Giving In the Spirit of Love Should Be Practiced All Year

Can you believe that there are just 14 days until Christmas Day? This year I am feeling a little behind on decorating the house. I finished gift shopping early this year, but haven’t gotten motivated to decorate the house. Last Sunday would have been a perfect day to put the lights on the house, but I let other chores take priority. I will try again for this Sunday.

Maybe it’s the lack of Christmas music on the radio. I just haven’t been listening to any Christmas music. Maybe it’s the unusually warm weather. I’m really not sure. But what I do know is that my procrastination is starting to bother me.

Christmas time has always been special to me. The story behind Christmas is a fascinating one. It is meant to represent the day that the Messiah, Jesus Christ was born; the savior of mankind. It is meant to give us hope and a sense of love that is eternal. Christmas is the day that we celebrate God loving us. He loved us enough to send His son to earth to live among us; to eventually pay the penalty for sin with his life. Christmas is not just another holiday.

We celebrate peace, hope, love and joy. We emulate the wise men giving gifts to Jesus by giving gifts to our loved ones. It’s fun to give gifts to our children and share in the joy that they express. It’s heartwarming to receive a gift from your spouse, close family member, or best friend. A handmade gift, whether from a child or an adult, is one of the most precious gifts. What makes it so special is the fact that it was created and given in the spirit of love.

Although Christmas is a Christian holiday, many non-Christians still find Christmastime to represent peace, hope, joy, and love. There is something hard to resist about Linus reading the scripture of the angels appearing before the wise men, who were out tending their flocks, to announce the birth of Jesus (in A Charlie Brown Christmas).

I don’t have any children at home any more. I usually get to see my kids for a day or so to celebrate Christmas every year. We feast and exchange gifts, and try to spend as much time catching up on each other’s lives as possible.

I like the house to look beautiful and festive inside and out. Cooking together as a family is so much fun. For me, Christmas really is the most joyous time of the year. Of course it takes time to decorate everything just right. Life can be hectic which puts me behind schedule. Some years I was still decorating a few days before Christmas.

This year Christmas seems to have lost a little of its normal festivity. Fewer houses have lights put up, and people seem more somber in general. I think that it has to do with all the bad things happening in the world. We are living in uncertain times. More than ever we need to come together to comfort and reassure one another and celebrate Jesus Christ as our eternal savior.

The spirit of giving has nothing to do with money or even physical gifts. The spirit of giving has to do with giving from your heart. This time of year is hard for many people, and a kind word or a hug may give someone the strength to make it through the day. You don’t have to look far; there may even be someone in your family in need of some encouragement.

As far as that goes, remember to be gentle with yourself. I know that I can really stress myself out over all kinds of issues from a lack of money to a lack of time. My biggest struggle is giving myself permission to relax. I am starting to feel the pressure of getting things done on time.

I had suggested to my husband that we take Friday off from work to put the Christmas lights on the house. My husband suggested that we should go fishing instead! What a dilemma. Normally, I am eager to go fishing but I was already focused on getting those lights up.

Now, the funny thing is that a few days ago I asked my daughter for suggestions for what we should eat for Christmas dinner. She thought about it and decided either ribs or fried catfish. Since we had both lamb and turkey for Thanksgiving, I said we could have both ribs and fried catfish for Christmas. Fresh caught wild fish is just the best tasting there is, so I said “yes, we should go fishing”.

Friday was a beautiful, sunny day and the perfect temperature. We caught 8 catfish totaling over 30 pounds. I had a blast. I really enjoy being out on the water. It was totally worth it!

So this weekend, we will get the lights on the house and work on decorating the inside, too. I can honestly say that any stress that I was feeling Thursday night is completely gone now. We will be happy little busy beavers and get much accomplished, I have no doubt.

When it comes to giving in the spirit of love, don’t forget yourself. Take time to relax, spend quality time with your loved ones, and laugh as much as possible.

Galatians 5:22-23 But the fruit of the Spirit is love, joy, peace, forbearance, kindness, goodness, faithfulness, gentleness, and self-control.