The Greatest Christmas Gift
“And there were in the same country shepherds abiding in the field, keeping watch over their flock by night. And, lo, the angel of the Lord came upon them, and the glory of the Lord shone round about them: and they were sore afraid. And the angel said unto them, Fear not: for, behold, I bring you good tidings of great joy, which shall be to all people. For unto you is born this day in the city of David a Saviour, which is Christ the Lord. And this shall be a sign unto you; Ye shall find the babe wrapped in swaddling clothes, lying in a manger. And suddenly there was with the angel a multitude of the heavenly host praising God, and saying, Glory to God in the highest, and on earth peace, good will toward men.” Luke 2:8-14 (KJV)
A Christmas Memory
Christmas: a time to love, spend time with family, and enjoy all the wonderful holiday activities. On my blog, I’ve been writing many posts centered around the festivities of the season. I’ve done compilations of Christmas tree crafts, Christmas bucket list ideas, and various other topics. After all, Christmas and Thanksgiving both give us the opportunity to sit back and focus on family and faith. They remind us to remember others and how we can make a difference in the lives of those around us. Yet, in the midst of it all, I’m reminded of the reason for this precious season and the greatest story ever told.
A couple of years ago, on Christmas day, I remember feeling very overwhelmed by the amazing gift we were given when God sent His Son to our world.
After we had enjoyed our Christmas morning as a family, I remember going out onto our porch simply thinking about how precious God’s gift to us really was. As I sat there, these words began flowing from my heart.
A Christmas Thought
“Why did You sacrifice
To leave paradise and be born in a manger?
Why did You come to earth
To this place of pain and world of strangers?
You didn’t have to leave
Heaven or your throne,
Yet something in Your heart
Led You here to die alone.
I’ll never lose the wonder of it all,
For You loved me enough to come.”
Christ loved us enough to come. What if He had not chosen to leave the beauty of Heaven? What if He had decided to stay with His Father? I can tell you. If Christ had not chosen to leave Heaven for us and give us the plan of salvation, we would live in a world without hope. Your babies would not know what it is like to live in a home that has peace and joy, and you would not be able to teach them about life without fear of the future. Death would only be the door to more suffering.
With all of that said, what does Christmas mean to me? Christmas, to me, is about hope and peace on earth, as the angels told the shepherds in Luke 2. Christmas is a time to reflect on the true love and gift of God.
A Christmas Lesson
Since we know that Christ was the greatest gift ever given, how are we to teach our children of His birth, life, and sacrifice? I’d love to give you a few resources to do just that:)
First of all, I would recommend reading books that really focus on the story of Christ’s birth. A Charlie Brown Christmas by Charles M. Schulz has a sweet way of teaching children of the true meaning of Christmas. Another favorite of mine is The Crippled Lamb by Max Lucado, which is a beautiful story to help children learn about God’s plan. Lastly, The Legend of the Candy Cane by Lori Walburg is also a neat way to bring the story of Christ into your holiday season. That said, the Bible is truly the greatest resource and way to teach children of the Christmas story.
The next thing I would recommend for teaching children about the true meaning of Christmas would be to help them focus on giving rather than receiving. I believe it is important to not only focus on giving to those around you who you know but to also focus on giving the Gospel and God’s love to those who do not know Him already. Children have an incredible ability to reach out to people in a way that is both sweet and endearing. That older lady or teenager in the grocery store may be more likely to take a Christmas Gospel tract from a child than they are to take it from an adult, especially if the child gives it with a smile.
Last, I believe that Christmas is also a beautiful time to thank God for His gift of salvation. It may be sweet to encourage your children to write God a letter/prayer of thanks for Christmas. Maybe even have them come up with a gift of service they do specifically as a Christmas gift to God. It may be something as simple as a song of praise they learn on their instrument or a poem they read as a thanksgiving prayer to God. This sweet gift does not have to be flashy, but I do believe that it would help children remember the reason we really celebrate Christmas and Christ’s birth.
That’s all I have for today! I sincerely hope that this post has been a blessing to you, and I pray that you will take this wonderful season as an opportunity to teach your children about this precious love and the best Christmas gift that was ever given. May the focus of our holidays be the Savior of the world who gave Himself for us that we might live and have hope. Merry Christmas to you and yours!
My name is Hannah Logan, and I am a born-again Christian and homeschool blogger over at “My Happy Homeschooling”. To give a little bit of my backstory, I grew up in a big family and traveled with my parents and brothers as a Bluegrass Gospel family band until November of 2020 when I married my husband and moved to Alabama. As an individual who was homeschooled myself for all 12 years of grade school and has been heavily involved with homeschooling my five younger brothers, I hope to provide you with homeschooling resources and encouragement. My goal is to empower, support, and inspire new homeschool moms as you navigate homeschooling the right way for you and your children for the honor and glory of God.
