My wife and I were approaching our first Christmas together. We were both so excited. We were coming off a crazy time in our lives. We'd just got married and moved to Chicago. We were working for The Salvation Army in separate areas, raising money and meeting needs.
It was December 24th midday, and we were both tired after a kettle season that started in mid-November.
We met up at our downtown Chicago on-campus apartment at The Salvation Army seminary, exhausted but hopeful.
We wanted to avoid something we'd felt many times previously on Christmas. We wanted to avoid the Christmas hangover. It's a feeling we'd experienced many times. It was the sense that we missed the heart of what Christmas is really about.
Among all the unwrapped presents and delicious meals we would sit on Christmas and think to ourselves... we missed what really matters. We would feel engorged, pleasure-filled but ultimately empty hearted.
So we decided for our first Christmas together that something had to change.
Here is what we did, and the effect was absolutely electric:
We gathered in our apartment in downtown Chicago, a place we didn't want to be, yet providence had led us there. In the little apartment our Christmas tree was glowing, the ornaments and decorations were beautifully displayed, candles were burning, lights glowing, the environment was set.
We had several activities planned for ourselves. On Christmas Eve in the morning we woke up together and the first thing we did was we prayed together and thanked God for His goodness. The snow was falling as we parted ways that morning, it was beautiful. The city was oddly quiet. Chicago is never quiet, but it seemed so quiet that day.
Immediately after we parted ways, my wife headed to Midway, I headed to Gary, and later that day we came together again around 3pm after work.
First, we sat down on the floor in our living room, wrapped ourselves in throw blankets, and we lit candles and incense. We pulled out our phones and one of us would suggest a hymn, we'd pull up the lyrics on our phones, and then we'd sing it together, worshipping God. Many were Christmas songs, but not all. We took turns, my wife picked one, then I picked one, back and forth we went.
It's very easy in a group setting, or with your loved one to do a hymn sing together. Simply take out your phones, and use google to search for the lyrics of a particular song. A great resource for this is GCCSATX. You can find almost any hymn lyrics on the website, along with piano accompaniment for most of the songs.
Some of the songs we sang included:
Silent Night
Joy to the World
O Come All Ye Faithful
We Three Kings
Hark the Herald Angel Sing
Angels We have heard on High
The next thing we did was make Christmas cookies together. My grandma had a wonderful recipe for ginger bread cookies. We found a nativity ginger bread cookie cutter set at Hobby Lobby in town and used that.
After that we went through the nativity story, reading the account from the book of Matthew and Luke, with both our Bibles open, talking about the meaning and purpose behind what God did.
Scriptures we read: Matthew 1:18-25, Matthew 2:1-23, Luke 1:26-56, Luke 2:1-40, John 1:1-5, John 1:10-18
This was very powerful, as we read each scripture the historical nativity spoke into our current moment. We reflected on what those involved must've been feeling and thinking. We asked questions. We were inspired. We were touched. We were confused at times, amazed in others. Scripture is so powerful, and the verbal reading of the word shifted the environment around us.
After that, we shared favorite memories growing up from Christmas and the Christmas traditions of both of our families. We talked deep about the meaning of Christmas, the birth of Jesus, and how Christmas affected us growing up, as well as how we see it now in light of our personal faith journeys.
Next, we opened presents together. Often the opening of gifts is the center piece of any Christmas gathering, but we knew something was wrong about that. The center piece should be Jesus, and the presents should be secondary. We realized at the time, that by making the gifts secondary, and Jesus and his birth central, we had touched on something essential.
The presence of God I felt was holy, and moving. As we honored the Lord with our Christmas eve, and Christmas day, the Lord's presence was tangibly perceivable.
At night we watched a Christmas movie, it's a movie that we've developed as a tradition in our relationship. We watch it every year during Christmas since we first began dating. It's a movie called "The Nativity." It portrays the events of the birth of Jesus in a thoroughly biblical, meaningful and powerful way.
After the movie, my wife and I once again got together and had a time of prayer, thanking God for his amazing gift. We burned candles, and played Christian Christmas music. We enjoyed more deep conversation together, reflecting on everything that had happened recently, and where God was leading us.
At the end of the day, we took the body and blood of Jesus together in our small apartment, using grape juice from the store, and communion wafers I had ordered online (Amazon).
After that we watched "It's a Wonderful Life" one of our favorite Christmas movies. Then we went to bed.
Every Christmas I've experienced in my life I've always sat back a day later and felt like I'd engorged myself on food, consumerism, and selfishness. I had missed the real heart of Christmas. I had ruthlessly fed my pleasures and tagged Jesus on the side of it all.
That Christmas eve, and Christmas day the next day were sacred and special. They felt different. They were different. I felt no hang over. I felt enriched. I felt we'd taken steps that had yielded real results.
This was the first Christmas where I sat back after everything and realized, I had really found the heart of Christmas, because we had made it about Jesus.
If you're sick of the Christmas emotional hang over, try setting a new pattern this Christmas. Make Jesus the center of your Christmas celebrations and watch God bless you as a result.
Say goodbye to the Christmas hangover and replace it with the joy of knowing you honored the Master who loves you!
Here is a Sample Outline to Help Plan your Gathering:
Christmas Eve - Dec 24th
Enjoy a Family Dinner together - share favorite memories from past Christmas celebrations
After dinner turned off all the lights except for Christmas lights (Burn candles)
Sing Christmas Hymns together - by suggestion - Pray before starting
Go through Christmas Scriptures together (Events just Prior to Birth of Jesus: Angel visits Mary, Mary & Elizabeth, Angel visits Joseph)
Scriptures: Luke 1:26-38, Luke 1:39-56, Matthew 1:18-25
Time of Prayer - pray for family, friends, loved ones
Watch Christmas movie "It's a Wonderful Life"
Christmas Day - Dec 25th
Sleep in
Enjoy a Christmas Breakfast with family
Bake gingerbread cookies together
Go through the Christmas Scriptures together (Birth of Jesus, Shepherds visit, Magi Visit Jesus)
Scriptures: Luke 2:1-7, Luke 2:8-20, Matthew 2:1-12
Time of Prayer - pray for those hurting on Christmas, elderly, lonely, lost and addicted, pray for gospel to go out to hurting people this Christmas
Open Gifts together (Christmas music playing in background)
Enjoy Christmas Cookies & Gifts that were opened
Time of Prayer - Thank God for everything he's given this year
Take the Body and Blood of Christ together as a family
Watch the movie "The Nativity"
Discuss and reflect with family on how the movie spoke to them
