I’m sure by now you’ve got your advent calendar out, your lesson plans for teaching generosity and the timeline of the Magi’s travels all worked out. Did you remember the coloring sheets of the maps of travel to Bethlehem and the family lineage of Mary and Joseph memorized so you can share it with your kids? Oh, and you handmade your wreath, already addressed your Christmas cards and remembered to get enough of the same color wrapping paper so your gifts can all be neatly wrapped like the magazine picture, and you found the recipe for Sugar(free) Plums and remembered to get all the ingredients while you were at the store. Right? Right?
OK, so maybe I’m overdoing it a bit. But, admit it. You often feel guilty if you don’t try to do something new and exciting for Christmas. You want your family to have some great memories.
This can be a very hectic time of year with many extra activities, the making or purchasing of gifts; there are additional meal preparations, additional guests, additional services at church, etc, etc.
I remember some of the most spiritual, memorable Christmases we had when the children were young were when we made life easier by relaxing, and keeping things very simple by:
*Lessening the academic load for December
*Limiting the amount of time we were away from home to the “musts”.
*Spending more time reading, listening to music, doing puzzles, playing games, and just being together
*Not fretting about the decorations, the food, the gifts
The best memory your children can have of Christmas is not the gifts, or the creative things you made or baked or taught them. It’s them knowing that you love them; that they come before any Christmas trappings or holiday concerns you may have. This year, keep it simple. You’ll like yourself better, and so will your family!
OK, so maybe I’m overdoing it a bit. But, admit it. You often feel guilty if you don’t try to do something new and exciting for Christmas. You want your family to have some great memories.
This can be a very hectic time of year with many extra activities, the making or purchasing of gifts; there are additional meal preparations, additional guests, additional services at church, etc, etc.
I remember some of the most spiritual, memorable Christmases we had when the children were young were when we made life easier by relaxing, and keeping things very simple by:
*Lessening the academic load for December
*Limiting the amount of time we were away from home to the “musts”.
*Spending more time reading, listening to music, doing puzzles, playing games, and just being together
*Not fretting about the decorations, the food, the gifts
The best memory your children can have of Christmas is not the gifts, or the creative things you made or baked or taught them. It’s them knowing that you love them; that they come before any Christmas trappings or holiday concerns you may have. This year, keep it simple. You’ll like yourself better, and so will your family!
Thanks for the reminder, Robin. Our family loves to completely veg out on Christmas day. We open presents, have a birthday cake for Jesus and then play games and watch movies with the boys all day long. Someone we never get out of our pajamas!
ReplyDeleteI would like to add more tradition to our family and I probably will as the boys get older. I think it'd be wonderful to serve some places AS A FAMILY so that the boys will see how blessed they are. Heck, we can do that on micro missions year round...what am I thinking!??!
This is confirms EXACTLY what the Lord showed me a couple of weeks ago. We are taking the whole month off from school, and limiting our 'friend time' to once a week. Yesterday we got in our PJs right after church, and started a fire, made popcorn and watch a Christmas movie! We all agreed that it was the best day ever!!!
ReplyDeleteYou sharing this means so much, knowing that you speak from expierence!!!
The Christmas season is all about Jesus, after all. I think you make excellent points. I think He wants us to slow down and enjoy our loved ones. Stress, worry, overloading credit cards, etc. are not of Him.
ReplyDeleteThank you!