The Christmas holidays: look different for different people. For some there will be family… sometimes too much family. Some must cope with parents (two or more sets!) who will be hurt if you don’t celebrate with them. For others there will be no family— perhaps children are spending this holiday with the divorced mate and you face the prospect of an empty house. Perhaps you are single—of any age—without children, and the walls of your apartment will echo with aloneness.
Too many people or too few. Enough money but few to spend it on. Not enough money for even the basics. A calendar with every square crammed with activities or a calendar glaringly empty. But we return to those simple words: Christmas. How can we begin to truly savor the coming days and not merely survive them?
Christmas has always been my favorite time of year, but with four children, the holiday was frequently not simple. Many years ago, however, I chose to make it a holy day, both for myself and—as much as possible—for those around me. Experts do have a few good ideas, but let me share some thoughts that will perhaps help you turn the holidays into truly holy days.
Prepare yourself: “Be still and know that I am God.”
Psalms 46:10 tells us to……Be STILL?? How ridiculous when there is so much to do, yet I find this to be an absolute prerequisite for Christmas. Just ten minutes of quiet before the house explodes in the morning (or perhaps, ten minutes at night when the house has stopped exploding) are absolute necessities. During the days leading up to the holidays, I do this primarily by reading well-written books and listening to appropriate music.
Psalms 46:10 tells us to……Be STILL?? How ridiculous when there is so much to do, yet I find this to be an absolute prerequisite for Christmas. Just ten minutes of quiet before the house explodes in the morning (or perhaps, ten minutes at night when the house has stopped exploding) are absolute necessities. During the days leading up to the holidays, I do this primarily by reading well-written books and listening to appropriate music.
Have an activity plan.
Prioritize. Sit down, alone or with your family, and decide what’s truly important. Here are a few ideas:
Prioritize. Sit down, alone or with your family, and decide what’s truly important. Here are a few ideas:
-Plan one special event for the family. Maybe it’s the church concert, a Nutcracker Suite performance, ice skating, leaving cookies on a doorstep, inviting someone for a special meal. Learn to say a resounding—but polite!—NO when tempted to overindulge in activity.
–Include others in your holiday plans. A wonderful way to teach our children generosity is to include others in a family celebration.
Merry Christmas and thrive to make this year the best Christmas ever.
