God-Filled Stress-less Holidays – Homewords – Winter 2005

Christmas will be here before we know it – baking, entertaining, shopping and stress. Don’t miss the point of this celebration of God’s greatest gift by overdoing the trimmings and underdoing the things that really matter. Here are a few principles to practice as you create traditions and memories in your home: Keep things simple. Too many activities can rob your joy and obscure the true meaning of Christmas. Be creative with what you already have on hand and don’t let yourself be guilted into spending more on others than you can afford. No need to add more stress by breaking the bank. Be flexible with your expectations of yourself and others. This is a great time to exercise forgiveness and grant grace. Be pro-active by taking charge of the celebration and making it into what is best for your family at this season of life. Don’t feel compelled to be all things to all people. Be deliberate about keeping Christ in Christmas. Celebrate Advent as you prepare your hearts for this Holy holiday. Give, give, give to others of your family’s time and resources as you reflect your gratefulness for God’s gift of His Son. Establish family traditions that focus on the true meaning of Christmas – reading the Christmas story, going to church on Christmas Eve, caroling in your neighborhood, letting the children act out the Christmas Story for your houseful of family and friends. This has been one of our favorite traditions and has been captured on video tape every year. What a treasure to see who Mary and Joseph were that year and who was now old enough to be a sheep or a shepherd. (Click here for a copy of the Christmas Play). Have fun and don’t forget the camera. Here’s to less stress and more of God in your Christmas, Love, Darcy © Copyright 2005 Darcy Kimmel