My Christmas Crisis
My Christmas Crisis
by Markey Motsinger
I have celebrated Christmas with the same traditions ever since I can remember. A 4 am wake up call to go Black Friday shopping started our Christmas traditions and didn’t stop until bedtime on December 25thWe looked at lights, made cookies, and listened to dad grumble looking for the attic decorations. I loved every minute...until I had my Christmas crisis.
My crisis started on a normal day as I was walking through a store, reading all the normal Christmas sayings. You know the ones that say Jesus is the Reason for the Season and don’t leave Christ out of Christmas. And it hit me. Christ was my favorite side dish to Christmas. He was not my focus; it was not the reason for my season. The main course was traditions and creating an ideal day where everyone’s expectations are met and memories are made.
I went home and announced to my husband, Ryan, that we were cancelling all Christmas traditions. He was actually half-way on board until I said, NO EXCHANGING PRESENTS. He was no longer on board. Ha! I will admit, it was a little extreme, but it’s how I felt. God was showing me how, in my head, I had convinced myself it was all about Him, but that my actions showed it was mostly, if not all, about me. About my traditions.
Since my big Christmas announcement, we have worked hard to make Jesus the center of all our holiday traditions. Now, every tradition is a way of helping us remember and focus on Jesus. They don’t make or break the day. They don’t cause me to be anxious, cranky, stressed, and broke.
Our house is minimally decorated, we buy less, spend more time making memories and have replaced a few traditions with different ones, such as taking communion together the morning of Christmas.
Your Turn…
Do your traditions lead you closer to Jesus or closer to an anxiety attack? I honestly think Jesus loves the traditions. The ones that bring families together, invoke forgiveness, provide unity, and spur on selfless giving. I also think He hates them. The ones that leave us unhealthy and blind us to the real “reason for the season”.
We don’t have to give up our traditions, but we need to make sure we aren’t turning Jesus’ birth into a complex day of striving for perfection. Traditions should lead us closer to the heart of Jesus and the fact that He is our Savior.
I pray this season is full of fun traditions that lead us all to a place of gratitude where our hearts are full of the love that Jesus first offered us two thousand years ago as He lay in a manager.
Hi there! I’m Markey! I’m inviting you to pull up a chair and join me in this thing called life. With me, you won’t find much fluff, but you will find an ordinary, girl who craves authenticity and Jesus. Visit me here to read my blog or grab some free Bible studies and reading plans.
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