Jesus is the Reason

I once attended a Bible study where the pastor said, "If you can't imagine Christmas without a Christmas tree, then you've got a problem." At the time, my Christmas tree was very important to me as all the ornaments held a lot of sentimental value. I had been collecting the ornaments since I was a little girl. I remember being offended by the statement the pastor made, but now I see the wisdom in it.

Yesterday I was reading a blog of a homeschooling mom that I heard speak at a conference a few years back. This mom related a time when the pastor of their church asked the congregation, "If someone were to walk into your home at Christmas time, would they know you were celebrating Christ's birth?" This mom went on to explain how over the years she and her husband began eliminating certain Christmas decorations. She said it was really difficult to get rid of the decorations because they had sentimental value, but upon reflection, she realized they had no "Christ value."

A few years ago, Matt and I began an elimination process of our own--and it is a process. We really started to evaluate what message our decorations were sending about the meaning of Christmas. Our main concern has been teaching the children the true meaning of Christmas and not getting things all muddied up with the secular.

We have eliminated Santa from our of celebration of Christmas. The kids know that mom and dad fill their stockings. This was a difficult step, especially for me. I felt we were taking away some of the magic of holidays from the children. Then I read something that stated that the only one who knows who's been naughty and nice is God Himself. That changed my perspective. I'm not judging those who still include Santa in their celebrations. I know our family still does things that others would consider blasphemous. It's a process and everyone must do as the Lord leads.

For instance, the Lord lead a friend of mine to celebrate St. Nicolas Day (Dec. 6). She and her kids always do something for those in need on that day the way St. Nicolas did. The kids then look forward to doing a special activity as a family to celebrate. It's a way to honor Jesus and put the focus back on Him during the Christmas season.

The homeschooling mom also wrote in her blog about a Christmas garland she had acquired some years ago with ornaments attached that have the different names of Jesus inscribed on them. She and her family also have a big lighted cross that they hang on the outside of their house. These ideas gave me food for thought in trying to incorporate more ways of showing that Jesus is the center of Christmas. Jesus was born into this world so that He could redeem sinners like me. This is the reason to celebrate at Christmas--Christ, the most perfect gift ever given.