How to Find a Furby
(If You Really Want One)

Furby mania has struck the land. This little companion which looks to be half rodent and half fowl has driven parents to extreme measures. Newspaper classifieds for $500.00 furbies, planes (not the usual boats) bringing them to the USA, long lines, and fights in stores have become a part of the whole cultural hype . Talk about supply and demand!

This type of hysteria over a simple toy at Christmas shocks few in our culture. Don't forget the Cabbage Patch Doll frenzy of the early 80's and the excitement generated by the Tickle Me Elmo toy just a few years ago. Recently I was in a bargain discount store (you know the kind where most of the clothing is marked "irregular") when I noticed a Tickle Me Elmo. It wasn't just any Tickle Me Elmo, it was packaged with another Sesame Street "Tickle Me" character. Elmo had been demoted to a bin in the middle of the aisle with no fancy shelf display. He had to share his packaging with a rival and he was a whopping $9.99. As I watched, Elmo never moved. Children glanced down at him in his disheveled little bin, but no takers.

In our annual searches of desperation to provide our children with the hottest gift of that particular season, it is oh so easy to miss the simplicity of the greatest gift ever given. Many have heard and read more about the furbies than they have of the babe of Bethlehem. In the rush to be "great" parents to our children, we can miss and cause them to miss the greatest gift God has ever given. "The Father sent the Son to be the Savior of the world" (1 John 4:14).

If you are still looking for a furby, you can be guaranteed that you will find one at a very reasonable price-just wait till Christmas of 1999. You probably will be able to pick one up for less than ten dollars.

Rev. Shawn Thornton
Sr. Pastor, Bible Center Church

©1998 Bible Center Church

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