As we enter into holiday season, let me exhort you to keep one thing in mind: keep the holidays about Christ. If we are not careful, the holidays could become the “hustle days” or the “spending days.” Thanksgiving can become about the meal—everything has to be just right. Do we have enough variety of food, the right amount of food, the perfect doneness of food (and it has to be served hot!); do the place settings look right, is everybody happy? Christmas can get out of hand when the weeks leading up to it are all about presents: “What am I going to get so and so?” Shopping, spending, running around, shopping, spending, running….
I’m not saying that a nice meal is wrong or that buying someone a gift is wrong. It isn’t. But the focus can’t become the activity of the holiday. The focus must be the Person of the holiday—Christ.
Keep Christ in view at all times. Think about glorifying Him and pleasing Him. Think about praising Him and thanking Him. Think about testifying for Him and representing Him. Think about obeying the commands of Scripture. Think about turning people’s attention to Christ. Don’t feel like you must fit into the world’s expectations for the holidays.
This holiday season can be a great time of fellowship with Christ and a joyous time of year, if you keep the holidays about Christ.