Leading up to the holiday season, I share three things I do every year to help me celebrate intentionally and linger with God: communicate, cultivate, and connect. You can find the first post on communication (and how to avoid potential disagreements) here and the second post on cultivating a Christmas plan here.
What makes Christmas sweet isn’t necessarily the gingerbread houses or the hot cocoa walks in the neighborhood to look at lights. The sweetness of Christmas comes when we pause to reflect on the gift of Jesus’ arrival, of heaven entering earth and changing the trajectory of humanity forever. The scale of this grand gift can often get lost in the details and fast pace of a busy season. If we do not have an intentional plan to connect with God at Christmas, it will become an afterthought, at best, or it just won’t happen at all. All we need is an attainable, consistent plan.
I love to store Christmas devotionals with our decorations. As I pull things out to prepare my home, the devotionals remind me to prepare my heart, too. In a month of busy, I relish my devotional time as a way to slow down and turn my heart towards God. One devotional that I return to year after year is Emmanuel: An Invitation to Prepare Him Room at Christmas and Always by Ruth Chou Simons. There are 25 devotionals, and each day’s devotional ends with a prayer and a Christmas carol. I even created a playlist with my favorite versions of the Christmas carols, and I’ll listen to that on repeat throughout the month. Because this has become a seasonal rhythm, I do not have to extend any energy planning it. As the Christmas tree goes up, my copy of Emmanuel goes on my nightstand.
Beyond personal quiet time, cultivating our connection with God in our family or community is important, too. This could be participating in a local church’s small group or joining in a Christmas outreach to serve your community. As a family, we shop for and prepare shoeboxes of small gifts and supplies for Operation Christmas Child at Samaritan’s Purse. We also read a Christmas devotional together right before our bedtime routine. My young kids really enjoy GoodKind’s Advent Blocks, which come with a set of blocks that follow a 25-day devotional. The devotional covers Bible stories from Genesis to the Gospels, leading us to the birth of Jesus. Each day, one of the kids will move a star block above the story blocks as a way to count down to Christmas Day. Not only are we hearing the stories of God’s love for people and his plan for salvation, but the blocks are also a daily, visual reminder of why we celebrate the season.
Celebrating our Savior, joyfully and fully present, is possible. Many devotional options are available to help you connect with God. Whether that’s a five-day plan on YouVersion, or a devotional written by your local church, or simply reading through a Gospel in December. You can tailor a simple plan that is attainable and will refresh your spirit. With intentionality, we can connect to the God who loves us so generously at Christmas and into the next year.