Ever since I got my turntable for Christmas in 2022, one of my favorite hobbies is record hunting. Specifically for 70’s and 80’s Christian records. I grew up on 80’s CCM (that’s Contemporary Christian Music for the uninitiated) and hearing the old tunes again brings back so many memories.

I missed most of the 70s Christian music, but have been catching up, thanks to an internet radio station called Classic Christian Rock Radio that plays primarily 70’s, 80’s, and 90’s. That has inspired me to hunt down some of those old bands and artists like Love Song, Daniel Amos, and Larry Norman.

The good part is that most of these are super cheap. I found the first 2nd Chapter of Acts record for $2. I lucked up on a Love Song record for $1. The vast majority of them have been under $10 (and a lot have been under $5).

Vintage Christian rock and pop music is not in vogue, but for those who grew up on it, it’s the best. Even if some of it hasn’t aged all that well and sounds super cheesy now. But at least it’s Christian cheesy, right?

I remember before I had a working turntable, I came across a record by Phil Keaggy, 2nd Chapter of Acts, and band called David. It was a live 3-record set called How the West Was One. To this day, I have no idea what happened to it, though I suspect I might have given it away due to no way to play it. If I could find that one again, my life would be complete. Or at least my record collection would be.

But even that wouldn’t stop me from going to record stores. The hunt is just that addicting.

“I wish thy way. And when in me myself should rise, and long for something otherwise, Then Lord, take sword and spear And slay” (Amy Carmichael).

As much as I love a lot of current Christian books, I think everyone should read something old, preferably by someone dead. I think those old classics by authors like John Owen, John Calvin, Charles Spurgeon, Oswald Chambers, Amy Carmichael, and Watchman Nee really are spiritually beneficial.

Even writers more current like Elisabeth Elliott and Corrie ten Boom can give insight and wisdom gained from lives filled with hardship and suffering. Those are the kind of writers who will be honest with you and talk about things like dying to self, denying myself, taking up my cross, and being willing to sacrifice everything on the altar for Jesus.

Elisabeth Elliot was famous for saying, “Let thy will be done even if it means my undoing.”

Again, I have no problems with books about the unconditional love of God, but I do think that everyone of us needs people who will always tell us the truth and point out our blind spots and faults (in a loving and not legalistic way of course) so that we can continue to mature and grow into Christlikeness.

I also relish finding new writers (and new to me old writers), so if you have any suggestions, leave them in the comments.

I don’t need the 15,000 square feet mansion with all the bedrooms, bathrooms, private cinemas, game rooms, and all that. I’d take this cabin (or something like it) in a heartbeat.

The older I get, the less I find that I actually need. The more I find that I am content with what I already have. That said, I wouldn’t mind house-sitting for a mansion or two to get that out of my system.

I found this handy dandy guide that will help you drive in the snow if you live in the South and have never driven in snow before. Or if you have driven in snow before and it didn’t end well.

It helps if you grew up Baptist. It’s not essential to understanding the analogy, but it certainly helps.

Now you know how to drive in the snow. And you’re probably really hungry by now.

“Christ delivered us when bound,
And, when wounded, 
healed our wound,
Sought us wandering, set us right,
Turned our darkness into light.

Can a mother’s tender care
Cease towards the child she bare?
Yes, she may forgetful prove;
He will never cease to love.

His is an unchanging love,
Higher than the heights above,
Deeper than the depths beneath,
Free and faithful, strong as death.

We shall see His glory soon,
When the work of grace is done,
Partners of His throne above;
Such to us His wondrous love!

This alone is our complaint,
That our love is weak and faint;
Yet we love Him, and adore,
O for grace to love Him more!” (William Cowper/John Bacchus Dykes).

Well, it’s official. Tomorrow, I go back to the office. My so-called “snow”cation is over.

I have to say that I was disappointed. I think I want my money back. Or I want the money I didn’t make from not working those 5 days.

I never thought I’d be so thrilled to be going places like Publix and Taco Bell, but when you’re basically snowed in and the roads are treacherously icy (at least in my neighborhood), then you get used to looking out the windows at all the pretty snow. And not much else.

But tomorrow, reality returns. You might say that this is like hitting the reset button to 2024 and tomorrow is like the second New Year’s Day. If you like, you can start over on all those resolutions that you made that crashed and burned by week two. Or you can make new resolutions.

I for one am still looking forward to all that 2024 will teach me. Or more accurately, all that God will teach me in 2024. I’m hoping that it won’t just be another 365 or so pages that I tear off my calendar but a year that finds me growing a year older and wiser. A year that finds me more like Jesus on December 31 than I was on January 1.

It will take a little time to readjust to the routine. It will take a couple of nights before I get used to the new sleep cycle. I will more than likely have a bazillion emails waiting for me at work. But on the bright side, I have a car to get me to work and a job waiting for me when I get there. That’s worth the routine, I think.