The Reason for the Season

Hello and happy December! Despite the fact that our holiday lights are twinkling next to freshly fallen leaves instead of blankets of snow, we are thrilled to be gearing up for Christmas.   There are countless ways to celebrate but for us Christmastime always involves sending and receiving Christmas cards, packing up freshly baked cookies for our neighbors and driving around as a family to look at lights.  As I carefully found time for each of our favorite traditions in the days and weeks ahead, I was humbled by the fact that none of those traditions explicitly point us to the sacred reason we celebrate Christmas. 

God sent His only Son to be born here on earth so that we could be redeemed.  We celebrate the birth of Jesus, not just because He came to earth, but because He came to earth with the purpose of rescuing us from our sin.   Jesus was born so that He could eventually die in our place, canceling our debts and offering us the hope of eternal life. 

I carry that truth around with me throughout the Christmas season, but I realized that Nicole doesn't.  She understands pieces of the Christmas story like Jesus being born in Bethlehem but she doesn't yet grasp the significance of it.   I want Nicole to love all of the special and magical components of the season, but I also want her to have the reason for all of this celebrating to be nestled deeply inside of her.  It felt like a tall order to teach a 3 year old the true meaning of Christmas, but as I started diving deep into the origins of some of our favorite Christmas traditions, I knew I had a place to start. 

We hang Christmas lights because Jesus is the light of the world. 
We exchange gifts because the three wisemen brought the first Christmas gifts to baby Jesus. 
We travel to see our family because Mary and Joseph first traveled back to Joseph's hometown for the census. 
We place a star on top of our Christmas tree because of the star that shone brightly above the stable the night Jesus was born. 

It's such a privilege to live in a day and time when the things we do and say can point us back to the One who loves us the best.  It's been refreshing for me to intentionally keep the reason for the season in the forefront of my mind day to day.   During a time of year that is both sacred and frantic, I hope that you too can rest in the knowledge that one little baby grew up to ransom us all. 

Love,
Erica