The run-up to Christmas can be daunting. You and I are celebrating Christmas Eve when you read this. In “real” time, I’m writing last Thursday night in a Wal-Mart parking lot in Gastonia, NC.

“And it came to pass in those days, that there went out a decree from Caesar Augustus, that all the world should be taxed.

Every year, the local kindergartners sing, “He knows if you’ve been bad or good, so be good for goodness sake!” So, what is going to be in some of our stockings this year?

Brandon heaved the massive bottom portion of the now famous amber-colored Christmas tree over his shoulder and came staggering quickly down the stairs, trying to make it down without dropping it.

Examples of faith abound at this time of year. There is the faith children put in Santa Claus to bring them stuff that magically no one seems to have paid for. Call it a “bailout” for kids.

When I was a child, Christmas was the best time of the year. And what made it so exciting was that everyone seemed to join in the fun. There was a Santa in every store, songs like “Rudolph the Red-nosed Reindeer” played on the radio, and people generally acknowledged that the day had special meaning because of the Christ Child — thus the reason for the Christmas season.

Have you heard about the merry Christmas ladies? Five ladies in Niles, Ohio, are spreading the message of Merry Christmas. For the second year in a row, they’ve raised money to rent billboards. Last year, they were able to secure four billboards with the messages that read: “I miss hearing you say Merry Christmas” and “Why Have You Stopped Saying Merry Christmas?” Each was signed Jesus.

“GOP to Detroit: Drop Dead!”

So may have read the headline last week, had not President Bush stepped in to save GM, Ford and Chrysler, which Senate Republicans had just voted to send to the knacker’s yard.

The other morning was a perfect morning, especially for a pastor at a very hectic time of the year.

I awoke early, slipped out of bed, and went to the basement. We have a finished basement that, except for the absence of a kitchen, is somewhat like a small apartment.

There was one teacher at Briarwood High School, home of the Mighty Buccaneers, that was disliked more than any other. That teacher was Mr. Mikers, the math teacher. So when I drew the short straw at registration my senior year and ended up in his class, I knew it wasn’t going to be fun.

Good books are especially good to give as gifts to the proverbial “man who has everything” because he (or she) may not have heard of a new book that fits their interests.

Congress is on a spending binge. With all the calls for bailouts, economic stimulus and other assorted handouts, there is a real risk of inflation in our future.

My parents were grown folks when the Great Depression hit the United States in 1929. In fact, it was during that awful decade that they met, married, and had two children.

In the 11 educational articles I wrote for The Citizen in the weeks preceding the November school SPLOST vote in Fayette County, I pretty much explained how local sales tax is collected in Georgia. I certainly made it clear that the state of Georgia keeps 1 percent of our local sales tax and the merchants get another one-half of 1 percent.

Supposedly, this is the season for gift giving. It’s the season when people expect to receive gifts. It’s the season when the government expects you to boost the national economy through retail sales.

Most children have probably finished their Christmas lists to Santa Claus. Some elected officials, however, are still compiling theirs.

A woman, over the course of her life, will learn whom she can shop with and whom she can’t.

There are friends who will tell you that everything looks good on you, when it doesn’t. There are other friends who will tell that nothing looks good on you, when it does. There are friends who will want to shop in places too pricey for your pocketbook. There are other friends who will want to shop in places too cheap for your pocketbook. Choosing shopping buddies is one of the more important tasks in a woman’s life.

By Jason Pye

On Monday, Jan. 15, the 150th session of the Georgia General Assembly will be gaveled into session in Atlanta. From that time to Sine Die, as Mark Twain once said, “No man’s life, liberty or property are safe.”

By HAROLD BROWN

What is so attractive about concepts that defy definition? The concept du jour is “sustainable,” a fashionable adjective for many objectives, an umbrella for many agendas.

For most Americans, the time between Thanksgiving and Christmas is marked by a marathon of Christmas preparations and celebrations. There is a tree to put up and decorate (including the traditional untangling of the tree lights), presents to buy, wrapping and mailing to get done. There are Christmas mission projects such as Operation Christmas Child, collections for a children’s home or Angel Tree. And that’s not to mention the marathon of Christmas parties, luncheons, get-togethers and gift exchanges. With our church activities plus my husband being in retail, I confess that I sometimes want to shout, “Wait! We might miss the joy that comes with expectant waiting if we keep charging ahead like this!”

“Peace on Earth and good will toward men” gave way to radical consumerism, a mob mentality, and a young man trampled to death the Friday after Thanksgiving at a Wal-Mart in New York.

The market liked the prospect of an auto bailout. On Monday, General Motors stock soared 21 percent; Ford’s jumped 24.3 percent.

The High Museum of Art currently has two unique displays until April 2009: the Louvre and China’s Terracotta Army. Last weekend I got dragged to both by The Wife.

Most people on the left are not opposed to freedom. They are just in favor of all sorts of things that are incompatible with freedom.

“Dear Steve, some of my little friends say there is no such thing as responsive, accountable government.

“Papa says, ‘If you see it in The Citizen it’s so.’

After a year dominated by difficult and hard-fought elections, January will see a new President, Congress and Georgia General Assembly sworn into office.

Now that Mama’s gone, it seems pertinent that someone step up and take her place. Or try to, anyway. Regarding the kind of life that Mama had, I think I’d like to step up and volunteer to turn into Mama. Now, that woman had it made.

During the Great Depression and World War II, truly challenging times, there were songs that boosted the spirits of our parents, grandparents and great-grandparents.

This holiday season the American Humanist Association — an atheistic organization — is running an ad campaign in Washington, D.C., to counter the Christian and theistic message of Christmas. Metro buses bear signs that read: “Why believe in a god? Just be good for goodness’ sake.”

If you’ve spent much time with little boys, you probably know they are not quiet, dignified people. Self-discipline is still under development – I mean the boys’. I’m assuming we have already developed ours.