Out with the pumpkins, in with the Christmas trees. Ten years ago Christmas in Vietnam was a regular working day that came and went without notice, but in recent years it has become a major celebration. Lights and decorations are strung up around town, wreaking havoc with the traffic as people cruise by to check out the latest displays. All the five-star hotels have major manger scenes in their lobbies, and although Christmas is still a working day, urban Vietnamese get into the Christmas spirit by exchanging gifts and decorating their houses and children! Santa is the main theme - Santas on motorbikes delivering gifts, Santas welcoming people into the shops, even a Santa training school for would be Santas - no wonder most Vietnamese think that Christmas is Santa's birthday!

Quick to seize this opportunity for evangelism, Christians in Vietnam will be inviting their friends and relatives to church, and almost certainly pressuring them to go forward during the altar call. While some young believers are always sharing their faith, many will take their friends to church having never told them even the basics of the gospel message, or the real meaning of Christmas. Many leave this task to the pastor, which is why they just try to get them to church. But who makes the better messenger? The friend they have known for years, or the stranger up at the front, in this unusual building, with all these weird things goings on?

The barns are getting bigger
Isn't it nice to have a little extra cash at Christmas to splash out on presents? Well, the average Vietnamese salary will have increased by 12 per cent over the past year, and up to 200 per cent in some sectors like finance. Foreign companies are snapping up experienced graduates, whose salaries are multiplying overnight. These young professionals are earning in one month what their parents combined are earning in a year. Unemployment was already low, and has dropped further. The crime rate has gone up significantly. Everyone is better off, but the gap between the 'haves' and 'have-nots' widens daily. The stock market is skyrocketing (and when it eventually crashes it is likely to set off a chain reaction that will be unprecedented in recent history). Property is booming too, with 60 per cent of buyers being speculators.

Vietnam wishes you a Happy Internet Day!
The first of December has been chosen to celebrate the tenth year of the Internet in Vietnam. Net-usage by 18 per cent of the population (more than 14 million people) ranks Vietnam seventeenth in the world, after the US (70 per cent of population), China and Japan. The Internet is most frequently used by those aged 18-50, for chatting and keeping up with the news. Playing games online is also a popular pastime, generating US $50 million in revenue this year.

• Praise God for Christian Vietnamese discussion groups, bulletin boards and other Web resources.
• Pray that communication over the web would continue to raise curiosity about Christianity, help those who are seeking, and encourage others in their faith.
• Remember that the web is also a source of atheistic and alternative world views, often presented very persuasively. Ask that Christians would have wisdom as they confront this, and as they relate to friends influenced by such ideas.
• Pray for the various Vietnamese Christian websites where there are always people on hand to answer questions and explain things - they are even prepared to meet a person face-to-face and take them to church if they don't want to go alone.

All other ground is sinking sand
What do you get when you cross the parable of the wise and foolish builders with the parable of the sower? Foundations that suddenly crumble and sink several metres, due to the ground pressure of nearby high-rise building projects. Yes, it happened in Ho Chi Minh City last month.

• Pray that Christians would be firmly grounded in Christ and his word, rather than solely in church tradition or community.
• Uphold them in the face of pressures from those who seemingly 'tower'next to them.

And the inaugural winner of Miss Vietnam Ethnicities is...
The finals for the new beauty pageant will be held on 22 December in the city of Dalat in the Central Highlands. Contestants representing each of Vietnam's ethnic groups will also be judged on diverse skills including horse riding, bike racing, mountain climbing and weaving.

• The Church is growing rapidly in some minority groups, but is virtually non-existent in others. Pray that the gospel message will spread through all the groups.
• Pray that Christians will be role models and positive influences in their societies.
• Annual flooding and storms frequently bring devastation to many areas.

• Pray that Christians in the majority Kinh (representing almost 90 per cent of the total population of Vietnam), will willingly bring assistance to minority groups.

Victor / Victoria
A draft decree, currently under consideration, states that people have the right to live according to their true sexuality, a term which is being redefined in the decree. The Ministry of Health will allow clinics to perform transsexual surgery in cases where the person features the psychology and sexuality of their desired gender, or if their sexual organs are in a state of deformity. The draft decree bans transsexual operations for homosexuals.

• As Vietnamese adopt less conservative attitudes on a range of issues, pray that Christians would not isolate themselves out of righteous indignation, but would find appropriate and sensitive ways to respond, and to reach out in Christ's love.