‘Wise men still seek Him’
Merry Christmas & 2 big announcements
This image is from FaithShare Media.
As the culture has moved deeper into a post-Christian America, folks have felt compelled to remove Jesus Christ from Christmas.
More people identify as Nones, meaning they have no spiritual faith.
If you are a follower of Jesus Christ, and your faith shapes how you view life, expect a leftist politician to attempt to force you to violate your conscience. After all, it’s their nature to do that.
Why? Because Jesus Christ offends people. They don’t believe in God, let alone God-Man.
Years ago, I latched onto a phrase: “Wise Men Still Seek Him.” This uniquely Christmas-themed phrase focuses on the magi who visited Jesus Christ as a young child. Jesus Christ can be sought even today.
The phrase is a mindset on the kingdom not of this world. It’s a perspective of life where no one has all the answers.
In an age where people create their own reality, seeking the one who said to his disciples: “I am the way, and the truth, and the life; no one comes to the Father except through Me,” (John 14:6, NASB), provides an anchor at any time, but especially troubling ones.
Being wise is not head knowledge, one’s IQ, or academic achievement. Being wise requires discernment, understanding, and knowledge about life situations with a heavenly focus, not an earthly one. These are people who have had life experiences and they not only know how to handle them, but they come out better on the other side.
Wise people attract others. Wise people are genuine influencers who don’t need social media to earn that title. Wise people become mentors and confidantes. Wise men and women speak life into others. They are great people to have in your life because, among other things, the truth is held in high regard, and they will tell others the truth when it’s needed, and whether others like it or not.
With my dad dying in a farming accident when I was 20-21 months old, I have no memory of my father, Clarence. My older brother was 4 years old when our father died. The wise people in my life, besides my mother, Ola, who died in late May, were my grandparents, uncles, aunts, pastors, neighbors, and folks in the churches we attended. I will not list names because there are too many people I will forget.
I offer a focus on this Christmas phrase and unpack it because it leads me to an announcement. Beginning in 2024, the column will be The Hardest Truths. I prayed about this for months. There were names focused on freedom or liberty that I liked, but they weren’t available.
In an age when many folks can’t define what a woman is, The Hardest Truths will regard such nonsense as just that. At a time when too many people in authority lie or lean on ideas that are proven failures, it will get called out. At a time when the culture is coming apart at the seams, The Hardest Truths will offer insights and perspectives that far too few people communicate. The Hardest Truths will continue to offer insights and analysis of current events, faith, culture, the persecuted church, slave labor, and human trafficking. There will be no profanity or anything driven by intentional provocation.
A podcast will be coming once a week in 2024. When I can do it more frequently, I will. This is another name I have prayed about. I did not want the column brand and the podcast to be identical. And, I don't have the level of public influence for it to be called the “Curt Olson podcast.”
During the fall, I read the book “Zero Hour America” by Christian apologist Os Guinness. His book pulled no punches for Americans who cherish freedom and liberty. Guinness asked numerous questions that direct Americans to consider whether the freedom of the American Revolution is worth sustaining because, as things stand, America is headed in the wrong direction.
Guinness offers insight into George Washington, and it inspired the name of the podcast. It will be His Vine and Fig Tree podcast.
There are three references to “his vine and his fig tree” in the Old Testament: Micah 4:4, 1 Kings 4:25, and Zechariah 3:10.
Instead, each of them will sit under his vine
And under his fig tree, With no one to make them afraid,
Because the mouth of the Lord of armies has spoken (Micah 4:4, NASB).
So Judah and Israel lived securely, everyone
under his vine and his fig tree, from Dan even to Beersheba, all the days of Solomon (1 Kings 4:25, NASB).
On that day,’ declares the Lord of armies, ‘every one of you will invite his neighbor to sit under his vine and under his fig tree’” (Zechariah 3:10, NASB).
Washington used the phrase “his vine and his fig tree” dozens of times in his writings. At the end of Chapter 2 in his book, Guinness writes:
The truth is that in both the Bible’s picture and in Washington’s use of the picture, the vision of each citizen living freely under their own vine and fig tree meant much more than privilege and escape. At its heart, it spoke of an ideal of freedom, independence, simplicity, work and its rewards, safety, peace, fruitfulness, contentment, freedom of conscience, and all in the setting of home and being local.
What Guinness describes is the “life, liberty, and the pursuit of happiness” of the Declaration of Independence. “Their own vine and fig tree” is part of the way of life that has shaped America’s identity, whether a large urban city or small rural town. Faith and freedom take over everything in one’s life.
Moving forward, we will have fun. For those who are subscribers, thank you. Please spread the word and come along for what’s next with the writing and podcasting.
Merry Christmas and Happy New Year from Curt Olson at The Hardest Truths column.
