Faux; Fake;Phoney;OK?

  I was in a store the other day and saw one of those plastic and metal fireplaces which was labeled "Walnut Fireplace." The irony is found in the fact that I instantly knew that this thing was plastic and not "Walnut" as in wood. How did this transformation take place? How is it that I have come to expect that "Walnut" is a color and not (as it should be) a kind of wood?
  When we allow others to redefine our language without question, should we be surprised that the inherent entropy of the world system has found a home in the Church? What does worship, for example, mean?  Does it mean chanting mindlessly and repetitively a chorus of adjectives "at " God? Or is it merely tradition, and pageantry for the human eye and ear? The Biblical model is very different from the modern one.
  The only way to know what the true meaning of something is to go back to the source of all truth found in the Bible. I don't need the secular world to tell me what Christmas means, I understand the significance of the event, and it has nothing to do with my giving. Exchanges of presents is one way some have tried to redefine Christmas. The crux of the issue is not however in two equals exchanging presents of somewhat equal value. The Christmas story is so different from that as to stagger the imagination. "God sent forth His Son..."we are told. One of the most awkward moments at any Christmas season is to either be given a gift when you didn't expect it and weren't able to reciprocate or to be given a much more valuable gift than the one you provided. So how is our view of gift giving in any perceivable way analogous to the real Christmas story?
  The Grace of a Sovereign God sending help to the helpless is what Christmas is all about. We can't begin to thank Him enough or to pay Him back for God's Grace! So what should we be doing to help redefine what Christmas is all about? How about unashamedly telling those most difficult audiences (our family and friends) what rotten "children" we've all been and yet our heavenly Lord has sent us the door to eternal life! Now that is a present worth opening, and a story worth telling.