You and I have something in common
We’ve each had a birthday since my Christmas article on ‘Peace’ last year.
How did you celebrate your birthday?
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I know someone who turned sixty and had a big party.
I know someone who went overseas to celebrate turning forty.
I know someone who spent her twenty eighth birthday in hospital caring for a sick partner.
I know someone who missed her birthday because her newborn was only two days old.
One dear friend took a month sabbatical in a tent in the Flinders Ranges to usher in a new decade.
Birthdays bring a range of emotions and memories.
My own birthday is complicated every year because it’s also my wedding anniversary and it’s two days before Christmas!
It is the same with Christmas
Christmas can be celebrated in many different ways and with a big mix of emotions and memories. Christmas, among many things, is about celebrating the birth of Jesus. It’s a happy time of rejoicing in the good news of God’s salvation plan, of giving and receiving gifts and of feasting with family and friends.
The choice is ours, but how do we choose?
On the downside, it can be a time that highlights difficulty in family relationships or loss of loved ones. It can put financial stress on families and create anxiety to find just the right present. We can dread this Christmas season or we can embrace it.
Our perspective about what’s important determines our response
Our minds offer us our final response
It is true that our emotions offer us our first response. But our minds offer us our final response.Think about why you “do” Christmas and why you do it in that particular way. Identify what are the most important things about Christmas that hold the most meaning for you and prioritise them. The rest falls into the ‘do not stress’ basket. I heard once that someone had cried at Christmas lunch because the crackling on the pork burned and was inedible.If you are sad this Christmas, acknowledge your loss and then choose something to celebrate. If you are stressed then simplify the way you celebrate. Let’s keep our perspective on what is important to us. May you have peace and joy as you celebrate with others the good news of the birth of Jesus.