Practical Ways To Keep Christ In The Center – The Wonder of Christmas

Yesterday we paused our hustle and bustle to grasp the heart of this holiday season.

We were reminded what Christmas is all about. Even dictionary.com tells us the meaning of Christmas.

Jesus is the heart of Christmas. There are many who don’t believe what I believe, and maybe you don’t either. We can still hang out and be friends, right? But, like I mentioned yesterday, I invite you to give Jesus a chance, and I encourage you to find out for yourself the peace that comes from Him. Even if we don’t believe the same, I invite you to continue with me through this series. We’ll be branching out in all sorts of directions and on different subjects as we go about returning our hearts to the wonder of Christmas together.

Today we’re getting practical. I like practical. We are sharing with and encouraging one another in this season as we follow the definition of Christmas I shared yesterday.

How do we keep Christ in the center of the season?

Easier said than done, right? As we make our lists and check them twice it’s easy to let our focus slip and allow the reason for the season to fade into the background. In all the hubbub, it’s easy to miss what it’s about. Has this ever happened to you? Christmas arrived and you awoke to the reality you missed it? You missed the heart of the celebration of Christmas? I have, and it left me feeling empty, regretful, and disappointed. I don’t care to ever experience it again.

Let’s not let that happen this year. Let’s intentionally put our focus on what we can do to keep Christ in the center of our thoughts, actions, and activities. But how? How do we keep Christ in the center?

Practical ways to keep Christ in the center of Christmas

Read the Christmas story. There’s nothing like reading the account of Jesus’ birth. It rekindles the hope, promise, and joy Christmas brings, and when we teach it to our children, the truth of it all awakens in them that Christmas is more than trees, presents, and Santa. The best way I’ve found to do this is to use this tool created by Bible Study Fellowship. It’s designed to help you teach your child, but I use it each year for myself. It’s a great to use for family devotions too!

Pray. When I begin to let my focus slip and I can feel stress increase, I pray. I ask Jesus to help me keep me centered on Him and what’s important. Not only in the season, but in my day-to-day schedule. What a difference this makes!

Find time to be quiet. This is also easier said than done. When we start or end our day in quiet, we can better listen for that still small voice. I choose to think of this time as time with Jesus. Listening, praying, reading my Bible. This time alone with Him is necessary for me, especially during a packed-full season.

Read an Advent devotional. YouVersion and other Bible sites and apps have many options to help prepare our hearts for the birth of our Savior. Have a favorite? Please share it below.

Now it’s your turn.

How do you keep Christ in Christmas?

What specific ways you’re doing that this year? Please share your ideas below. Yours may be the one that spurs another on this season.

If you choose to hang out with me here in the days to come we’ll be walking through pieces of the Christmas story. We’ll do all we can keep Christ in the center as we return our hearts to the wonder of Christmas. Thanks for hanging out with me for a few moments today.

Much love,

Julie

 

 

This post was adapted from its original version from the Rediscovering Christmas series.