I’m a writer, but I’m not a poet. I enjoy great poetry, which means that I do not enjoy most “Christian” poetry. The syrupy, over-rhymed, sing-songy stuff that we read on a lot of Christmas cards is really pretty gaggy to me.

My friend and co-laborer in Christ here at Church of the Open Door, Colin McDougall Jr. is a profound exception.

Maybe it was the years in the bush of Africa planting churches among unreached tribes that honed his craft with poetic verse.

Maybe it’s his intensity.

Whatever it is, I’ve delighted in his verse over the years. I found his 2009 Advent Poem especially moving:

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Brace Yourself!

As a follower of Christ, I’m preparing myself for the Christmas Season, but not in the way you might think.

I’m bracing myself against the cascade of guilt and shame flowing from the so-called evangelical community every December.

There will be the usual degrading offering of “you’re spending too much money on this or that,” with a self-righteous sprinkling of “we buy a cheap tree,” one-upped by “we don’t buy a tree at all,” but trumped by the “we only talk and think about Jesus on Christmas” crowd.

Modern-day Pharisees throughout the church will boast of their “just right” limit on individual gifts, as they look for a verse to spew at anyone spending even a dollar more than their “sanctified” amount.

So, I’m supposed to feel guilty about decorating our home to celebrate the Lord’s birth and buying presents for the people I love?

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