Being Still at Christmastime

Is Christmas a peaceful season for you? Odds are, probably not! In the hustle culture of today’s world, finding peace can be incredibly difficult. Isaiah 9:6 tells us that Jesus is called the “Prince of Peace.” On his birthday, shouldn’t we celebrate that? In this week’s blog post, we share a few tips and tricks for your family to bring peace instead of chaos into your home this Christmas!

A popular Christmas tradition involves lighting Advent Candles. Advent is a season of spiritual preparation and joyful anticipation about the heart of Christmas, celebrated in the month leading up to the holiday. Each of the candles represents a specific theme that Christians celebrate in the gift of Jesus and is lit on one of the four Sundays, marking the start of a week of reflecting on that theme. 

The first candle is for Hope.
The second candle is for Peace.
The third for Joy.
And the final candle is for Love.

Each candle represents something that Jesus brought on Christmas.  And most of us feel it, the hope, the joy, the love. But peace?

If you are like most parents, peace at Christmas seems impossible. There is WAY too much to do, and so little time to do it. How can anyone find peace in the craziness of the holiday season? The Bible tells us that we can find peace if we can:

“Be still and know that I am God” (Psalm 46:10)

In the midst of the busyness, do you have any “still” time? Time devoted to just… sit, enjoy family, reflect on how Jesus is God, and he came to earth on the first Christmas?

How to Have Still Time

First, schedule it!
We schedule other things like doctor’s appointments and soccer practice. Open up your family calendar and schedule a few “be still” appointments and don’t let anything interfere with it.

Second, plan for that time.
Prepare something to help you “be still.” One family drives around their neighborhood, listening to Christmas songs about Jesus while looking at lights. Another family reads through a Christmas book (like The Christmas Carol) and then talks about how that book relates to Jesus. Other families sit around their Christmas tree and just talk about God’s incredible gift! 

Sample Questions for the Whole Family

1. Can you tell the true story of Christmas? You can read it in chapters 1 and 2 of the books of the Bible, Luke and Matthew. Or you can watch MecKidz Christmas specials to get a feel for the true Christmas Story.
2. How do the decorations of our house remind us of Jesus? Lights represent him as light of the world, gold and silver remind us that Jesus’ birth has great value, evergreen trees remind us his love will never die, etc.
3. What do you think Jesus would most want to tell you today?
4. What do you think it was like for Mary and Joseph when Jesus was born?
5. What could we do this Christmas that would make Jesus happy?
6. What does it mean that Jesus, God himself in human form, was born?
7. What do you think Jesus looked like? What did he act like? 

Create the atmosphere.
Make it peaceful. Turn on the Christmas tree lights and turn off other lights. Have soft peaceful Christmas music playing in the background. Let your older children light a candle (what child doesn’t love to light candles and watch the flame?) Gather blankets and snuggle together. 

Don’t Overdo It.
Keep the peaceful time going as long or as short as seems natural. It might be 10 minutes or 45 minutes. Whatever the time, savor the quiet still moment with your family. And then look forward to the next scheduled time. 

End with prayer.
As you close your “peace” time, pray as a family. Pray that God would help you keep the real meaning of Christmas at the center of your holiday season. And pray for God to give you peace in the midst of the chaos.

Be still and know that He is God this Christmas.

 

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