Being PRESENT this Christmas

Being PRESENT this Christmas

Speaker: Heather Lee

Blog Post Written By: Mentor Mom Kathy Van Duyn

We had the privilege of having Heather Lee share some wisdom she has gleaned over her last 7 family Christmases.  Heather has been on staff at Crossroads for the last 12 years, has been married to her husband for 15 years, and together they are the parents of two teens.  

Heather shared 7 presents that she hopes for all of us this Christmas

PRESENT

We are not talking about the pretty , gift wrapped kind…and not just proximity. Often we think that just being physically present is enough….but If your face is in your phone then you are not present and might as well be in another city.  We don’t get that many Christmases with our kids….it goes fast.  So let’s be different this Christmas and give them the best gift we can…to truly be present!!!

REASON

It is vital we keep Jesus the reason for the Season.  Why we celebrate can get overshadowed by packing our schedules full of the who’s and the what’s. There is FOMO, and obligations, and traditions, and parties, and Santa pictures to be taken, and cookies to be baked, and pictures to post of all of it. And it all so fun!!! But we need to set boundaries so all these things don’t keep us from remembering the true reason we celebrate.  It means knowing when to say yes, and when to say no.

ENJOY

Joy alone is a feeling. The word enjoy literally means to take pleasure in, and  experience with Joy.  Christmas without Jesus = Christmas without Joy.  Relatives, schedules, shopping, budgets, unmet expectations….even ants, can rob is of our joy during “ the most wonderful time of the year” It gets to the point that we start to suck the joy out of those around us as well.  Our joy is a gift from God and we can choose to receive it. It should not be dictated by our feelings, expectations, or circumstances.  Before we know it we will be packing up the boxes for the next 11 months.  We need to enjoy the traditions and celebrations and focus on the good gifts God has given us and not miss the precious moments of the season.

SIMPLIFY

“For where your treasure is, there your heart will be also”  Matthew 6:21

 Christmas usually feels the opposite of simple. It’s easy to get wrapped up in wanting the perfect commercial Christmas complete with all the things…the tree, the lights, the designer wrapped gifts, and the pressure we put ourselves under.  But we need to ask ourselves for who and why we are doing it, and how it is affecting our lives, as well as the lives of our loved ones. What are they really going to remember?  If we are honest with ourselves we are all professional wanters. We try to fill the empty spots in our lives with Amazon wishlists, pinterest worthy décor, recipes and projects, gifts, promotions, people, parties…even our posts. Yet none of those things can fill our empty spots except for God.   If we know God we have everything we need. Christmas is about having our wants fulfilled by Jesus coming as a baby to bring grace and forgiveness to fill those empty spots like nothing else can. When we choose to simplify so that our treasure is in knowing him, we can love others better and concentrate on the celebration of His birth …while shouting one of the most memorable lines in the movie ELF  “I KNOW HIM!!”

EXCUSE

“For by grace you have been saved, through faith-and this is not from yourselves, it is the gift of God” Ephesians 2:8

In the verb tense, to excuse someone is to forgive them… to give them grace.  We have been given an even greater gift than joy….and that is grace. Give grace to others when your patience is running thin with people that are annoying or inconveniencing you during the holiday season. Remember that they may be dealing with stress too.  Let the little things go and strive to release the things you can’t control.  Most importantly…give grace to YOURSELF!!  Set realistic expectations.  If you don’t get it done….it’s okay! Be kind to yourself and take time each day to pray and focus on the good.

NEAR

Just like a baby is comforted when they know their mom is near them, God provides the best example when He shows his love to us by providing comfort when he is near us. He loves us so much he sent his only son in to the world, knowing he would have to eventually give him up to die on the cross for us.  Work on being near this Christmas by not only talking to your kids about what they want for Christmas, but by connecting with them emotionally and spiritually. Give them the gift of being be near.  You can still snap the pic…but post it later!

TEACH

As moms we are constantly teaching our children. They are watching us. What we do is much more powerful than what we say… more is caught than taught!   When we incorporate traditions that make Jesus the center of our Christmas it helps them learn  be PRESENT as we lead by example and model what we expect. It becomes something that can be handed down for generations to come.

Being a mom is a privilege. It’s also stressful and exhausting. EXCUSE yourself from the endless amounts of Mom guilt and give yourself grace. Don’t let the fact that you may not have been as present as you would have liked up until now steal your joy.  Start fresh with baby steps!   His mercies are new every morning.  

This Christmas season take the time to come up with some ways that you can be more PRESENT. It doesn’t mean you have to get rid of traditions that your family enjoys. I personally love traditions and it would be hard to give them up.   It doesn’t mean you have to stop baking cookies, or coordinating your wrapping, or putting up 3 trees!  It’s about SIMPLIFLYing and possibly eliminating the things that only cause stress, that you really don’t even enjoy and don’t truly matter in the scheme of things…to make room for the things that do! Most importantly …ENJOY this time NEAR your family as you TEACH them the true REASON for the season. Merry Christmas Mamas!