There’s a little tradition that has been going on each Christmas since I first started the E-Blah site, and that’s to put what the true meaning of Christmas is all about. Of course, some Christmas’s I have put a lot of time into it, while others I just simply posted the Christmas story. But I’ve thought, and decided I’m going to make this one a bit different. It was around Christmas five years ago that the very first bit of code was written for E-Blah. Since then, E-Blah has grown into something quite more than I ever thought it’d be (though I always have had big hopes for E-Blah, I think). However, the reason why I started E-Blah hasn’t been fully addressed.
I started E-Blah in December of 2001. The project was never meant to be more than just myself trying to better myself in Perl. After I actually started realizing I may make it into a fully functional forum, I decided to go to a straight pricing model (that had worked well for other forums systems). In the end I was persuaded to just release it open sourced – and that’s where it will always remain. The real reason was never meant for the actual money, though. The reason for this project never was – and never will be – about money. When I switched to open source, I thought I would release it for a purpose, and that was to share the true meaning of life: life in Christ. This is obviously evident in the Administrator Control Panel.
Christmas, so many times, is just another day (and the days leading up to it are sometimes filled with stress) – but it’s not the meaning of the day. Pushing all the other things the day supposedly may mean (such as those who say it was really just a way to change a Pagan holiday into a Christian one), at the end of the day, the true meaning of it today, is the celebration (and remembrance) of Christ’s birth date. In the busy days and cares of life, we often forget the creator of all, and how much he’s brought us through. So, today I just wish everyone a Merry Christmas, but also think about the one who the day is truly about: Christ.
If anyone doesn’t know Christ, simply ask him into your heart today, and find someone who can show you the truth in Christ, and how to honor and serve him in all you do. This is why I write E-Blah. Sure, there are times I forget the real reason – but the reason is that I want others to know the truth of Christ.
With that said, I leave you with the Christmas story:
Matthew 1:18-25Previous E-Blah Christmas's2005200420032002