On the Sunday after Thanksgiving, I was driving to church and noticed that people had begun putting up their Christmas decorations. On the roof of one house on Highway 54 east, an inflated Santa stood straight and tall, waving to folks as he ushered in the Christmas season.

The next day, as I was driving to work, I passed the house again, yet this time Santa was totally deflated and was up on the housetop lying flat on his face. I thought, "It's not even Dec. 1, and Santa is already pooped. I hope this isn't a sign of things to come."

What a picture of Christmas. If we're not careful, the stresses and strains of the season can pressure the life right out of us. But, worship pumps life right back into us and makes us stand tall again. Christmas should be a season of worship. Christmas is not a date on the calendar, but a state of mind. It's not an annual event so much as it's a state of heart. It's a time of awe and wonder and reflection on God's great gift, His Son, Jesus Christ.

Christmas can be a hectic time. If we're not careful, we can get caught up in the madness of unrealistic expectations and unrestrained spending. With all of the gifts to buy, parties to attend, and things to do, the sweetness of Bethlehem can turn into the confusion of bedlam.

In the 1500s, St. Mary of Bethlehem was a monastery that served as a hospital. Their mission was to care for the physically ill. Somehow, the mission changed and the monastery became a city-run insane asylum. Incredibly, the insane asylum, now known simply as "Bethlehem," became a famous tourist attraction. People came from all over to pay an admission fee that gave them entrance and permission to heckle the inmates.

Finally, the name "Bethlehem" evolved into "bedlam." In time, the word bedlam referred to confusion, chaos and noise that symbolized the insane asylum. Has Christmas become bedlam for you? Maybe we need to go