The 5 Most Important Things I'd Want my Kids to Know About Christmas
Several years ago I attended a Catalyst leadership conference in Atlanta, Georgia, where I had the opportunity to attend a "closed" luncheon with William P. Young, the author of the New York Times best-selling book The Shack. Although I don't theologically agree with everything in the book, I was fascinated by the reason he shared for writing the book. His original motivation? A Christmas present to his children to help them understand the heart of God. In a world that often misrepresents and misunderstands God's character and intentions, Young wanted to get past all the religious baggage to help his children understand and experience the true nature of God. He knew that this knowledge could ground his children in a world where they would most likely experience pain and doubt and difficulty, just as those in the original Christmas story experienced.
With that said, here are the 5 most important things you can share with your children from the Christmas story:
1. God is REAL.
The Christmas story is rooted in history. Real people, real places, and real events. Look at the words that the author Luke chooses to use in the first chapter of the book of Luke, which incidentally has the most descriptive account of the Christmas story. He uses words like many, fulfilled, eyewitnesses, carefully investigated, and certainty. These are such powerful words that show this is not a made up fairy tale. In an age of "fake news" where many people wonder who can be trusted and what is real, we can have confidence that the gospel story is reliable.
"Many have undertaken to draw up an account of the things that have been fulfilled among us, just as they were handed down to us by those who from the first were eyewitnesses and servants of the word. With this in mind, since I myself have carefully investigated everything from the beginning, I too decided to write an orderly account for you, most excellent Theophilus, so that you may know the certainty of the things you have been taught." Luke 1:1-4
2. God CARES.
God is not indifferent to our lives and difficulties. In the Old Testament book of Exodus chapter 3 we see God communicating that he had seen the affliction of his people and he was coming to rescue them. God cares about each of us. The Christmas story is one of the greatest rescue stories of all-time. It is so comforting to know that God cares about every detail of our lives. He cares about our hearts, He cares about our circumstances, and He cares about our well being.
"to show mercy to our ancestors and to remember his holy covenant, the oath he swore to our father Abraham: to rescue us from the hand of our enemies, and to enable us to serve him without fear in holiness and righteousness before him all our days." Luke 1:72-75
3. God CAME.
Not only does God care, He came. There is no distance He won't travel for us. Like a good friend or family member who is willing to travel any distance to be with us, the Christmas story shows that God was willing to leave the comfort and perfection of his home (heaven) to come down into our lives and mess. It is comforting to know that we can invite God into our lives and He won't blow us off or stand us up, He'll come!
“Praise be to the Lord, the God of Israel, because he has come to his people and redeemed them." Luke 1:68
4. God GIVES.
We give because God first gave. When you read through Luke chapters one and two carefully, you'll see that Jesus brought incredible gifts of joy, peace, grace, hope, mercy, favor, forgiveness, and salvation that long outlast the newest toy or technology. The true spirit of the season is in generosity and giving, not just consuming.
“For God so loved the world, that he gave his only Son, that whoever believes in him should not perish but have eternal life". John 3:16
5. God LOVES.
Thank God Christmas is meant for all! In the Christmas story we see God bringing the good news to all: the high and the low, the rich and the poor, the near and the far, and the likely and the unlikely. It's one thing to understand God knows us, it is a completely different thing to understand God loves us. This kind of love changes us!
"This is how God showed his love among us: He sent his one and only Son into the world that we might live through him. This is love: not that we loved God, but that he loved us and sent his Son as an atoning sacrifice for our sins. Dear friends, since God so loved us, we also ought to love one another." I John 4:9-11
This holiday season, Renovate Church wants to help you build rich and rewarding family traditions that will allow you to experience your very best Christmas. For more information about Renovate Church visit our website at renovatechurch.com, download our app at RenovateATX, or visit us or watch a Sunday morning service.
Thrill of Hope Christmas Eve service.
We’d also love to have you attend our Thrill of Hope Christmas Eve service at 5:00 p.m. located at 1615 Scottsdale Drive, Suite 200D, Cedar Park, Texas, 78641. Doors will open at 4:30 p.m. for food and fellowship with the service following.
