Rediscover the feeling of Christmas
When we first moved to New England there was already snow on the ground. It was only a few weeks until Christmas and the small village in Vermont that we moved to looked like a Norman Rockwell painting. We were busy revitalizing a historic church that has considered closing just a few weeks before we arrived. During those first few weeks as Christmas approached, we did a lot of “Christmas” things we had never done before. We had a real Christmas tree cut from a church member’s field. We went Christmas caroling in the snow and it looked just like a Hallmark movie! We had a traditional Christmas Eve service in which the small church that normally had 20 people in worship was packed to capacity as many non-religious villagers made their annual token appearance at church. We made Christmas cookies and went to “chili cook offs” and did so many other special things that make it feel more like Christmas even though we were over a thousand miles from our family and closest friends. It was a good season in our lives.
As the years have gone by, it still feels like Christmas each year in December. Perhaps not always Norman Rockwell or Hallmark Channel perfect, but very Christmassy, none the less. We love Christmas in New England.
But we have to admit that the last two years COVID has definitely had an impact. All the rules needed to keep everyone safe have indeed dampened the Christmas spirit a little. It has been harder to keep the joy of Christmas when we cannot observe some of the traditions we have come to love so much about a New England Christmas.
How do we address this less than perfect aspect of Christmas? We constantly remind ourselves of the real meaning of Christmas, which is Christ’s coming into the world. That reality has not changed just because Christmas may “feel” a little different this season. We must rise above our feelings and remember the awesome reality of what it means that Christ has come.
It is easy to become so focused on our feelings we can’t see the reality of what we’re actually experiencing. We may feel like no one loves us, but that doesn’t change the reality that many people do love us. We may feel like we’re never going to get through whatever crisis we are experiencing, but in reality, all crises, even pandemics, eventually pass. We may feel like there’s no hope, but in reality there is always hope because we have Christ! And that is enough!
This year I hope that your Christmas season feels like Christmas to you. If it doesn’t “feel” like Christmas, don’t forget that it STILL IS Christmas.
Here are three ways in which you can re-discover that feeling of Christmas:
Make it about Christ, not about self.
Christmas is the birthday of the King, Our Savior. Sometimes we get so wrapped up in our own desires of what we want to experience at Christmas that we forget that it is not really about us to begin with it. Remembering the purpose of Christmas helps it feel more like Christmas.
Christmas is about giving.
I think sometimes we focus on the gifts that we might receive, whether tangible or intangible. But really Christmas is about what we give to others. We give gifts to our friends. We send Christmas cards to those we care about. We have funny office parties where we give silly gifts to each other that we trade around the room but nobody really wants anyway! We buy gifts for people in need, often for families we do not even know or will never meet. Christmas is about giving. When we focus on giving instead of receiving, it feels more like Christmas.
Christmas is about the Gospel.
Christ came into the world to save sinners. Even when we tell the Christmas story to our children, or put a manger scene up in our yard, we just see it as a warm and fuzzy feeling instead of realizing the seriousness of the Gospel. Too often at Christmas, the one time of the year people are willing to talk about matters of faith, we forget to tell others the story of Christ. Christ did not just come for you and for me. Christ came for all those who have yet to believe! He came for all those who are not yet celebrating His story. We need to share the story of Christ with someone at Christmas. When we do, it will feel much more like Christmas.
If you’re feeling a little bit sad thinking of those whom COVID has taken from us, or a little bit anxious about the next variant wave, or if you’re wondering about how inflation or supply chain issues are going to impact the holiday, perhaps it is time to shift our thinking. Let’s make Christmas about Christ. Let’s focus on giving, not just material things, but our love and attention. Let’s share the Gospel story with a friend. Doing these things will help us feel like Christmas!
Dr. Terry W. Dorsett serves as the executive director of the Baptist Convention of New England.
