My thoughts on faith, family, friends, and fiction! 

The day after Thanksgiving is the day for shopping and putting up the Christmas decorations.  A couple of people on our street have already strung up their lights, pulled the reindeer from the garage, and inflated their Santas.  Though some of the houses can get a bit garish, I love driving around and looking at all of the Christmas lights, hot chocolate in the cup holders and Christmas music pouring from the car stereo.  Very festive!

Some people grumble about the gaudy displays, saying that they detract from the real meaning of Christmas.  But I say, use it as a way to reach out.  Those bright lights covering every inch of your neighbor’s yard should be a reminder that we need to be bright lights shining in this world of darkness.  Grab your friends, hop in the car, and go look at the lights in your world…but don’t forget to share with them the Light of the World.

A couple of years ago, my husband and I hosted a Christmas youth lock-in.  One of the games included a Christmas Light Scavenger Hunt.  The kids separated into teams, and scoured the city for our lovely list of lights.  The game was so much fun to put together, we began to create one each year for our family and friends.

This year we are going global!

We have created a Facebook and Twitter page, where we will post the basic scavenger hunt list on Saturday, November 26.  Additionally, I will maintain a page here on my blog.  Each day we will be adding new challenges.  And, of course, there will be chances for you to challenge us!

What game would be complete without prizes?  This year we are going to throw in a few gift cards here and there, so make sure you stay up-to-date!  Amazon, Lowes, Walmart…just to name a few!  I’d love to get a few youth groups involved, with a gift certificate to Domino’s or Pizza Hut up for grabs for the winning Youth Ministry.

So bundle up the kids and load them into the car!  Happy hunting to all!