A Word From the Wise (The Wise Being God)

Dear Nadia,

Christmas seems so commercial to me. It's like everyone just cares about the gifts! How can I focus on the true meaning of Christmas?
 
Un-Christmas Spirit




Dear Un-Christmas Spirit,
Don't forget that it's up to you what you make Christmas about. You can choose to focus only on the superficial parts of Christmas, or you can choose to keep your mind on the beauty of the REAL reason for the season - Christ's birth. Here are some suggestions:

• Play Christmas music with lyrics that focus on Jesus (O Come O Come Emmanuel, Joy to the World, or Hallelujah [Light Has Come] for example).
• Set up a manger scene in a central place in your house. Seeing it often will remind you of the true meaning of Christmas.
• For Advent (the 4 weeks before Christmas), create a special prayer time routine to deepen your friendship with Jesus.Spending good quality time with your Savior, born on Christmas day, will help you stay focused on Him all day long.
• Going along with this, in the weeks before Christmas, read through the Christmas stories in Matthew and Luke: Matthew 1:18-2:23 and Luke 1:26-56, 2:1-40.
• Don't spend a lot of time thinking about the material aspect of Christmas. I mean, you'll think about it as you're picking out gifts for people, but don't let it take over your thoughts!
• Going along with that, consider giving something other than material gifts for Christmas. Maybe give your mom coupons for making dinner or doing extra chores. Write a letter to your friend to let her know you appreciate her. Gifts like these will keep your focus on the beautiful spirit of generosity that should be present during Christmas, plus they are SO special since they are a piece of your heart :)

Keeping your mind on Jesus during the hectic Christmas season is hard. It can be especially tough if others get swept up in the materialism and can't understand your desire to keep Christ as your focus. But don't forget that your Savior came down to Earth so that you could know Him and receive His power. That same power will strengthen you so that you can keep the CHRIST in CHRISTmas. God bless you!