The December Treadmill
OK, we all know the Christmas season is enough to drive the most stable among us insane. We get on this fast-moving treadmill of shopping, baking, buying, wrapping, decorating, and partying. By the time December 26 comes around, we find ourselves dazed and dizzy and saying, "What was that all about?"
There's got to be a "better way". There's got to be a way to celebrate Christmas in such a way that God is honored and the kids don't want to disown us.
WHAT HAVE YOU DONE OR ARE PLANNING TO DO THIS CHRISTMAS TO MAKE IT A SPECIAL TIME? How do you blend the sacred and the secular?
Blog on,
Pastor Phil
There's got to be a "better way". There's got to be a way to celebrate Christmas in such a way that God is honored and the kids don't want to disown us.
WHAT HAVE YOU DONE OR ARE PLANNING TO DO THIS CHRISTMAS TO MAKE IT A SPECIAL TIME? How do you blend the sacred and the secular?
Blog on,
Pastor Phil
posted by Pastor Phil Print at 11:56 AM
3 Comments:
We tackle the gift giving on four fronts:
1) We realize we can't control what other people give our 2 kids - so we cuy WAY back on what WE give them. A single gift from 'santa' and a single gift from us. Then, along with the other 10+ things they get from others (Aunts, Uncles, Grandparents, etc) they still end up with a lot.
2) My wife and I cut WAY back on each other. Again, a single gift. (My wife is getting the Oprah DVD's this year. Shhh.) We then make sure we ship the kids to Grandma's house and have an evening out at a nice restaurant - our gift to each other.
3) As a family we pick our gifts from the World Vision catalog: Grandma gets a goat - Uncle Dan gets a cow - My boss gets a chicken and so on. Those gifts actually go to folks in other countries that REALLY need things.
http://www.worldvision.org/
4) Finally, we identify three people (or couples) that we feel a desire to connect (or re-connect) to and have them over for a nice dinner. It's amazing how a nice dinner and several hours of fellowhip can have a much bigger impact then a gift certificate to Applebees!
what to do when your spouse isn't on the same page?
she was raised by extremely frugal(cheap) parents and 'will not do the same to my kids'. i don't think spending within one's limits is cheap, but i'm getting tired of the battle!
In spite of Focus on the Family's efforts - I am promoting the concept of:
"Separation of Church and Retail" (Going along with the Separation of Church and State)
Based on Matthew 21:12 - I strongly believe that while every 5 seconds one of God's children dies of hunger - Christ would not want to be 'connected' with Holiday Shopping. I believe he would, however, want to be connected with the 'giving' aspect of his Birth. But that giving should involve those that have SOOOO much giving (time, money, etc) to those with so little.
To sum up:
Holiday Shopping.
Christmas Giving.
It should be pretty clear which is more important for the Kingdom of God.
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