Feeling Comfortable This Christmas?

Watch this



and read Christmas:  Thinking about Whose Birthday It Is.

Every once in awhile I will read something that sends my spirit into turmoil. Ann’s words have done this. What do I do with them? Her words. My lowly Advent celebration seems paltry in comparison.

The World Vision Catalog has already been looked through multiple times by the children. Watching them sit together on the couch and pour though the catalogue one would have thought that they were looking at a toy catalogue - not a catalogue full of chickens, pigs, rabbits and water wells. It was beautiful.

As she looked on, Bessie pointed to a picture of a small child. She asked why his stomach was distended. Tears came to my eyes as I explained. How I’d like to gather them all into my arms - these hungry and homeless ones. And yet I feel so helpless.

Money seems to flow like water at my church. Mark often tells me stories to me about people who are able to pull hundreds of dollars out of their pocket without blinking an eye. How I wish I could do so, but money does not flow like water in my home - except down the drain. Still, we will give as we are able, but it feels paltry and pathetic. It feels like nothing. This morning Mark and I were listening to Mere Christianity. C. S. Lewis was talking about giving. He said that if giving doesn’t hurt, then we probably are not giving enough.

Honestly it has never occurred to me not exchange gifts. Gifts are part of Christmas right? I’ve thought of limiting the number - and we do - but none? There is a selfish part of me that thinks that it would be wonderful from a financial standpoint. I would save a lot of money. Think of what I could give and save! But would I really?

I confess that I like Ann’s idea a lot and yet I am oddly troubled by it. Gifts sit waiting in my closet. Waiting to be wrapped and placed under the tree. The tree skirt waits barren for Christmas morning. I find myself making justifications. Saying to myself that we don’t forget Christ at Christmas. We give Christmas Eve to Him. It is our celebration night. What we do on that night has varied over the years, but it is our night of worship. Then Christmas morning we rise and sing to Him, we read our final Advent reading. We wait to open presents until we have worshiped Him first and we thank Him. All things are from His hand and we acknowledge this. We try to never forget this. Santa does not come to our house. This is so that we don’t forget, or get confused about Who we are to be thankful to and for. The children know that we (parents) provide the gifts and that in some instances we have sacrificed to buy them and that it is for their joy that we do it. They are encouraged to do the same - to save their allowances to buy gifts for each other, and others, and they do so joyfully. They plan it out for weeks/months in advance and lament when they do not think they have enough money to buy something good for each other. I think that there is good in this…but again maybe I am only making excuses. The idea of no gifts seems so simple. The idea of just giving gifts to Christ so perfect. It is His birthday after all.

Christmas always seems so rushed and complex. Not a celebration of Christ at all despite all that we try to do to keep the holiday about Him. That is why we try to turn our focus back to Him. It is why we celebrate Advent. It is why we purposely decline to attend half of the parties and celebrations we are invited to. To try to keep our focus on Him. And yet…it is so hard. Maybe Ann is on to something.