5 Simple ways we’re putting Christ back in Christmas
I’m sure I’m not shocking you with this revelation, but we are not wealthy! Not by any stretch of the imagination (at least not monetarily). However, I’m proud to say that over the years we’ve become so much more responsible over the blessings that God has put in our lives. That being said, I think early on we may have over compensated when it came to Christmas gifts. Maybe it’s because we felt we didn’t have enough money to give the biggest and the best, so we aimed for quantity. We chose cheaper alternatives, but way too many of them!
Looking back I can see where we may have gone a bit overboard (mostly because my children were never “too good” for Dollar store gifts). However, what we overlooked is that they were still being spoiled. They still received so many gifts that they could hardly keep track of what they had. This also led to them not really cherishing or having too much care for what they received. They are so used to over receiving that it’s taken for granted that actual, hard earned money went into these toys. We don’t want Christmas to get lost in the presents, and we don’t want to set a standard that we may not always be able to keep up with.
- Slowly over the last few years, we’ve already been trying to cut back. During the months leading up to the big Christmas countdown, we mentioned a couple times to the kids that the presents would be a little lighter this year.
- Next, we’re making the weeks leading up to Christmas all about others! We put on some Christmas music, grabbed some snacks, and began going through all of their gently used toys we felt would be a blessing to other children.
- We’ve also taught the kids about organizations like Samaritan’s purse, who deliver shoeboxes full of Christmas presents to children in need. In fact, their school showed a video of children who receive these boxes and even let the kids help fill loads of them! This really bolstered the kids enthusiasm to do extra chores in an effort to raise money that we would be put toward filling our own shoe boxes. And good news-it’s not too late, you can fill a shoebox virtually!
Click here to learn more and bless a child with a special gift on Christmas!
- Of course since it’s a birthday celebration, we make a special birthday cake for Jesus every year. This is such a great opportunity to talk about what we can “give” Jesus for his birthday. Things like writing out christmas greetings to our neighbors, or baking cookies for friends.
- And lastly and most importantly we spend time reading, talking and asking questions about the life of Jesus. Our kids know that Christmas is the time of year that we celebrate the birth of Jesus, but we’re taking more time to really bring the main focus back to him.
I feel like we’ve worked ourselves into a corner with gift giving. Our kids have always known that Jesus is the reason for the season, but c’mon, who are we trying to fool!? To them, he’s secondary to presents. I want to shift that. I’m not looking to kill Christmas, just to prioritize according to importance. Jesus, then a few presents-and TONS of Christmas songs,and cookies!
You know I love the community chat! So tell me, what are some things you’re doing to make this a Merry Christmas in Jesus name?
30 Comments
I love this post so much for so many reasons! I love that idea of making Jesus a birthday cake!! I am totally starting that this year! Merry Christmas!
Merry Christmas to you too Jehava! We’ve been making a cake every year! I think it’s probably the best reminder that it’s actually the celebration of Jesus birthday! I hope you all have fun!
Such an important topic! I love all of these suggestions. It’s so easy to customize them for different ages.
Rose, definitely! The younger they are, the easier it will be. As they get older you can do more things like giving back within your community!
Love this! I use to over indulge my girls at Christmas too and have been slowly pulling back. We have a few books about what Christmas really means that we read throughout the entire month of December. I also have my girls go through, with a lot of help from me ;-), all of their toys to find things to donate as well. I will have to look into the Samaritan’s purse, it sounds like a awesome thing I can do with my girls too.
Ayanna, your girls (or any kids for that matter) would love Samaritan’s purse! They get to buy little gifts, fill the boxes, color some pictures, and bless another child. They’ll even get to choose boy or girls, and even the age group they want to buy for. Have fun!
Thank you for sharing the great ideas for putting Christ at the center of Christmas. We like to make a birthday cake as well to help us remember the true meaning of the season.
Tammy, it’s so special,right? It’s such a wonderful reminder of the day! Thanks for sharing!
We always made a birthday cake for Jesus growing up! I haven’t kept that tradition for my family because we now have 6 birthdays in December and it’s cake overload. But I still love the idea!
Oh my gosh, Rebekah! I have alot of birthdays around Christmas too. OK, let’s collaborate…what can we do? Well, how about a fancy Christmas cupcake with a candle? oohhh, I like that! HAHA! I just impressed myself!
This is great! We always give gifts to children in need. Last year we bought gifts for a veteran and his family which was awesome and so important for your own children to be a part of. This year, my husband is volunteering with the Marines for toys for tots and the kids will pick out some gifts for other children. It’s the season to show compassion for others and be giving.
Amber, I love that your family is taking action. All this Christmas kindness makes me so happy! There are so many people around us in need of love and unconditional support. Thank you for sharing!
I love all of these ideas! This year we’re checking with the kids (and ourselves) on how we’ve served others each day. As you said, there’s no better way to celebrate Christmas than by acting like Christ!
What a great idea! A check in. Often there are so many opportunities to bless others each day, even if we think it’s small, it could be big to someone else. Great Idea!
Such a great post! You are right, Christmas is about CHRIST and not about gifts! We actually only do 1 gift for our kids, and it’s a game we can play all year round. Merry Christmas to you!
Hey, nothing wrong with that! I think it’s a great idea! Something that’s fun and will bring the family together. There are a lot of great ideas here. Thanks so much for sharing.
I love this post! We’ve decided to start doing a lot of similar things while the baby was younger so that she was used to celebrating this way!
Yes! Erica, you’re so right. It gets to be a hard thing to break away from the more expectant they become. Good for you!
We’ve been saying that as well – gifts will be lighter, and we will enjoy just being together. I love the idea of gathering toys to donate. I think our kids would learn so much from doing that.
I’m hoping that donating their toys makes them realize that (first) being able to open new gifts is a blessing, and (second) that maybe they do receive too much-if there’s such an abundance that they can afford to give away, (and that’s to make new room for MORE)! Good Luck if you do this. Make sure to prep them (Samaritan’s purse would be good for this too, so they have a visual of kids in need)
This is the first year Noelle has really been into Christmas,so I’m taking advantage and trying to teach her right. Thanks for the tips
Way to go Brittany, the earlier the better! Merry Christmas!
I love the idea of baking a birthday cake for Jesus, my kids would really love that. We always spend time talking about each figure of the nativity. We sing songs, read scriptures, talk about what they were doing on that night, etc. We also only do three presents, something joyful, something meaningful, and something needful, to represent the three gifts of the magi.
Justine, I love the Ideas I’ve been seeing here about the 3 or 4 gifts with purpose, and yours makes perfect sense. Since we have not really bought anything yet (I know, so late!) this is what we’re incorporating this year! I so love the community here! Thanks for sharing with me!
I love these traditions! Such great things to instill in your children! Good job mama!
Amanda, thank you so much! Thanks for taking time to read. Have a Merry Christmas!
This is really great, Jen! I love how your family is focus on keeping Christ in Christmas. I mean, that’s what the holiday is really about, right? 🙂 I like your idea to make a birthday cake for Jesus. I think this is a great way to teach your children that Christmas is about His birth. We are doing something similar. We are currently celebrating Advent and to help my 4 year old understand the meaning of the candles on the wreath, I told her it’s like Jesus’ birthday cake. We’re also going to play with a birthday cake toy set and sing “Happy Birthday” to Jesus. I also love your teaching your children how to give back at Christmas time. This is very important! Great holiday traditions!
Jennifer, comparing the Advent wreath to a birthday cake is so smart! I Iove it. So, every year right before Christmas while we’re donating almost ALL of last years gifts, I think “Why”? I think we’ll be taking on the new tradition of purposeful gifts. Merry Christmas to you and the family!
I love this! We try really hard to make Christ the center of this seaon with my little guy. He’s only 3 so, sometimes thats a little tough but we have a few things we started doing early on that we hope will keep the focus where it needs to be. I love that you suggested making this a season of giving to others. Last year, for the first time, we went to a local nursing home on Chistmas day and sang Christmas carols. We are already planning on doing it this year and I can’t wait!
You went to a nursing home to sing!? I love it!! That’s so wonderful, so many folks at the homes are not able to get out, and I know they truly enjoy the company. What a great tradition, and a great way of showing your son how to give back! Thank you so much for stopping by & Merry Christmas!