Steve Arterburn

For many people, Christmas
truly is the most wonderful time of the year. 
But it can only be so if the focus of your heart is right.  That is why so many other people resonate with
characters like Charlie Brown, who knows he’s supposed to be happy at Christmas
but always ends up feeling depressed; or the Grinch, who detests the hustle and
bustle’the NOISE, NOISE, NOISE’that comes with Christmas; or even Ebenezer
Scrooge, for whom Christmas is little more than an event that accentuates the
loneliness and lack of generosity that has taken hold of his heart. 

To be sure, a person can never
enjoy the full significance and true wonder of Christmas without being rightly
related to Jesus Christ’the babe of Bethlehem, who in time, grew to be a man,
and was crucified at Calvary to bring forgiveness from sin and a restored
relationship with their Creator.  But
even for Christians, Christmas has temptations that must be recognized and
proactively countered’temptations that, if succumbed to, will diminish, and
even rob the joy of Christmas.

Here are some ideas that will
help you and your family resist the many distractions that attend the Christmas
Season, so that you can see Jesus Christ more clearly, and savor him more deeply.  I encourage you to discuss these ideas with
your family, put your own unique touches upon them, and share them with your
friends.

1.    Be
selective but generous with the giving of your time.  Try serving at a soup kitchen, visiting a nursing or veteran’s
home with your children, or participating in a toys program for kids in
need.  Check with your church or other
parachurch ministries in your area to see how your family could help to bring
the love of Christ to your community.

2.    Celebrate
the 12 Days of Christmas‘pick a neighbor (try a person or family that is
isolated, grieving, or non-Christian) and anonymously leave gifts for each of
the twelve days of Christmas.  Be
creative: for five golden rings you can leave five donuts.  For two turtledoves, you can leave turtle
ice cream or dove Christmas ornaments. 
If the house has a basketball fan, leave a team calendar for Lords of
Leaping.  In addition, include a
Scripture verse on each day that anticipates the birth of Jesus.  (On the last day you can give the mystery
away by signing your names to the card). 
This is a great gift-giving idea’your kids will enjoy thinking of
creative presents and sneaking the gifts to the designated family.  And the neighbors/friends will joyfully
anticipate finding their gifts, as well as discovering the identity of the
mysterious gift-givers!  If you know
a family who may be having a particularly difficult time this Christmas, this
is a great way to bless and care for them.

3.    Forgive
someone who has wronged you, or perhaps even better, ask someone that you’ve
wronged for forgiveness.  What could be
a better way to prepare our hearts for Christmas?!

4.    Go
Christmas Caroling.  Does anyone do this
anymore?  Well, they should.  And your family and friends can revive this
great tradition.  If you’re feeling
particularly shy, you may want to get a copy of the church directory and sing
on the doorsteps of fellow brothers and sisters in Christ.

5.    There
are many examples of men and women in the Bible who were quick to thank God for
his work in their lives.  Have everyone
in the family find an example or two, and read them together as a devotional.

6.    Do
you have small children?  Act out the
story of Christ’s birth.  Your kids will
love dressing up and using props found around the house.  If you have a small family, that’s
okay.  The kids will love changing
wardrobe and playing different parts. 
Take turns playing the different roles of Gabriel, Mary, Joseph, the shepherds,
King Herod, and the wise men.

7.    Every
year pick an ornament together as a family that best represents God’s
faithfulness to you for the year.  Then,
when you decorate the tree each year, you can discuss why you picked that
ornament and recount how it uniquely represents God’s faithfulness in the
events of that particular year.  This
tradition allows your family to form a collective memory’an ongoing
narrative’of God’s goodness to you, and that memory is sure to bind your hearts
together in faith and gratitude.

8.    Be
creative in your giving.  Instead of
spending all of your time and money at crowded malls (there’s hardly a better
way to smother the beauty of Christmas!), make a family pact to give something
from your hands and heart.  Writers can
give stories or poems.  Those who are
skilled in the kitchen can bake.  Quilt,
sew, draw, take pictures, paint, write a song, make a mix of someone’s favorite
songs, or build something.  Artists do
need time.  So if this idea came too
late this year, make a pact to do it next Christmas and encourage the family to
be working on it over the next year.

9.    Write
a letter reviewing the year’s events’both the highlights and the lowlights.  Not a book, mind you; just a page or two of
that which really sticks out among the happenings of that year.  Add a new letter each year.  Then, every Christmas you can sit by the
fire or around the tree with warm drinks and read them, so as to remember the
fun, the hardships, and most of all, the goodness and steadfast provision of
God to your family throughout the years.

10.  Write a letter to
someone telling him or her how much you care for him or her and how God cares
for him or her.

11.  Share the gospel
with an unbeliever in a letter or over a cup of coffee’this is the best gift
you’ve got to give!

12.  Make family
traditions.  If you get real Christmas
trees each year, select one together, or try going to a Christmas tree farm and
cutting one down yourself!  Set aside an
evening that the family can spend decorating the tree together, preferably with
some Christmas music and treats.  If you
have a favorite Christmas movie or book, watch or read it together.  Perhaps you could create a tradition around
an activity of your choice, such as sledding, skiing, or building a jigsaw
puzzle’whatever, so long as the activity is something that allows for
communication and togetherness.

13.  Give the gift of
time.  In other words, never fall for
the idea that somehow quality time makes up for the lack of quantity time.  It simply doesn’t.  It can’t.  That’s because
quality time can’t be manufactured at will, and the attempt to do so usually
comes off as being forced or manipulative. 
Instead, quality time comes about naturally within the context of
quantity time.  So during the Christmas
Season, be sure to set aside as much time as possible for your loved ones.  Don’t let our consumer culture take this
from you and your family.

14.  But in all that
you do, never forget that the key to getting the best out of Christmas is to
remember that less is more!  What
does this mean?  It means that
extravagance, costliness, and busyness aren’t the ingredients of a good
Christmas.  In fact, they’re usually the
very things that subtly sap the fun, the joy, and the satisfaction from the
Season.  Remember: the Lord Jesus
Christ, despite being the King of heaven and earth, did not come lavishly, or
with great fanfare.  He came humbly as a
babe in a manger.  What better example
do we need to show us that, when it comes to Christmas, less is more!

For more help see our New Life Perspectives on Holidays and Thankfulness.