OPINION:
Every December I look forward to slowing down during the Christmas season and reflecting on God’s generous provision over the past year. Despite my best intentions, however, I struggle to find quiet time because there’s always so much going on during the holidays.
I know I’m not alone.
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Let’s face it. Christmas is filled with unrealistic expectations. We put a lot of energy into shopping, decorating, attending parties, and wrapping gifts, and we wonder why we feel so stressed out instead of refreshed and closer to God and our families.
How do we make the holidays as fun, meaningful, and stress-free as possible?
Practicing and observing an ancient Christian tradition is a good way to make this coming Christmas season the most memorable and meaningful one yet.
Since the early Church, Christians have observed Advent. It’s a yearly time of anticipation where we prepare our hearts and minds to celebrate Jesus’ earthly birth. This time is meant to awaken in us a yearning for the newborn Messiah, an expectancy birthed from an awareness of our own sinful condition and need. It reminds us we are to anticipate His second return.
And as our culture strays further from the true meaning of Christmas, it’s no wonder so many families are now choosing to return to the time-honored tradition of observing Advent. It serves to correct our human tendency to cheapen what is sacred about Christmas. It helps us focus our attention back on Jesus, the object of our heart’s desire.
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My family and I have greatly benefitted from our annual observances of Advent. Our sons are older now, but they helped our young sons better grasp the true meaning of the Christmas season.
Our team at Focus on the Family has put together excellent resources designed to help you lead and guide your sons and daughters through this exciting month. They’ll help you stress the fact it’s not about Santa – but about a Savior who came to earth in the form of a tiny baby.
Some of the ways you can help your children get ready is by using an Advent calendar. A traditional Advent calendar, with its doors or pockets hiding small treasures, becomes a symbol of anticipation and reflection.
You might also create an Advent wreath consisting of four candles to reflect the four weeks leading up to Jesus’ birthday. You light a new candle each week. The wreath and room get brighter the closer you come to Christmas. Each candle also represents a theme, either hope, faith, peace or joy.
We’d focus on one theme per week and organize games and crafts that drove home the importance and practicality of each.
From fasting to family crafts, daily devotionals to delightful traditions, take a journey through the many ways we like to celebrate Advent in 2024 with Focus on the Family.
Advent is a fun, faith-filled way to keep the family focused on Jesus throughout Christmas. Learn how to make Advent for your kids! Read here: https://t.co/aVY6JIiWDk
— Focus on the Family (@FocusFamily) December 1, 2024
Christmas is a wonderful time to engage with friends and family, to enjoy good food, and most of all to celebrate the amazing gift of God’s Son, Jesus Christ, who came to earth as a baby and sacrificed himself for our sake, so that we can be forgiven and reconciled with God.
Years ago, I heard a story about a little boy who was asked to define the word love.
His answer?
“Love is what’s in the room with you at Christmas if you stop opening presents and just listen.”
Isn’t that good?
Don’t forget to stop and just listen as you open gifts throughout Advent.
As we stand at the beginning of this year’s holiday season, I pray the Holy Spirit will awaken a wonder in all of us – including our kids – at the incredible gift of Emmanuel, God with us.
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Jim Daly is president of Focus on the Family and host of its daily radio broadcast, heard by more than 6 million listeners a week on nearly 2,000 radio stations across the U.S. He also hosts the podcast ReFocus with Jim Daly.
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