December 18, 2024 – A Christmas Story

Mercy Every Minute

Deborah Wuehler, TOS Senior Editor

What is Better than Christmas?

Here is a sad but true Christmas story from the annals of Wuehler family history. Once upon a time there was a wife who wanted to celebrate Christmas and a husband who was a Christmas Grinch. He hated the celebration. I loved it. He hated the commercialization of the most holy moment in all of history. I said it could be redeemed! What were we to do? We compromised. He said no tree, but I could have my nativities and greenery. Even with greenery wrapped in lights on top of bookshelves, and nativities on tabletops, I was not satisfied. I realized I was idolizing the world’s way of celebrating, rather than a having a heart posture of worship. I was wanting to celebrate the celebration rather than celebrate Christ. The very word Christmas means “Christ celebration.” I needed a change of heart. My heart was heavy with longing, but I didn’t know what for (was it for the dream of what “everyone else had?”). My heart was really longing for Christ to come and fill that place, but I needed to “prepare Him room.” Instead of focusing on celebrating the celebration, I needed to change my focus to celebrating Christ. How did I do that? I had to purposefully come to Him. Throughout the Scriptures, you will hear this plea repeated, “Come to me.” When I finally laid it all down and came to Him in worship, my heart could sing. 

A celebrating heart starts with allowing Him in. He stands at the door and knocks. He wants to be with us, to sup with us, to celebrate life with us. Time with Christ is better than time at Christmas.

We need to come to The Faithful One before we can sing, “Oh, Come All Ye Faithful,” and there in His presence is where we can “adore Him, Christ the King.” This adoration takes pause. We learn to pause what we are doing throughout our busy days, and come to Him to offer adoration. Just like I would have stood back and admired a fully decorated tree, I needed to step back and take a look at the Light of the World. His glory has no comparison with any twinkling lights on this earth.

Mr. Grinch has softened over these forty years of marriage, and even enjoys the holidays as adult children come home to celebrate with us. And I could not believe it when he called me recently and asked me if I wanted him to bring home a small Christmas tree. I about fainted. My answer: no thanks! I love our tradition of having the big plastic vintage Joseph, Mary, and Baby Jesus surrounded with all of our gifts. They light up the room, and we remember the focus. I don’t want to change that. 

I am not suggesting you get rid of your beautiful trees. I love seeing them everywhere! I am just sounding the call that maybe your heart, like mine, was celebrating the idea of Christmas instead of the Son of Christmas. And to remind you that you can create a higher and better spirit of celebration in all you do and all you prepare. 

You will not always have earthly happiness at this time of year (and many suffer much pain), but you can have an eternal joy, knowing you are making room in your heart and home for celebrating your Savior, Jesus Christ. If it is a painful or stressful season, stop for a minute. Stop and reassess. Simplify. Refocus. You will find strength in His Presence.

Adoration takes pause. Let the pause remind you Who you are adoring in this season. Even if you remain busy on the outside, at least your heart will be in the right place and your spirit will be slowed down enough to focus on the eternal. The red flag of stress should be the signal to bend the knee in worship and adoration.

May your Christmas be a true heart celebration of the One who set us free from sin and death. Pause, and turn your focus from the glittery Christmas tree to the gory tree of Calvary. Believe it or not, you will find more hope in the latter than the former. And there, you will meet the Prince of Peace. 

True peace can be yours even today. You can put the government of your life on His shoulders. He’d love to take that from you. He came to bring “Peace on earth and goodwill to men” . . . and especially for you . . . today. Take Him up on His offer to govern your life. You will find something better than Christmas; you will find Christ Himself.

“For unto us a child is born , unto us a son is given: and the government shall be upon his shoulder: and his name shall be called Wonderful, Counsellor , The mighty God, The everlasting Father, The Prince of Peace” (Isaiah 9:6).

If you have a prayer request, please let me know. Our staff and I would love to pray for you. dwuehler@theoldschoolhouse.com

~Deborah

Looking for an encouraging Christmas story? Here is a true story from my childhood: Episode 48: Oranges for Christmas – The Old Schoolhouse®

Celebrate the Twelve Names of Christ with activities for children, or read it as a Bible plan at
Bible.com: Twelve Names of Christ for Christmas

If you need some reasons to help celebrate, here are Seven Reasons to Celebrate Even if You Don’t Feel like It. 

And a free gift from our store: A Baby Shower for Jesus: https://www.theoldschoolhouse.com/product/a-baby-shower-for-jesus/

A Christmas Story in Art

by Sharon Jeffus

When we think of Christmas, our minds go to many things. We can think of snowmen, the Grinch, good food and gifts, or we can think of the true and beginning reason for the season—the birth of Jesus.

Some like to remember the story of St. Nicholas who gave away all of his inherited wealth and traveled the countryside helping the poor and sick. Among other things, he was known as a protector of children. Do you think he would be glad to see Jesus glorified at Christmas?

In the time of the Renaissance many people could not read and write, so priests would carry a triptych from church to church that showed the story of the birth of Christ. Children can get a piece of cardstock, fold it evenly into three parts, and create an original triptych on the birth of Jesus. They can bring the story to life visually by putting Luke 2:6-7 in Illuminated Text. 

Nativity scenes of Jesus’ birth can be very creative. One of the most interesting nativities I have seen was created when someone took an old clay pot, broke it into pieces with a hammer, and then used a glue gun to create a beautiful nativity scene from the pieces. When we are broken, Christ turns us into something beautiful. Go here to see how to create different nativities. 

Finally, a student replicated the painting “Starry Night” by Van Gogh adding a nativity scene into the picture. Jesus was born and on a starry night and is the reason for the season.

Looking for something creative and educational for children aged 7+ this Christmas? One that will develop new skills and is fun for everyone! https://bit.ly/496eqHf

SchoolhouseTeachers.com has what you need for holiday learning! From family-friendly videos to Christmas-themed lessons, activities and craft ideas, you’ll find it all in one place—the Christmas Corner. Take a break from the routine and dive into Christmas fun and learning this holiday season.