What Christmas Means to Me - Family

That’s What Christmas Means to Me: Family Part III of V
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Christmas is a time for the gathering of family. It’s a special time of year. It’s a time to worship together, visit relatives, play family games, and revisit the past through the telling of stories of old. It’s a time to remember our loved ones who have gone before us. It’s a time to feast on fine food and festive treats, sing carols, exchange gifts, watch homemade videos, read Christmas stories and take family pictures. It’s a time to honor our family traditions.

Christmas really isn’t about anything material, it’s about everything that is spiritual; spiritual in the sense that it is about the heart, the mind and the soul. Nothing has a greater impact on one’s spirit than one’s family. Christmas is about family.

Charles Dickens, in his 1843 novel, A Christmas Carol, brilliantly contrasts Ebenezer Scrooge, a cold-hearted, greedy, loner of a man with Bob Cratchit, a poor, hard working, family man. Scrooge is consumed with wealth. He is a miserable, lonely old man. On one of the most joyous days of the year, Scrooge has nothing but disdain for Christmas and its traditions. Bob Cratchit, on the other hand, embraces the joys of Christmas. He desperately wants to be with his family and provide for them a Christmas dinner. Bob Cratchit is a family man. Although he lives an impoverished lifestyle, Bob Cratchit has everything he needs; he has his family. Scrooge’s main focus in life is money and power; money and power that leads to his misery. Cratchit’s focus is on his family. Cratchit has love and family; love and family that sustains him and leads to peace of mind.

The more you appreciate your family, the more you’ll cherish this Christmas. Your character is largely shaped by the family values you’ve shared and practiced while growing up. It’s through our family that we receive the greatest amount of love and support. Outside of God’s love for us, there is no substitute for the love of a parent, the love of a spouse, the love of a sibling, or the love of a child. There should be no greater connection than our connection to our family. The family is a unit. A unit united by shared experiences, both good and bad, and the emotions tied to those experiences.

This Christmas I ask that you embrace this special time of year and cherish the time you spend with your family. If there is conflict with a family member, put it aside; put it aside for the greater good, the good of your family. Ask God to give you the courage and strength to forgive a family member, who may have done you wrong. Or, ask God to give you the courage and the strength, to apologize and ask for forgiveness from a family member if you may be in the wrong.

Christmas is a about family. It’s a time when a smile can easily be invoked by the sharing of family memories; it’s a time to savor the present moment with family, while sharing God's greatest gift to us, Love; and, it's a time to commit to a future where the values of family love and self-sacrifice will endure.

And that's what Christmas means to me!

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It's your life: live it, love it & celebrate it!