When Christmas Isn't Merry
Christmas is my favorite time of year. The music, the stories, the lights, the tree, decorations, presents, cookies, warmth, family togetherness... it's my favorite. I love saying "Merry Christmas" to people and seeing them smile in reply.
But I'll also admit that sometimes, Christmas isn't merry. Sometimes, it's difficult to get into that spirit... maybe you've recently lost a loved one, maybe your memories of Christmas aren't pleasant, maybe you get easily stressed and overwhelmed by the "expectations" at this time of year and feel you can't quite measure up. What do you do then? How do you rekindle the "merry" in your Christmas?
1. Rediscover the REASON
Gifts and decorations and trees and cookies are fun. But they're not the POINT of Christmas. Christ is. The coming of the promised Messiah, the culmination of thousands of years of waiting and hoping and believing... that is the reason for Christmas. The manger is important because it lies in the shadow of the cross, symbolizing the restoration of our sinful souls with a Holy God. That is the reason we celebrate. That is the reason we give... if I am giving gifts solely because of human tradition, then I'm doing it wrong. It is important to keep in the forefront of my mind that the reason I give gifts is out of an overflow of gratitude for the Greatest Gift ever given. The expectations we have for ourselves or that we feel from others pale in comparison to the only Giver who ALWAYS measures up. Place your expectations (or the expectations you fear others have of you) in Him this Christmas, He's the only one who can both meet and exceed all of them.
2. Be still
When the stress of "holiday" starts to overwhelm me, I try to find a way to spend some time in stillness before the Lord. In His presence is peace and perfect joy (Psalm 16:11). In the bustle of the holiday season, we so easily forget to take time to just be. Slow down. Kneel down. Talk to the King and let Him restore your soul.
3. Dive into the Word
It's easy to let this one get lost in the frenzy of buying and wrapping and baking and cleaning and packing and decorating... but this simple act of reading the Bible is such a restorative for your soul. Don't neglect it. Somebody pointed out to me a few weeks ago that Luke has 24 chapters, so if you read one chapter a day in December, by Christmas Eve you will have read through the entire life of Christ. We've been doing that, the kids and I, and it has been so beautiful. Read the Christmas story again. Scripture is ALIVE, and even if you've read this passage a hundred times, I promise, there's something new there for you if you return to it again.
4. Take a walk
Take a minute to go outside. I know it's cold out there, but sometimes that cold air is just what you need. (And if you live in a region that isn't cold this time of year... I'm sorry! BUT... on the upside, it should make it easier for you to open your door and go for a nice walk). Bask in God's creation and thank Him for the things you see.
5. Give kindness
Whether it's chatting with the cashier at the grocery store and calling them by name (it's on their name-tag, after all), paying for the person ordering behind you at the fast-food window, letting a frazzled-looking mom go ahead of you in line, reining in your temper when your maintenance guy from the landlord replaces your brand-new furnace filter with a not-as-good-as-the-expensive-one-you-bought-a-week-ago-because-of-your-son's-allergies-not-that-I-just-experienced-this-or-anything.... ahem... or just making the effort to smile at people throughout your day... it doesn't have to cost anything, but when we place our focus on others, we take the focus off of ourselves... and you might just find that it helps restore your JOY as well.
6. Accept kindness
This one is the hardest one for me. But if you're struggling with this season, let someone know... ask them for help... and then (and this is hard!) graciously accept any help that is offered. Let someone bring you a meal, or bake cookies for you, or watch your kids for the afternoon, or take you out for coffee and just talk... whatever it is that you need at this moment. It is so hard to ask, and it is so hard to accept... but you will be blessed by it, and you will bestow blessing on the one you allow to help you.And on this note, if you're the person that someone comes to and confesses that they're having a hard time with this season... listen! If they trust you enough to reveal their struggle, please don't squander that trust with comments like, "How can you not love Christmas?" or "What's your problem? Christmas is awesome!" (Not that I think any of you would do that! I know how fantastic you all are!) Just listen... then ask, "How can I help?"
7. Rediscover the Magic in Simple Things
The other day, I had a rough moment. My kids wanted to go to the store and pick out gifts for their neighborhood friends (they had saved up their own money for this purpose). We didn't get out of the house as quickly as I wanted to, and so it was getting late, the fussier-than-normal baby desperately needed a nap, the gift idea one daughter had had already sold out, the other daughter had NO ideas... to make matters worse, I scraped my finger on a shelf and started bleeding profusely enough that I couldn't get it to stop with simple pressure. I had to run to the first-aid aisle, grab a box of bandaids off the shelf and wrap one around my finger (and then, of course, toss unneeded box of bandaids into my cart so I could pay for them). I could feel my aggravation meter rapidly ticking its way into dangerous levels as we meandered (somewhat aimlessly) around the store. (For anyone who knows me well, you know this is my Achilles Heel... I shop with purpose and focus... meandering aimlessly in a store is NOT on my list of things I term "fun!")Eventually, we found ourselves in the stuffed animal aisle, and there was this fluffy little dog that said, "I sing! Try me!"Well, I don't know about you... but I'm one of those people who kind of compulsively has to push the buttons that say "try me!" in the store (this drives my husband crazy... which, of course, adds to my fun).I pushed the puppy's paw, and to my astonishment, the thing did not just start playing a heartily upbeat version of "Jingle Bells," but it also began to shake and dance its way across the shelf!In that moment, it was the funniest thing I'd ever seen.And I started to laugh.All four of my children began to laugh uproariously (and if you've never heard Brant laugh, you're truly missing out... he has the best laugh).I couldn't help myself. I bought the stupid dog. I couldn't leave him there... he had re-infused my day with the simple magic of laughter and the overwhelming magic of Christmas.Because Christmas IS magical. And absurd. It is the beautiful absurdity of a Holy God who LOVES me enough to DIE for me... to take MY punishment for sins upon His own back... just so that I can spend eternity with Him... not because He has to or needs to or needs me... but because I need Him.... and He came as a tiny baby. Born in a stable. Placed in a manger. Heralded by an army of angels and celebrated by SHEPHERDS, of all people... well... if that's not magic, then nothing is.
(I'm a fantasy writer. You knew I had to get magic in here somewhere, right?)And this still makes me laugh... (Brant is somewhat "fake laughing" in the video, so it's not as good as the real thing... but you get the idea, at least)
[embedyt] https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=1mgfvH-8Fio[/embedyt]