Personal posts of the "30 Things I'm Thankful For this November", The "Elf on the Shelf Mischievousness"; pictures of your loved ones, children with Santa, Christmas Tree's, house decorations, Starbucks cups with holiday drinks, and holiday meals. These are all things we're seeing as we scroll through our various newsfeeds. And I love every single moment of it.
Until I get to THE post.
We all know the one I'm talking about.
"Looking for toy X for little Billy and they're all sold out everywhere how will he ever live without it??"
"Just paid 18 million times the regular price for this super cool toy that is all the rage for Susie."
"I can't wait to see my kids face when they see the whole room exploding with presents on Christmas Morning."
Have we forgotten the point?
I get it, we love to spoil our children! I almost always walk out of Target with SOMETHING for Josiah, whether it be a new outfit from the clearance rack, a new bath toy, or a new flavor of puffs. But when did this time of year, when we were just spending so much time talking about how thankful we were for all we have in our lives, turn into "I HAVE to get my child everything on their Christmas list and then some, and if they don't have THE toy, they're going to hate me forever."?
I see parents spending hundreds of dollars on toys and trinkets and the "must have" items, only to see posts in a few months of how big of a disaster their child's bedroom/playroom/living room is with all these toys. And buried somewhere underneath all the Lego's, stuffed animals, Barbie's, blocks, and train tracks is that toy. The one they HAD to have. The one you spent a month worrying over getting for them. The one you traveled out of your way and spent way too much money on. There it is. Probably stepped on, broken, and never to be played with again.
Don't get me wrong. Josiah will have a few presents under the tree with a block sorter, musical instruments, and balls for the ball pit we got used at a consignment shop weekend. And yes I know he's young and he doesn't know about the cool toys, or that all his friends are asking for XYZ and so he has to have it too. But it's not because we don't love him that he won't get a lot of gifts.
Our focus as a family isn't the gifts. It isn't how much money we spend on each other or our friends and family. It's about the gifts we are given every single day from Jesus. He has given us so much in our lives and provided so much to us, that we celebrate Him on his birthday. We give to each other as God has given to us his gift of eternal life with him.
One thing we have done for years, and I'm so excited to have Josiah be part of this tradition now, is we give back. Mike and I have been working with the Youth Group at our church for a few years, but this year we've really gotten to connect with some of the kids and pour into their lives. We also give back in the physical sense of we take ornaments off our church's tree and buy gifts for children who may not have otherwise gotten a gift, so they know they are loved and cherished. Josiah came with us this year as we picked out gifts for children and even though he's only 8 months, I hope he is seeing the love we're pouring into others less fortunate than ourselves.
So, have we forgotten the point?
I don't want to be super corny and say "Jesus is the reason for the Season.", because although that is true for our family and our religion, it isn't the case for everyone who celebrates Christmas. Even if you aren't a follower of Jesus, that doesn't mean you can't do good things for those around you. Buy a friend a cup of coffee. Bring your neighbors some cookies. Donate to a local charity. Even if you can't do any of these things for whatever reason, you can still be kind. Smile! Genuinely ask the person ringing up your groceries how they are doing. Say Thank You!!!
So what's MY point?
Be an awesome human, because we all are human at the end of the day. And remember why we celebrate and gift give this season. Don't expect anything, but Jesus gave everything!
Xo
Amanda
