An Intentional Christmas

Christmas is fast approaching and things are beginning to slow down a little bit. But only a little bit. As I’ve watched December speed by, I keep running across reminders of what this season is really all about. A sermon on Sunday, a gentle reminder from my mentor, a blog post. 

Christmas is all about Jesus.

I know, I know, you hear that all the time. But do you take it seriously? Do we really act like Christmas is all about Jesus? I definitely don’t. I put up the tree, the lights, and the decorations for tradition, or to make our house “feel Christmassy”. I buy presents because that’s what you do at Christmas time and people expect it. I make gingerbread men because those are the Christmas cookies and I love the way they make my house smell. None of these are bad things, but they are missing the point. What if instead, everything we did this season we did to celebrate Jesus?!

What if we bought presents and remembered how He has generously given to us. And then we gave presents with the hope and prayer that people's eyes would be turned to the Giver too?

What if we decorated our houses so that they are beautiful for Him? Just like I decorate the house for Sam’s birthday to recognize him and make him feel loved.

What if we took time to anticipate His coming and stopped doing things just for the sake of tradition and memories. What if we instead had Christmas traditions with the purpose of remembering His coming?.

What if we actually went to Christmas parties with the intention and purpose of celebrating who He is?! Instead of celebrating ugly Christmas sweaters and white elephant presents?

Because He is worth celebrating. In fact, He’s the only thing worth celebrating. His birth brought the greatest joy and the greatest hope! And celebrating anything else will ultimately leave us empty and disappointed on December 26^th.

“I bring you GOOD NEWS of GREAT JOY that will be for all the people. Today in the town of David a Savior has been born to you; He is the Messiah, the Lord.”

Luke 2:10-11

And then there’s that last line in verse 10…”for all the people”. The first challenge for me this Christmas has been to actually celebrate Jesus. And the second has been to tell others why I’m celebrating! Christmas presents us the best opportunity to speak about Christ because everybody is already thinking and talking about Him. But it is also the time of year that most of us are the most busy and most likely to pass up opportunities to share about the hope and joy we have found in Christ.

So this Christmas I’m striving to be intentional. I want to celebrate Jesus Christ’s birthday this year, recognizing that His birth brought the greatest hope and the greatest joy into the world. And I want to take opportunities to explain why I’m celebrating.

The funny thing is, a lot of my actions will look the same. We still have a Christmas tree, we’ve gone to 4 Christmas parties, and I’ve made 3 batches of gingerbread. But my heart is different. The tree and decorations are recognition that He deserves decorations and celebrations on His birthday. The parties were to celebrate who He was with people I love. And the gingerbread is a chance to deliver cookies and ask my neighbors how I can be praying for them this Christmas season. Continuing to pray for a focused, joyful heart, and eyes to see the opportunities He gives me.