support for our family over the course of the next year. We value this ministry, we know God has blessed us and we hope we can share more about his love over the course of the year than ever before. If we know how to give each other good gifts, how much more does our father in heaven know how to give each of us good gifts. I have experienced that blessing in life. It is my hope that the ministry of The Virtual Pew can help you see and experience those same blessings.

Now before we get to the videos today, hopefully everyone will remember to pass the blogs along to your friends. The Christmas Special blogs from TVP can help a lot of people. You can show them what we are doing by Clicking Here at this Link. They can also get in the Christmas Spirit by Clicking Here and reading about The Virtual Pew and our Christmas giving options.

Now for those that do not know, make sure you check out the numerous articles and blogs by checking out the archives. If visiting The Virtual Pew or MySpace they are archived on the left hand side of the page. Scroll down to where you see newer or older listed under archives and then click there. There are numerous postings, and you will have to go into the archives to see the 100 plus postings over the last months.

Now I also want to remind you that you can visit www.thevirtualpew.com and on the front page scroll down to the left hand side of the page where you sill see our store. Your purchases through our Amazon store provides needed funds to The Virtual Pew. If you do not see something on the page to buy, you can click on the search engine for the store, (do not put anything in the search box at this time) and you will then be taken to Amazon where you can search for anything you desire. Hopefully as you shop for Christmas you will consider a gift to The Virtual Pew and/or at the very least shop our store. The items on the store page are highly recommended.

Now prior to checking out the videos for the day, here is that information, contact and contribution information regarding The Virtual Pew. Again, thanks for visiting, have a Merry Christmas or whatever holiday you celebrate. Just remember though, from The Virtual Pew, we wish you a Merry Christmas and a Happy Blessed New Year.




Contact and Giving Information


Oh Yea, here is that contact information again.

The Virtual Pew
P.O. Box 17731
Wichita, KS 67217

Or you van give on line via Pay Pal at: http://www.furches.org/donations/index.html

To become a part of The Virtual Pew, visit, http://www.thevirtualpew.com/ To learn more about me visit http://www.furches.org/ I am also active on MySpace at: http://www.myspace.com/mikefurches I have another blog at http://blog.myspace.com/mikefurches To visit the Hollywood Jesus group at MySpace with membership by numerous Hollywood Jesus reviewers visit: http://groups.myspace.com/hollywoodjesus For a more in depth weekly study and conversation you an visit: http://virtualpewsermon.blogspot.com/ where you can access deeper teaching and ultimately videos for viewing and teaching. You can also subscribe to the newsletter at www.thevirtualpew.com or see the newsletter on line at http://thevirtualpewnews.blogspot.com/ You can also sign up for the free newsletter from The Virtual Pew by visiting the main page for The Virtual Pew, or you can see the newsletters online by visiting this web site: http://thevirtualpewnews.blogspot.com/ You can contact me via email at mike@furches.org or mike@thevirtualpew.com For those interested in knowing more about my own story, contact me for a free e-copy of my book The Keystone Kid in pre-edit form.

Reliant K Be My Escape


Three Stooges Christmas


Mad TV Bowling for Christmas


Charlotte Church O Holy Night


Names of Jesus


The Coors Merry Christmas War Is Over White House


David Hasselhoff Silent Night in German


Lola Lebowitz Sings Santa Baby


Ms Prissy Response Mr Grinch


George Winston’s Holly and the Ivy


ELP I Believe in Father Christmas


Christmas is All Around Billy Mack


Yolanda Adams O Holy Night


Davy Jones Bill Nighy Christmas is All Around Us


The Ramones Merry Christmas


Billy Squire Christmas is the Time to Say I Love You


Bob Rivers 12 Pains of Christmas


Eric B Pimp My Sleigh


Dogs Sing a Christmas Song


Silent Night With Lighthouses


John Mellencamp I Saw Mommy Kissing Santa Clause


Flaming Lips Christmas At The Zoo

The Christmas Story

Here it is in the Midwest around 8:00 PM on Christmas Eve. The day has been hectic, likely that way for a large number of us. What does one say for a blog at this hour? It was actually quite easy to decide. I'll share The Christmas Story from my favorite Bible translation to read and think about, The Contemporary Engllish Version.

Luke Chapter 1 - Chapter 2 Verse 40

Luke 1
(1) Many people have tried to tell the story of what God has done among us. (2) They wrote what we had been told by the ones who were there in the beginning and saw what happened. (3) So I made a careful study of everything and then decided to write and tell you exactly what took place. Honorable Theophilus, (4) I have done this to let you know the truth about what you have heard.
An Angel Tells about the Birth of John
(5) When Herod was king of Judea, there was a priest by the name of Zechariah from the priestly group of Abijah. His wife Elizabeth was from the family of Aaron. (6) Both of them were good people and pleased the Lord God by obeying all that he had commanded. (7) But they did not have children. Elizabeth could not have any, and both Zechariah and Elizabeth were already old. (8) One day Zechariah's group of priests were on duty, and he was serving God as a priest. (9) According to the custom of the priests, he had been chosen to go into the Lord's temple that day and to burn incense, (10) while the people stood outside praying. (11) All at once an angel from the Lord appeared to Zechariah at the right side of the altar. (12) Zechariah was confused and afraid when he saw the angel. (13) But the angel told him:
Don't be afraid, Zechariah! God has heard your prayers. Your wife Elizabeth will have a son, and you must name him John. (14) His birth will make you very happy, and many people will be glad. (15) Your son will be a great servant of the Lord. He must never drink wine or beer, and the power of the Holy Spirit will be with him from the time he is born.

(16) John will lead many people in Israel to turn back to the Lord their God. (17) He will go ahead of the Lord with the same power and spirit that Elijah had. And because of John, parents will be more thoughtful of their children. And people who now disobey God will begin to think as they ought to. That is how John will get people ready for the Lord. (18) Zechariah said to the angel, "How will I know this is going to happen? My wife and I are both very old."

(19) The angel answered, "I am Gabriel, God's servant, and I was sent to tell you this good news.(20) You have not believed what I have said. So you will not be able to say a thing until all this happens. But everything will take place when it is supposed to."

(21) The crowd was waiting for Zechariah and kept wondering why he was staying so long in the temple. (22) When he did come out, he could not speak, and they knew he had seen a vision. He motioned to them with his hands, but did not say a thing.

(23) When Zechariah's time of service in the temple was over, he went home. (24) Soon after that, his wife was expecting a baby, and for five months she did not leave the house. She said to herself, (25) "What the Lord has done for me will keep people from looking down on me."

An Angel Tells about the Birth of Jesus
(26) One month later God sent the angel Gabriel to the town of Nazareth in Galilee (27) with a message for a virgin named Mary. She was engaged to Joseph from the family of King David. (28) The angel greeted Mary and said, "You are truly blessed! The Lord is with you."
(29) Mary was confused by the angel's words and wondered what they meant. (30) Then the angel told Mary, "Don't be afraid! God is pleased with you, (31) and you will have a son. His name will be Jesus. (32) He will be great and will be called the Son of God Most High. The Lord God will make him king, as his ancestor David was. (33) He will rule the people of Israel forever, and his kingdom will never end."

(34) Mary asked the angel, "How can this happen? I am not married!"

(35) The angel answered, "The Holy Spirit will come down to you, and God's power will come over you. So your child will be called the holy Son of God. (36) Your relative Elizabeth is also going to have a son, even though she is old. No one thought she could ever have a baby, but in three months she will have a son. (37) Nothing is impossible for God!"

(38) Mary said, "I am the Lord's servant! Let it happen as you have said." And the angel left her.

Mary Visits Elizabeth
(39) A short time later Mary hurried to a town in the hill country of Judea. (40) She went into Zechariah's home, where she greeted Elizabeth. (41) When Elizabeth heard Mary's greeting, her baby moved within her.
The Holy Spirit came upon Elizabeth. (42) Then in a loud voice she said to Mary:

God has blessed you more than any other woman! He has also blessed the child you will have. (43) Why should the mother of my Lord come to me? (44) As soon as I heard your greeting, my baby became happy and moved within me. (45) The Lord has blessed you because you believed that he will keep his promise.

Mary's Song of Praise
(46) Mary said:
With all my heart

I praise the Lord,

(47) and I am glad

because of God my Savior.

48He cares for me,

his humble servant.

From now on,

all people will say

God has blessed me.

(49) God All-Powerful has done

great things for me,

and his name is holy.

(50) He always shows mercy

to everyone

who worships him.

(51) The Lord has used

his powerful arm

to scatter those

who are proud.

(52) He drags strong rulers

from their thrones

and puts humble people

in places of power.

(53) God gives the hungry

good things to eat,

and sends the rich away

with nothing.

(54) He helps his servant Israel

and is always merciful

to his people.

(55) The Lord made this promise

to our ancestors,

to Abraham and his family

forever!

(56) Mary stayed with Elizabeth about three months. Then she went back home.

The Birth of John the Baptist
(57) When Elizabeth's son was born, 58her neighbors and relatives heard how kind the Lord had been to her, and they too were glad.
(59) Eight days later they did for the child what the Law of Moses commands. They were going to name him Zechariah, after his father. (60) But Elizabeth said, "No! His name is John." (61) The people argued, "No one in your family has ever been named John." (62) So they motioned to Zechariah to find out what he wanted to name his son.

(63) Zechariah asked for a writing tablet. Then he wrote, "His name is John." Everyone was amazed. (64) Right away, Zechariah started speaking and praising God.

(65) All the neighbors were frightened because of what had happened, and everywhere in the hill country people kept talking about these things. (66) Everyone who heard about this wondered what this child would grow up to be. They knew that the Lord was with him.

Zechariah Praises the Lord
(67) The Holy Spirit came upon Zechariah, and he began to speak:
(68) Praise the Lord,

the God of Israel!

He has come

to save his people.

(69) Our God has given us

a mighty Savior from the family

of David his servant.

(70) Long ago the Lord promised

by the words

of his holy prophets

(71) to save us from our enemies

and from everyone

who hates us.

(72) God said he would be kind

to our people

and keep

his sacred promise.

(73) He told our ancestor Abraham

(74) that he would rescue us

from our enemies.

Then we could serve him

without fear,

(75) by being holy and good

as long as we live.

(76) You, my son, will be called

a prophet of God

in heaven above.

You will go ahead of the Lord

to get everything ready

for him.

(77) You will tell his people

that they can be saved

when their sins

are forgiven.

(78) God's love and kindness

will shine upon us

like the sun that rises

in the sky. (79) On us who live

in the dark shadow

of death

this light will shine

to guide us

into a life of peace.

(80) As John grew up, God's Spirit gave him great power. John lived in the desert until the time he was sent to the people of Israel.

Luke 2
The Birth of Jesus
(Matthew 1.18-25)
(1) About that time Emperor Augustus gave orders for the names of all the people to be listed in record books. (2) These first records were made when Quirinius was governor of Syria. (3) Everyone had to go to their own hometown to be listed. (4) So Joseph had to leave Nazareth in Galilee and go to Bethlehem in Judea. Long ago Bethlehem had been King David's hometown, and Joseph went there because he was from David's family.
(5) Mary was engaged to Joseph and traveled with him to Bethlehem. She was soon going to have a baby, (6) and while they were there, (7) she gave birth to her first-born son. She dressed him in baby clothes and laid him on a bed of hay, because there was no room for them in the inn.

The Shepherds
(8) That night in the fields near Bethlehem some shepherds were guarding their sheep. (9) All at once an angel came down to them from the Lord, and the brightness of the Lord's glory flashed around them. The shepherds were frightened. (10) But the angel said, "Don't be afraid! I have good news for you, which will make everyone happy. (11) This very day in King David's hometown a Savior was born for you. He is Christ the Lord. (12) You will know who he is, because you will find him dressed in baby clothes and lying on a bed of hay."
(13) Suddenly many other angels came down from heaven and joined in praising God. They said:

(14) "Praise God in heaven!

Peace on earth to everyone

who pleases God."

(15) After the angels had left and gone back to heaven, the shepherds said to each other, "Let's go to Bethlehem and see what the Lord has told us about." (16) They hurried off and found Mary and Joseph, and they saw the baby lying on a bed of hay.

(17) When the shepherds saw Jesus, they told his parents what the angel had said about him. (18) Everyone listened and was surprised. (19) But Mary kept thinking about all this and wondering what it meant.

(20) As the shepherds returned to their sheep, they were praising God and saying wonderful things about him. Everything they had seen and heard was just as the angel had said.

(21) Eight days later Jesus' parents did for him what the Law of Moses commands. And they named him Jesus, just as the angel had told Mary when he promised she would have a baby.

Simeon Praises the Lord
(22) The time came for Mary and Joseph to do what the Law of Moses says a mother is supposed to do after her baby is born. They took Jesus to the temple in Jerusalem and presented him to the Lord, (23) just as the Law of the Lord says, "Each first-born baby boy belongs to the Lord." (24) The Law of the Lord also says that parents have to offer a sacrifice, giving at least a pair of doves or two young pigeons. So that is what Mary and Joseph did. (25) At this time a man named Simeon was living in Jerusalem. Simeon was a good man. He loved God and was waiting for God to save the people of Israel. God's Spirit came to him (26) and told him that he would not die until he had seen Christ the Lord.
(27) When Mary and Joseph brought Jesus to the temple to do what the Law of Moses says should be done for a new baby, the Spirit told Simeon to go into the temple. (28) Simeon took the baby Jesus in his arms and praised God,

(29) "Lord, I am your servant,

and now I can die in peace,

because you have kept

your promise to me.

(30) With my own eyes I have seen

what you have done

to save your people,

(31) and foreign nations

will also see this.

(32) Your mighty power is a light

for all nations,

and it will bring honor

to your people Israel."

(33) Jesus' parents were surprised at what Simeon had said. (34) Then he blessed them and told Mary, "This child of yours will cause many people in Israel to fall and others to stand. The child will be like a warning sign. Many people will reject him, (35) and you, Mary, will suffer as though you had been stabbed by a dagger. But all this will show what people are really thinking."

Anna Speaks about the Child Jesus
(36) The prophet Anna was also there in the temple. She was the daughter of Phanuel from the tribe of Asher, and she was very old. In her youth she had been married for seven years, but her husband died. (37) And now she was eighty-four years old. Night and day she served God in the temple by praying and often going without eating. (38) At that time Anna came in and praised God. She spoke about the child Jesus to everyone who hoped for Jerusalem to be set free.

The Return to Nazareth
(39) After Joseph and Mary had done everything that the Law of the Lord commands, they returned home to Nazareth in Galilee. (40) The child Jesus grew. He became strong and wise, and God blessed him.

Now before we get to the videos today, hopefully everyone will remember to pass the blogs along to your friends. The Christmas Special blogs from TVP can help a lot of people. You can show them what we are doing by Clicking Here at this Link. They can also get in the Christmas Spirit by Clicking Here and reading about The Virtual Pew and our Christmas giving options. Also be on the lookout for my story of The Best Christmas Ever, which will be posted around Christmas Day. It is a heart tugging story, and a true testament to the power of Christmas and God. I am really looking forward to retelling this story that is true, and happened to me and my family. It has been published across the world, and I will redo the story, just for The Virtual Pew.

Now for those that do not know, make sure you check out the numerous articles and blogs by checking out the archives. If visiting The Virtual Pew or MySpace they are archived on the left hand side of the page. Scroll down to where you see newer or older listed under archives and then click there. There are numerous postings, and you will have to go into the archives to see the 100 plus postings over the last months.

Now I also want to remind you that you can visit http://www.thevirtualpew.com/ and on the front page scroll down to the left hand side of the page where you sill see our store. Your purchases through our Amazon store provides needed funds to The Virtual Pew. If you do not see something on the page to buy, you can click on the search engine for the store, (do not put anything in the search box at this time) and you will then be taken to Amazon where you can search for anything you desire. Hopefully as you shop for Christmas you will consider a gift to The Virtual Pew and/or at the very least shop our store. The items on the store page are highly recommended.

Now prior to checking out the videos for the day, here is that information, contact and contribution information regarding The Virtual Pew. Again, thanks for visiting, have a Merry Christmas or whatever holiday you celebrate. Just remember though, from The Virtual Pew, we wish you a Merry Christmas.

Contact and Giving InformationOh Yea, here is that contact information again.

The Virtual Pew

P.O. Box 17731

Wichita, KS 67217

Or you van give on line via Pay Pal at: http://www.furches.org/donations/index.html

To become a part of The Virtual Pew, visit, http://www.thevirtualpew.com/ To learn more about me visit http://www.furches.org/ I am also active on MySpace at: http://www.myspace.com/mikefurches I have another blog at http://blog.myspace.com/mikefurches To visit the Hollywood Jesus group at MySpace with membership by numerous Hollywood Jesus reviewers visit: http://groups.myspace.com/hollywoodjesus For a more in depth weekly study and conversation you an visit: http://virtualpewsermon.blogspot.com/ where you can access deeper teaching and ultimately videos for viewing and teaching. You can also subscribe to the newsletter at http://www.thevirtualpew.com/ or see the newsletter on line at http://thevirtualpewnews.blogspot.com/ You can also sign up for the free newsletter from The Virtual Pew by visiting the main page for The Virtual Pew, or you can see the newsletters online by visiting this web site: http://thevirtualpewnews.blogspot.com/ You can contact me via email at mike@furches.org or mike@thevirtualpew.com For those interested in knowing more about my own story, contact me for a free e-copy of my book The Keystone Kid in pre-edit form.

Boys 2 Men Christmas Acapella This Christmas


The Mr. Bean Christmas Party


Clintons Accoustic Christmas Special and Spoof


Amy Grant Breath of Heaven


Mary Did You Know Photo Montage


Gaither Vocal Band The Christmas Song


Cliff Richard Sweet Little Jesus Boy We're All One


Mary Did You Know


Go Fish, It's About The Cross


Away In A Manger Amber Thompson Kelly Nelon


Angela Lansbury Story of Jesus


Christmas Begins with Christ


Walking in the Light African Childrens Choir


Pipers Night Before Christmas Mark Lowery


Kathy Mattea Mary Did You Know


Don't Cross Christ Out of Christmas Dwight Mallory


Peace Child O Come Emmanuel The Normals


A Christmas Song Dave Matthews


Avalon We Are The Reason


Amy Grant Little Town of Bethlehem


Mogwai Christmas Steps Live


The Monkeys Christmas Medeley With Michael Nesmith


Christmas with the Kelly Family 1994


Anime Christmas Special


Chip & Dale Christmas


Zack Kim First Noel


Joan Crawford Christmas


Darlene Love on Letterman Baby Please Come Home


New Edition Christmas All Around The World


Mario Lanza O Holy Night

Traditions

Here it is Christmas Eve and for many, the traditions will end tonight, and for others, they will start. It seems as if we all have some level of traditions we go through during the Christmas season. I know that for my family we do. Tonight my daughter will arrive at the house with her husband. We will load up in the van, drive around the area to check out Christmas lights while listening to a variety of Christmas music, from Bing Crosby to John Rivers, from sacred to sacrilegious, we will listen to it all while checking out the lights and getting into the Christmas spirit.

After seeing the lights, we return home to continue a tradition we started in our family some years ago. You see, I knew that between my wife's families and mine they had their own traditions, for some, those traditions involved us. We knew though, especially with our families, and with the route we had chosen in life, it was going to be important to start our own traditions. So early on we did just that. We started with the traditions that have carried on now for almost 28 years.

Each Christmas Eve night we start with the reading of the Christmas story from the Gospel of Luke. We read from the angel telling Zechariah and Elisabeth about the upcoming birth of John to the point where Simeon holds the baby Jesus in the temple. We say a prayer of thanks for and to Christ, and in the early days before children, would watch a movie, then go to bed.

After we had children it seemed as if only a few things would change. We would continue with the car trip of going to see Christmas lights, listening to music, reading the story, but after the birth of our daughter we added a couple of things. My wife and I read to our daughter all of the time, year round, from a very early age. Her love of reading is likely why she did so well in school, and later obtained a vocation of crafting words, she is much better than I and I know it.

One of the things that changed was our purchase of the book Santa are you for Real from one of the local Christian book stores. We purchased this wonderful Children's book that told the story of the real St. Nicholas. It was one of the books that inspired me some years later to spend a great deal of time researching and checking out the Real St. Nick. In this family tradition, from a very early age, we begin to teach our daughter the correlation between Santa Claus, and the Real St. Nicholas. We never taught the existence of a Santa Claus, just the historical person of Saint Nicholas and what he believed. Now don't get me wrong. We would play, and use Santa Claus as a reminder of who the Real St. Nicholas was, but we knew from the outset, including my daughter, that we were playing. The tradition of reading this book has carried on in our family for years, and will continue tonight. Some ask if not teaching our daughter about St. Nicholas deprived her of any childhood joys? I don't think so, it at least in our minds, better allowed us to be honest with her. As she grew older she didn't have to distinguish about the reality of Jesus, we have never denied that story. She also knew that her parents wouldn't trick her. In fact, she got into trouble once for sharing the truth about the real St. Nicholas at school, that is okay though, we have sense made sure to teach our son, and subsequently our daughter, that it is best if each individual family teaches their own families their own traditions. You can click on the book image to read the story of Santa are you for Real.

Another tradition that started with our daughter was she was allowed to open one present from her Aunt Sissy, my sister on Christmas Eve. I think I can say in all honesty, my wife and I have never opened a present on Christmas Eve. We have had friends give us presents, from work or other places, but even there, just like last night in fact, I ask, can I wait to open this on Christmas day? If they say no open it now, we honor them with their request, but really like it when they say, yea go ahead and wait. While I think everyone makes those types of decisions, we knew our family would understand the value of Christmas Day by saving the presents to open on the day Christ was born. Many other families, just as mentioned later have a different tradition, many will open their presents tonight, that is fine, it is up to them but these are the ones our family honors.

The third and last tradition up until my son is that on Christmas day we have a Birthday Cake for Jesus and sing happy birthday to Jesus. It is if you will, part of our prayer on Christmas day to make sure we realize what the day is all about. Our family has enjoyed these traditions for some time, and they were a ritual in our family that stayed just like that up until the receipt of our son which I will share more about tomorrow when I share, The Ultimate Christmas Present.

Over the years some things change here and there, for almost 16 years of our life, we had homeless people, and mentally ill people spend Christmas with us. We loved this time, and to be honest, miss it a great deal. We still try to do it, but just don't have the accessibility and resources we once had. This was a real reminder of what it meant to give at Christmas, and to be honest, giving to them, took away the selfish desires we may have had for ourselves regarding getting presents.

It would be some years later and we incorporated another tradition to make Christmas last longer. It always seemed as if there was a let down right after opening the presents. What we started doing though was leaving one present behind to be opened on Christmas night. It made the excitement, and joy last longer through the day. We have sense added another present to be opened the day after Christmas, but more about that tomorrow. Our kids have taken turns handing out presents, and then the recipient gets to put now, two back, to be opened later.

The truth is, life goes on, we all in some ways, even if a part of someone else's tradition, develops and starts our own traditions. In fact, I personally encourage new families and even old ones if they haven't done so to start their own traditions. I tell them, "make them personal, make them special, but whatever you do, make sure you do something that will remind you of the birth of Christ, and of what Christ has done for you. Also celebrate family."

I think the lack of family celebrations as a child is what has made this day so special to me. I am pretty quirky about the day. I know it isn't the day that Jesus was actually born, it was likely at a later date and a later time, but it is a day when we can all come together, whether we realize it or not, accept it or not, and recognize the wonderful things that came to this earth through Christ birth, and ultimate crucifixion and resurrection.

This Christmas has been tough financially, but God has helped our family realize it isn’t about receiving or even for that matter, giving gifts, it is about celebrating the birth of Christ and what that gift brought to the planet. God is still good. True, we may not have as many gifts to open as we have in the past, we may not have had as many gifts to give as we have in the past, but we have done what we could for the people we love and because Christ loves us we have reason to celebrate. That is what matters.

As time goes on, new traditions start and things change. Just like Tevya in Fiddler on the Roof, we have to accept that fact. My daughter is grown now, married and someday, will have children of her own. I have encouraged her and her husband to start their own traditions, and in a way, they have. They will do Christmas Eve celebrations tonight including gift openings with her husbands' family. This Christmas will likely be a little better than last because last Christmas was the first Christmas without his mom. I suspect those things get a little easier, I don't know, I can't relate to that yet. I imagine it is still hard though. I cherish the willingness of my daughter to give this gift of love to her husband and her new family. I honor and respect that tradition. They will arrive at the house here late tonight. Then our traditions will start but we are thinking about checking out something we have never done before, we are thinking about going to a Midnight Mass. We are not Catholic, but thought, this could be something new. Don't know if it will be something we do again, if it will become a tradition, we haven't done it yet. We realize, trying something new don't constitute it becoming a tradition, doing it year, after year, after year does. With that being said, what traditions do you have? If you don't have any, are you willing to start? Merry Christmas and have a great day.

Just a reminder, there will be another blog today, this evening, and then the Ultimate Christmas Blog tomorrow. If you want to see how good God really is, how it is that he still gives gifts, you will want to check out the Christmas Day Blog.

Now before we get to the videos today, hopefully everyone will remember to pass the blogs along to your friends. The Christmas Special blogs from TVP can help a lot of people. You can show them what we are doing by Clicking Here at this Link. They can also get in the Christmas Spirit by Clicking Here and reading about The Virtual Pew and our Christmas giving options. Also be on the lookout for my story of The Best Christmas Ever, which will be posted around Christmas Day. It is a heart tugging story, and a true testament to the power of Christmas and God. I am really looking forward to retelling this story that is true, and happened to me and my family. It has been published across the world, and I will redo the story, just for The Virtual Pew.

Now for those that do not know, make sure you check out the numerous articles and blogs by checking out the archives. If visiting The Virtual Pew or MySpace they are archived on the left hand side of the page. Scroll down to where you see newer or older listed under archives and then click there. There are numerous postings, and you will have to go into the archives to see the 100 plus postings over the last months.

Now I also want to remind you that you can visit www.thevirtualpew.com and on the front page scroll down to the left hand side of the page where you sill see our store. Your purchases through our Amazon store provides needed funds to The Virtual Pew. If you do not see something on the page to buy, you can click on the search engine for the store, (do not put anything in the search box at this time) and you will then be taken to Amazon where you can search for anything you desire. Hopefully as you shop for Christmas you will consider a gift to The Virtual Pew and/or at the very least shop our store. The items on the store page are highly recommended.

Now prior to checking out the videos for the day, here is that information, contact and contribution information regarding The Virtual Pew. Again, thanks for visiting, have a Merry Christmas or whatever holiday you celebrate. Just remember though, from The Virtual Pew, we wish you a Merry Christmas.

Contact and Giving Information

Oh Yea, here is that contact information again.

The Virtual Pew
P.O. Box 17731
Wichita, KS 67217

Or you van give on line via Pay Pal at: http://www.furches.org/donations/index.html

To become a part of The Virtual Pew, visit, http://www.thevirtualpew.com/ To learn more about me visit http://www.furches.org/ I am also active on MySpace at: http://www.myspace.com/mikefurches I have another blog at http://blog.myspace.com/mikefurches To visit the Hollywood Jesus group at MySpace with membership by numerous Hollywood Jesus reviewers visit: http://groups.myspace.com/hollywoodjesus For a more in depth weekly study and conversation you an visit: http://virtualpewsermon.blogspot.com/ where you can access deeper teaching and ultimately videos for viewing and teaching. You can also subscribe to the newsletter at www.thevirtualpew.com or see the newsletter on line at http://thevirtualpewnews.blogspot.com/ You can also sign up for the free newsletter from The Virtual Pew by visiting the main page for The Virtual Pew, or you can see the newsletters online by visiting this web site: http://thevirtualpewnews.blogspot.com/ You can contact me via email at mike@furches.org or mike@thevirtualpew.com For those interested in knowing more about my own story, contact me for a free e-copy of my book The Keystone Kid in pre-edit form.

Donald Fagen Snowbound


Jump 5 Nick At Night Christmas Special


New Christmas Light display 2006 TSO


War Is Over Drum Corps Cover, Verry Good


DBSK Singinging Magic Castle, Santa Claus is Coming to Town


The Night Santa Went Crazy


Frosty The Snowman 1965


One Piece Utae! Jingle Bells


Flanders is a Jerk, The Ned Flanders Christmas Carol - The Simpsons


Newsong Christmas Shoes


Regine Velasquez All I Want For Christmas is You


Christmas Toys 2006 Music Video Aqua Be Happy


Dreams The Coors Christmas Live BBC


Lewis Black Christmas


Aire De Navidad 1973


All I Want For Christmas is You Hayden


Christmas Wrapping The Waitresses


Crazy Christmas Lights 5 TSO


We Three Kings, Hugh Jackman, David Hobson and Peter Cousen


Slade Merry Christmas Everybody TOTP 1973


Taylor Hicks White Christmas


Michael W. Smith Place In This World


The Christmas Song, Guitar & Sync Great Photos


Boney M. Mary's Boy Child, Oh My Lord


Clay Aiken Christmas Show A Christmas Song


Winter Wonderland Madison Park


Heather Martin, When Are You Coming Home - (WOW is all I can say. This one made me tear up)


Heather Martin News Features


Enya Silent Night In Irish


Sims 2 I Saw Mommy Kissing Santa Clause


Amadeaus Chamber Choir O Holy Night

Merry Christmas?

There are always special television shows during the Christmas season. From music, to variety shows, and from animation to sitcoms, Christmas means enough to the industry to make sure they address it in their programming. Over the last weeks I have posted a variety of program features and today I am posting the last of the series programs. Do not take that the wrong way, there are still quite a few videos to be posted but I am wrapping up the segmented program videos. As I was doing this I begin to think; "What do the people involved in this programming think of Christmas?" "Do they really care for the holiday?" "Do they realize what the holiday is all about?" I guess in a lot of ways, those questions not only apply towards the people making the shows, they apply towards those of us watching.

People often look at the holiday and see if for something other than what it is. They forget the root of Christmas, is Christ, and the root of Holiday is Holy. When we say Merry Christmas, we reference Christ birthday whether we realize it or not. When we say Happy Holidays we are saying have a Happy Holy Day whether we realize it or not. I guess a question I could ask is; "Do we make a regular habit of speaking meaningless words?"

The sad truth is that more often than not this is exactly what we do. When asked; "How are you doing?" The general response is a simple, an often time's dishonest answer of fine. I know in my own life when asked this question, I have found out who cares and who does not by honestly answering it. It becomes clear, when not doing well, and telling someone I am not doing well when asked the question, they become uncomfortable because they were not expecting honesty. I do not know who that says more about, the person asking questions not wanting honest answers, or the person answering them and not being honest.

One of my favorite books of the Bible is James, it is a short book and anyone can read it in less than 30 minutes. One of the things people notice, especially if thinking about what they are reading, is how upfront the Bible is about our words having integrity, and the need to speak truth. James is not the only part of the Bible that talks about this, Jesus spoke it, Paul taught it, and many others talk about the value of words. With this strong admonition in the Bible, we still take this issue lightly. Then we wonder why we do not have the results or the relationships we desire.

I guess I could close with the question; "What do we want out of Christmas?" Are we like those people in the sitcoms, just going through the actions, pretending everything is wonderful and we really understand what the Christmas about? Or, do we speak with truth and integrity? Do we see value in what we do, and really try to apply the concepts from the Bible to our life? I guess I refer to the Bible because if we are going to celebrate and pretend to recognize what this day of Christmas is all about, doesn’t it make sense we would look to the book that tells about the one who is Holy, God, and about the one who the holiday is named after, Jesus Christ?

Maybe I am just trying to be too rationale. Maybe I am taking things too seriously. I don’t know, am I? Maybe we should be okay with being pawns in a society who is satisfied with loneliness, poor relationships, and broken families. Then again, maybe some of us want more we want all Christmas has to offer, not just the presents but a real understanding of the Prince of Peace, The Wonderful Counselor, The Giver of all Gifts, The Star of Bethlehem, The Son of God. I guess that can be the thing to think about with the videos we conclude with today. Are you like the actors or are you wanting to be different? After all, I hope life is just as Shakespeare described, you know the old saying; "Life is more than just an act."

Now before we get to the videos today, hopefully everyone will remember to pass the blogs along to your friends. The Christmas Special blogs from TVP can help a lot of people. You can show them what we are doing by Clicking Here at this Link. They can also get in the Christmas Spirit by Clicking Here and reading about The Virtual Pew and our Christmas giving options. Also be on the lookout for my story of The Best Christmas Ever, which will be posted around Christmas Day. It is a heart tugging story, and a true testament to the power of Christmas and God. I am really looking forward to retelling this story that is true, and happened to me and my family. It has been published across the world, and I will redo the story, just for The Virtual Pew.

Now for those that do not know, make sure you check out the numerous articles and blogs by checking out the archives. If visiting The Virtual Pew or MySpace they are archived on the left hand side of the page. Scroll down to where you see newer or older listed under archives and then click there. There are numerous postings, and you will have to go into the archives to see the 100 plus postings over the last months.

Now I also want to remind you that you can visit www.thevirtualpew.com and on the front page scroll down to the left hand side of the page where you sill see our store. Your purchases through our Amazon store provides needed funds to The Virtual Pew. If you do not see something on the page to buy, you can click on the search engine for the store, (do not put anything in the search box at this time) and you will then be taken to Amazon where you can search for anything you desire. Hopefully as you shop for Christmas you will consider a gift to The Virtual Pew and/or at the very least shop our store. The items on the store page are highly recommended.

Now prior to checking out the videos for the day, here is that information, contact and contribution information regarding The Virtual Pew. Again, thanks for visiting, have a Merry Christmas or whatever holiday you celebrate. Just remember though, from The Virtual Pew, we wish you a Merry Christmas.

Contact and Giving Information

Oh Yea, here is that contact information again.

The Virtual Pew
P.O. Box 17731
Wichita, KS 67217

Or you van give on line via Pay Pal at: http://www.furches.org/donations/index.html

To become a part of The Virtual Pew, visit, http://www.thevirtualpew.com/ To learn more about me visit http://www.furches.org/ I am also active on MySpace at: http://www.myspace.com/mikefurches I have another blog at http://blog.myspace.com/mikefurches To visit the Hollywood Jesus group at MySpace with membership by numerous Hollywood Jesus reviewers visit: http://groups.myspace.com/hollywoodjesus For a more in depth weekly study and conversation you an visit: http://virtualpewsermon.blogspot.com/ where you can access deeper teaching and ultimately videos for viewing and teaching. You can also subscribe to the newsletter at www.thevirtualpew.com or see the newsletter on line at http://thevirtualpewnews.blogspot.com/ You can also sign up for the free newsletter from The Virtual Pew by visiting the main page for The Virtual Pew, or you can see the newsletters online by visiting this web site: http://thevirtualpewnews.blogspot.com/ You can contact me via email at mike@furches.org or mike@thevirtualpew.com For those interested in knowing more about my own story, contact me for a free e-copy of my book The Keystone Kid in pre-edit form.

The Simpsons Christmas Stories 1/3


The Simpsons Christmas Stories 2/3


The Simpsons Christmas Stories 3/3


Jerry Garcia and Bob Weir Christmas Concert 1/4


Jerry Garcia and Bob Weir Christmas Concert 2/4


Jerry Garcia and Bob Weir Christmas Concert 3/4


Jerry Garcia and Bob Weir Christmas Concert 4/4


Full House Our First Christmas Show 1/3


Full House Our First Christmas Show 2/3


Full House Our First Christmas Show 3/3


Full House Christmas Episode 1


Full House Christmas Episode 2