Well, I hope you all had a really great Christmas this year and were able to just enjoy your friends and family. We had a very wonderful and relaxing time in Merrit this Christmas with Dustin's parents and grandpa. The kids had fun and we all ate more than we needed to. But I suppose that's what it's all about. Our kids got a little too spoiled this year. Everywhere we go they think they get presents and everytime they see a present they think it's for them. How do you portray to a one year old and a three year old the real reason why we celebrate Christmas? All they think about is getting stuff for themselves. I was trying to think about why we all give gifts in the first place. Obviously it's a celebration for the birth of Christ. But, shouldn't the gifts be given to Jesus then? I've been thinking maybe we won't do gifts next year between Dustin and the kids and I. Maybe we can learn to give more of our thoughts and time to Jesus during the season where we celebrate his birth. He's the one who should be recieving our gifts. Our thoughts, our thanks and praise. I don't know. I think more than any other year I've noticed how far off track we've gotten with Christmas. Yes, celebrate, yes, rejoice, eat, laugh, sing. But don't forget to give the gifts you can to the King who saved us all.
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4 comments:
Deep thoughts this Christmas, hey? Sounds like a lot of people are wondering why we all go nuts spending too much money buying trinkets for others. It can be a tough balance. I'm glad you had a nice Christmas with the fandamily, though. Next year give the kids a lump of coal and say, "Jesus is better than coal, isn't He? Be thankful for Jesus." That should go over well. :) I missed you while you were gone, but now that life as usual has resumed I can stop crying myself to sleep. Although the fact that you would dare make a girl's trip to Kelowna without me has bruised my heart indefinitely. Just kidding. (*chokes back sobs*)
Love ya!
Man, you are much deeper than me. Personally, I love giving and receiving gifts. I do agree that it has become a bit (just a bit?) nuts, but it's fun and it is just one of the many things we do in celebration of Jesus' birthday. If we took away all the celebrating it would take away from the joy and the specialness of it all. Christmas has become kind of a depressing frenzy - in the secular world. Christians need to keep their minds on the true gift, and to recognize what a special time of year this is for us. Only you guys can control what Christmas becomes for your kids.
Missed you last night. Merry Christmas!
I think you said a lot of great stuff in there, but Jesus did call us to live life to the full, so maybe a better way to honor him would be to continue in the gift giving, but make special rituals that celebrate his birth as well. In my family we have a birthday cake for desert on Christmas day for Jesus' birthday and my husband and I are currently looking for ways to incorporate Advent in a much more real way at our house in the years to come. We also choose to bring Belle to the Christmas Eve service, and Christmas play even though some people may find it annoying when she giggles in glee, but that way we know she's taking part in remembering Jesus' birth. I think balance is probably the key, and that is an eternal search!
Hey Christy!
Funny...I've been thinking many of the same thoughts about Christmas this year. I actually avoided Christmas shopping up until I had to this year becuase I just really didn't want to be surrounded by the craziness of people buying gifts. And for who? And who says they have to? I don't know why, but I was particularly sensitive to all the materialism this year as well. Maybe partly cause I don't have any money to buy expensive gifts right now being a student, but mostly cause I just realize more and more how off track our world has become on Christmas (well, and in many other things of course!) Why do people go nuts on buying presents? What happened to thoughtful gift giving, not measured in a dollar amount or in an equal return of a gift? I don't know....maybe I should enjoy it more.....I mean I do love getting gifts, don't get me wrong, but do we really need the stuff we get? Probably not. Our gifts should be in our service to God and in loving others in need. Good thoughts.
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