For years I have struggled to find that balance to make Christmas fun, memorable, exciting, and focused on Jesus. There is so much Christmas all around starting often months before December that I have a hard time not getting swept up in it. I love making crafts and baking which the Christmas season lends itself to perfectly. I love giving gifts and decorating my house. And if I am not careful I can have the best Christmas, one full of fun memories, family, great food but maybe not so much Jesus.
It’s hard to find that balance, isn’t it between celebrating Christmas and celebrating Jesus? I know there are a million ideas on how to keep Christ in Christmas but let’s face it, it is HARD. It is hard to focus on two things at once, at least for me.
I have swung the whole pendulum of Christmas over the years from no tree to a small tree to 3 trees. As well as giving a lot of gifts to giving a few gifts. Yet every year I have this mix of thoughts as Christmas approaches. How do I celebrate family, friends, fun, and a blessed life, all the while making Jesus my top focus of the celebration? I have yet to find the perfect way to do that. But I will not give up. I will keep trying.
This year I am trying a few new things and a couple that we have been doing for years.
To start I have a verse I am focusing on this season. The first one is Isaiah 9:6 “For unto us a Child is born, to us a son, is given; and the government shall be upon His shoulders, and His name shall be called Wonderful, Counselor, Mighty God, Everlasting Father, Prince of Peace.”
God has been speaking to me to slow down and focus on the here and now. To stop being so rushed to move onto the next thing or get stressed about the future. This verse gives me so many ways to do that.
Christmas: the celebration of a child being born, a son is given to me, for me, to save me. But that’s not all. Christmas is a time of giving gifts. God gives gifts too. First He gave us His son and then the names or attributes. In Hebrew names were more than just a name. They were attributes possessed by that person. So we are given this son of God, to fill us with wonder, to guide us with His counsel, and to be a Mighty God when we feel so small and powerless. He is an everlasting Father and our Prince of Peace.
This verse frees me to celebrate Christmas, the wonder of Christmas, making wise choices with my time and my money because He will counsel me in how to do these things if I ask. He will be mighty when I am lacking strength this season and he will be a peace in the midst of craziness.
The second verse I am focusing on this season is Luke 2:10. “And the angel said to them, Fear not, for behold I bring you good news of great joy that will be for all people.”
Fear not! I can stop fearing that I am somehow missing the mark this season. That I am not doing a good enough job of making Christmas about Christ. I can just let it go. I can know that I am held by a God who loves me and I don’t have to earn that love. And I can have great joy in knowing God and His love for me. After all, it was because of His great love that Jesus came to earth (see John 3:16.) And the best part is this good news of God’s love and the gift of Jesus is for all people. “For all people” has an interesting meaning in this verse. It means every part that applies; the emphasis of the total picture while focusing on one piece at a time.
Isn’t it nice to know that God sees the whole picture of humanity while simultaneously seeing the individuals that make up the whole?
Along with those 2 verses, I try to keep my family focused on Jesus too. I started a new tradition this year. I made each of my 3 kids an ornament with their name on it and a bible verse. I asked each of them for a verse that speaks to them the most right now. Then I incorporated the verse into the ornament. The thought being, each year as we hang those ornaments on the tree we will talk about how God moved in my children with their verse. Just like we talk about how cute they were in that kindergarten picture that is glued to a paper cut out of a star.
Year by year we can see through ornaments how God has used His word to empower us, change us, and set us free.
We are also doing an advent reading this year. It’s a new one that focuses on the wonder of Christ. We read the devotional each night and hang a snowman on our advent tree. Why a snowman? Because I love snowmen and when I can get all the family to join me, well that’s magical.
