Creating a Christ-Centered Advent Season: 3 Tips for Meaningful Christmas Preparation
Focusing on the Simple and Meaningful
As we approach the Advent season, it can feel overwhelming as we consider all that this time of year can bring…hectic traffic, packed holiday calendars, and meltdowns on the toy aisle. Perhaps every year Christmas comes and goes and you look back with regret or frustration because the “good news of great joy for all people” (Luke 2:10) that you longed to share with your children or your spouse got lost in the busyness. The following words are an invitation to take a settling breath and consider small ways to pursue Christ and make him the center of your Christmas this year.
3 Tips for Creating a Christ-Centered Advent
1. Add to what you already do
I can’t tell you the number of times my husband and I have bought a beautiful new Advent book at the start of the Christmas season. We envision sitting by the Netflix fireplace, drinking hot chocolate, and beholding the wonders of Jesus’ birth. The first two or three nights are magical. We feel encouraged and excited that our visions of a Christ-centered Christmas are coming to fruition. Unfortunately, as the busyness of the holiday season increases, this new ritual no longer feels peaceful or inspiring–instead it feels like one more thing on the overflowing to-do list. As a result, we forego the new plan altogether and then beat ourselves up because, once again, we failed to make Christ the focus of our Advent. Thankfully, pursuing Christ at Christmas does not have to be as all or nothing as I have made it.
Instead of adding a new and elaborate step to your day, think about how you can add a Christ-centered element to what you already do. What is something my husband and I already do together every night? Eat dinner. So how do we add to this existing rhythm? We alternate nights and read a short chapter from the advent book each night during dinner. Since eating is something we already have to do, adding in a short chapter feels much more sustainable than adding an additional step at the end of the day.
Perhaps for you it’s taking the kids to school. Instead of an elaborate plan to do a family devotion before getting out the door every morning, you could pick a new Christmas hymn every week and play it each morning on the way to school. By the end of the week, your children will be singing along and absorbing rich, Christ-centered truths for the season.
There is nothing wrong with our desire to seek Christ surrounded by a fake fireplace and mugs of hot chocolate. In fact, there will likely be a handful of those magical, feel-good moments for you and your family this holiday season. However, if we can start with adding to the already existing, we are much more likely to be consistent in our Christ-seeking rhythms.
Here are a few other ideas to add to what you already do…If you read to your children before bed, switch the typical books for a few Christ-centered Christmas stories. If you pray before bed with your spouse or your children, pray that the Lord would help you seek Christ first this season. Before eating dinner, around the table, read Luke 2:1-21 out loud as a family. The good news about adding to what you already do is that if you miss a family meal or don’t drive the kids to school one day, there will always be a next time you do have a meal or drive the kids, and then you can pick right back up.
2. Grow in wonder
Living in the Bible belt, it’s not abnormal to drive down the road and use both hands to count the number of nativity scenes. Words and phrases like “baby Jesus”, “the Virgin Mary”, or even “Hark! The Herald Angels Sing” can become commonplace and leave our mouths without a second thought. You can tell your child that “Jesus is the reason for the season”, and they might be able to repeat that back to you, but I wonder if that is really the goal? Wouldn’t it be better if the goal was to share the truths of Christmas with our children and help them treasure these truths and ponder them in their hearts? Teaching our children to wonder and to be curious about what they hear this season can help them treasure and ponder the Christmas story on their own.
As you read Luke 2 around the dinner table, let it spark your family’s conversations and ask questions like…
I wonder…what does a manger look like?
What do swaddling cloths feel like?
How did Mary and Joseph feel when they learned there was no room for them in the inn?
I wonder…what is an inn?”
Why did the shepherds share with others about Jesus?”
As you sing “Hark! The Herald Angels Sing” at church or in the car on the way to school, wonder at what it must have sounded like to hear angels singing, “Glory to God in the highest!” Ask, “I wonder…did it sound like it does when our church sings?” “I wonder…what did the shepherds feel when they saw the angel? What would I feel?”
As you light the candle before eating, “I wonder…what would it feel like to be alone in the dark? What would it feel like to suddenly see a great light? What does it mean that Jesus is light?” (John 8:12)
When helping your family wonder and be curious this season, engage the five senses. Ask questions about sight, smell, taste, hearing, and touch. This immerses them in the Christmas story while also helping you to ponder Christ in new ways and through child-like faith.
3. Start Small
It can be easy to feel discouraged or overwhelmed when you see the world’s messages about the Christmas season. Our culture fuels materialism and a “more is more” mindset that can feel impossible to compete with. Now would be a good time to take that settling breath. Each day, each hour, each breath provides you a new opportunity to sow seeds for Christ this season. If you completely forget your well thought out plan on December 1st, resist throwing in the towel or chastising yourself. Ask God to help you seek him this season. Find another way to add to what your family is already doing. Grow in wonder as you behold Christ. The changes we make in our homes this Christmas season don’t have to be grand to be meaningful. In fact, I’d suggest that small and simple is more sustainable, and small things done often can have a much bigger impact than big things done only once.
Cherishing the Meaningful Moments
As you look back on this season, choose to treasure the small moments. Recall how your children wondered about the smells of a manger and what animals might have witnessed the birth of the Savior. Recall the three nights you remembered to light the candle at the dinner table, and your family considered Christ, the light of the world, as you ate dinner by candlelight. Recall the church service your toddler loudly sang along to “O Holy Night.” Remember the Lord’s faithfulness to you and your family as you seek to make him the center of your Christmas this season.
“O come, let us adore Him, Christ the Lord!”
Author: Mollie Pinkham, LCSW
Mollie is a clinical therapist who specializes in kids, teens, and families. If you’re interested in working with Mollie or have questions about next steps, don’t hesitate to reach out and book a free intro call now!
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