How do you celebrate Christmas?

I ran across this video today and had to post it.

My wife and I talk about ways to celebrate the “true spirit of Christmas” each year.  We’ve often thought about cutting way back on the presents and focusing more on Jesus.  However, each year, our Christmas has more and more stuff.

We do focus on Jesus at Christmas.  We go to church on Christmas Eve.  This year I wrote a Christmas story, taking a quick bible tour from Genesis through the Gospels, and we read it as a family.  We visit a local assisted living center each year with one or two other families and sing Christmas carols to the elderly residents on Christmas morning.

However, with all of this, the presents steal the show.  Its not our kids fault.  They’re kids.  If you load up the tree with presents, that’s going to be the highlight of the day.  Christmas stories and carols to lonely, elderly strangers are ok, but the new Wii is the bomb.

I believe the problem we experience with Christmas is the problem with many churches today.  We preach and teach spiritual messages from the Bible but we mix in so much consumerism, that the spiritual message is forgotten behind the “church experience”.

This Christmas, we’re going to do something about the consumerism.  This Christmas, we’re going to join the Advent Conspiracy.

What if we start a Worship Conspiracy and truly have Christmas all year long.  After all, this message is too good to celebrate only once a year.

Luke 2:10-11 (ESV)
¹⁰ And the angel said to them, “Fear not, for behold, I bring you good news of a great joy that will be for all the people. ¹¹ For unto you is born this day in the city of David a Savior, who is Christ the Lord.