Reclaiming the True Spirit of Christmas
This Christmas season I have spent a lot of time reflecting about what exactly Christmas is and how God would want us to be celebrating this holiday. I realize that the word “Christmas Spirit” means something different to everyone but I believe that the true spirit of Christmas (or rather the spirit of Christ) has been taken over by the commercial world and is difficult to experience while shopping, fighting traffic and running from party to party. This year I have tried to search within myself and try to discover what would give us the most joy when celebrating the Christmas season and honor our Savior in the process.
We have all been taught from a very young age that giving is better than receiving but do we really practice it? The other day on the radio station, a woman called in and said that she had just unexpectedly lost her baby to a sudden illness. She heard that the radio station was raising money for a homeless shelter and she felt compelled to stop and give something to the cause. Despite her tragic loss, she thanked the radio station for the opportunity to give to someone less fortunate than herself. How many of us can truly say that we experience such joy and pleasure from giving during the Christmas season? There is something so satisfying in giving to someone that you know will benefit and not return anything to you in return. I think that we have gotten into such a habit of giving to people out of obligation & tradition that we really don’t really feel the joy that we are meant to feel when we give from the heart.
Another thing that I think helps us feel the Christmas spirit is listening to Christmas Music & Reading the Christmas Story. The Christmas story is such a miraculous event and too often we fail to appreciate what an amazing story it really is. During the Christmas season it’s easy to view Mary, Joseph, baby Jesus, the Shepherds and Wise men as nothing more than figurines in a nativity set placed out on our coffee table for show. We fail to relate to them as real people who endured many things in their lifetime. I think my favorite part of the Christmas story is the shepherds. The scriptures tell us that the shepherds were watching their flocks when “an angel of the Lord appeared to them, and the glory of the Lord shone around them, and they were terrified…suddenly a great company of the heavenly host appeared with the angels, praising God” What an amazing event to witness! I love trying to imagine what it must have been like to be there in a dark field with angels singing and praising God for the birth of our Lord. There are so many beautiful Christmas songs that capture the Christmas story so perfectly. If we would just allow ourselves to actually stop and listen to the words and meaning of the songs, we’d be surprised at how beautiful and how spiritually moving many of these songs really are.
As I have gotten older I have noticed that for most people the Christmas holiday has become something to endure rather than something to enjoy. When we shop during the Christmas season we fight crowds & wait in traffic in search for that “perfect gift” for everyone that we know. No matter how much careful thought and time goes into obtaining that “perfect gift” we wind up getting people things that eventually loose their appeal and hold little sentimental value. Technology has trained us to loose interest quickly in everything we purchase because it’s a know fact that there will always be something better to replace it in a few months.
I would like to invite my family and friends to join me & my family in reclaiming the true spirit of Christmas. Next year, rather than spending energy and money on that “perfect gift” for everyone in our family, we are going to limit our gift giving and invest our time, energy and money into giving to those who are less fortunate. We will attempt to quiet ourselves and reflect on the spiritual significance of this holiday. We will let go of traditions that have lost their meaning and replace them with traditions that express our appreciation for the blessings that we have been given. As we change our priorities and focus on celebrating the birth of our Lord Jesus Christ and honor Him through genuine expression of love, our high expectations and stress will be replaced with love, joy, peace and kindness.
So, in the true spirit of Christmas, we propose a new tradition. This is open for discussion and by no means mandatory. This is just what I & my family will be doing next year to try to simplify this holiday season and celebrate it in a way that would please and glorify our Father in Heaven.
Around Thanksgiving time, each family who wants to participate will enter their name into a drawing. For example: the Medina Family, the Vega Family, the Phipps Family & the Egan Family. Each family will draw another families name and purchase a GAME, DVD or GIFT CARD for that family. The amount that will be spent on each gift can be decided upon as a group. As Christmas nears, we can all get together as a family and exchange gifts. This would also be a good time to collect needed items or money that can be given to a charity. We have decided ahead of time that our family will be donating the money that we save on family gifts to The Road Home located in Salt Lake City. We have decided to start a Christmas tradition of visiting the shelter and donating our items in person. I have included some information about this shelter if you would like to contribute or participate with us. As I mentioned earlier, this is just what our family will be doing next year. If you would like to purchase gifts for us, please consider donating money or items to this cause instead of purchasing gifts for us. It would be very meaningful to us knowing that the money that would have been spent on a gift will instead be going to a good cause and making a difference in the lives of people who are in need not only during the Christmas season but in need all year long.
Just to show the impact that our family alone will make next year, here is an example of what we spend vs. what we will be able to donate….
We currently purchase gifts for the following individuals…
Adam’s parents
Shelly’s parents
Lee & Kindra
Kolby & Alison
Lindsay
& other charity, extended family & misc. gifts given
By limiting our gift giving and redirecting our money to a charity, we will be able to donate $600 or more in supplies or money to the Road Home! It costs the Road Home $12.00 per night to provide shelter for one person. That’s 50 nights of shelter provided for 50 people just by limiting our gift giving during the Christmas season. That’s the true spirit of Christmas!
We hope you have felt the true spirit of Christmas this holiday season and will consider joining us in making a difference for those who are less fortunate next year.
Merry Christmas,
Adam, Shelly, AJ & Mike
6 months ago
