Practical Tips: How We Keep Christ at the Center of Christmas
The magic of Christmas! There is something special about the holiday season. Everyone anticipates the excitement and enchantment that Christmas brings. Growing up, my parents went extreme with Christmas presents. It truly felt magical creeping out to the tree before dawn on Christmas morning to discover a living room bursting at the seams. Oh, the bliss! Naturally I wanted to recreate this same magical and mysterious experience for my own children.
As our family grew, so did our love for the Lord as well as the desire to encourage that same love in our children. Our personal conviction became that the magic of Christmas is not in the presents, but in His presence. Our Christmas wish was for our children is to experience the awe and wonder of the incarnation and cherish the God of the universe who loved us so much he sent His only Son who knew no sin to be sin for us so that we might be made the righteousness of God in him.
Resisting the temptation to forget Christ in the good gifts of family, food, fun, and festivity we prioritize conversations about the gospel every day. We find nuggets of truth in traditional holiday activities such as reading our favorite Christmas books that emphasize Christ. We decorate the tree with “Names of Jesus” ornaments and carefully display Grandma’s fragile nativity set in its traditional spot on the piano. As we decorate, we discuss the stories found in the Bible and their connection to the incarnation. As we listen to our favorite Christmas carols, we pause to discuss the meaning of the lyrics. Acting out the nativity story by recruiting cousins and grandparents along with homemade costumes has created some of our favorite home videos. In the past we have even made Jesus birthday a cake and sang “Happy Birthday”. With the opening of a reasonable number of intentional gifts, we reflect on the perfect gift of Christ as the atonement for sin.
We also encourage one another to model Christ’s example of humility and look for opportunities to serve. The kids generally gift homemade coupons with promises of chores and, my favorite, at home spa treatments. We have also taken the opportunity to serve neighbors with baked goods, carol at nursing homes, and have gifted presents to those in need. We enjoy inviting people into our home. We also prioritize our church family by worshipping together and reminding each other that the church is a witness to a watching world that we are waiting for the return of our Savior King.
In good conscience, we enjoy devouring sugar cookies, admiring twinkling lights, singing along with Bing Crosby and quoting lines from the Grinch, recognizing they are good gifts from the Lord. But the greatest thrill of hope is salvation through Christ. Because the Prince of Peace has made possible peace with God, we can experience true bliss! Christ is the magical miracle of Christmas!
