December 15th - Christmas Simplified

Often times, we get really caught up in the hustle and bustle of the holiday season, rarely stopping to catch our breath, or even focusing on why we celebrate this season. It's probably cliche, but I really think if most of us stopped to take a look at our priorities during the month of December, we may be surprised.

A couple of years ago, Jason and I decided to scale back our Christmas a bit. We don't spend quite as much money as we used to, and we try to focus more on why we celebrate. Our kids didn't even notice a difference. What it has caused for us, however is realizing how crazy our society has become during this time of year. It makes me sad to visit stores and see people with their carts piled high full of hundreds of dollars of gifts, knowing that they probably won't even stop for a second to focus on the reason why we celebrate.

As parents, Jason and I really want our kids to grow up knowing why we love Christmas so much. Our memories are full of wonderful parties, gifts, smells, goodies....and those are all things I want to pass to them as they grow up. But I always want them to focus first on Jesus. I want them to love hearing the Christmas story on Christmas Eve as much as opening that first gift. I want them to think of "Joy to the World" and "Hark the Herald" as praise choruses to their Savior rather than just another Christmas Carol to be sung. And I want the gift of Jesus, God's sacrifice for us, to be something that fuels their passion to have a relationship with a personal God.

I pray that this Christmas, all of the normal traditions in your family and mine will be enhanced by the love and sacrifice of Jesus.