Comments on: For the Love of God Rethink Christmas

By: North Raleigh Community Church

North Raleigh Community Church — Fri, 05 Nov 2010 02:10:18 +0000

Once a year we celebrate our Lord’s birthday. December 26th is most likely not the correct date.. that does not bother me… we are celebratng Our Lord’s birthday! This one time of year people treat each other thoughtfully! Whether you make or select items as gifts for each other its a good thing.. and I’m happy we do it. I think we have become a lot more comercial with it than we should be.. too much money spent! BuI wouldn’t take any of this away from folks! A lot of good comes from all of it! !!And we are celebrating our Lord’s birthday

By: Di

Di — Wed, 07 Jan 2009 07:18:01 +0000

Great post. These same ideas apply to the office celebrations as well.
Years ago, I found exchanging gifts among co-workers to be a big challenge. Inevitably I gave someone a gift who didn’t give me one – the next year it was reversed. And, like Danny said above, the gifts exchanged were basically of little value and given to people who didn’t need or want more junk in their lives.
One year, a co-worker and I suggested rather than exchange gifts, we donate to a charitable organization or family in need. We were amazed at how begrudgingly this went over with the rest of the office. Even more sad was the fact that we all were Christians employed at a parochial high school!
I now am a self-employed graphic designer and appreciate making my own “administrative decisions” during the holidays. I make two obvious decisions each year.
#1. I send out holiday cards, which I design myself, of course, since I am a designer, after all. My cards always focus on Christmas and the celebration of Christ’s birth. While many of my clients are religious organizations, I also have many that are not. Interestingly, I’ve never alienated any that I know of by my expressions and I’ve often received compliments.
#2. I have several exceptional customers I wish to acknowledge even further at Christmas, not particularly for business purposes but because we work well together and successfully achieve our common goal. For these customers, I make donations in their honor to charities/churches that match their interests. This has proven to be a well-appreciated means of gift-giving.

By: Ken Satterfield

Ken Satterfield — Tue, 06 Jan 2009 11:37:05 +0000

A couple of thoughts:
1) Our church (FBC Jefferson City, MO) launched a site called http://www.simplechristmas.org. The idea is to shift priorities. I think the real test of that will bear fruit when people do more than give lip service and actually act intentionally.
2)Associated Baptist Press has run some stories along these lines. One is about the genesis of our site, but another is a proposal by Mike McKinney at Leawood Baptist Church, Kansas City, KS that essentially shifts the Christian Christmas emphasis to start on Christmas day and continue through January 5. (The proposal is posted at http://www.leawoodbaptist.com) It’s something to generate discussion and could encourage Christians to do the ministries at a time after the secular world has gone back to post-Christmas activities.

By: Zach

Zach — Tue, 06 Jan 2009 10:27:54 +0000

The Angel Tree program is an excellent program, and our church has actually hosted the breakfast events in years past. It’s one thing to take a number from a tree and return with some wrapped gifts, but it’s another entirely to see those families’ faces when they receive the gifts that have been thoughtfully purchased for them. You cannot — CANNOT — repeal confirmation that their hope brought about fruition. The moment a child’s eyes light up upon seeing the gift, before it’s ever opened, is worth thousands more than what you actually spent on it.
I highly recommend that everyone, at least once, find a church doing the Angel Tree program or one of the many other Christmas chartiy programs and get involved. You won’t believe how your perspective will change.

By: seanPdesign

seanPdesign — Wed, 31 Dec 2008 14:35:46 +0000

When you say things like: Move Christmas. Stop Celebrating. There isn’t much left to interpret or miss.
When you aren’t so full of yourselves and decide to stop preaching and start doing, you might actually be a website worth listening to. As of right now, its a blog, full of hot air, bad ideas, terrible advice, and borderline heretical gibberish.
Someone has to point it out, and someone has to say you are so very wrong there is no way you are close to being right.
Stop with the leftist agenda, its humanistic, narcissistic, and bad for christianity AND any society. Do what is right by the word, not by what people feel about you.

By: Bill (cycleguy)

Bill (cycleguy) — Wed, 31 Dec 2008 01:26:26 +0000

Great post! The church I pastor really came through big time this December. Actually since october. We worship in a rented facility that has been flooded twice in the past 4 years, this last one causing property loss on our part. So we had a special 4th anniversary offering in October. Following on the heels of that was Operation Christmas Child, a fund-raiser for Haiti, Angel Tree (local CPC involving 24 families all gone in one day), money needed for our Children’s program (over $600) and a last minute plug for Advent Conspiracy (over $400 as I write this), and then a Christmas morning breakfast for the community. We are having a Christmas in February to benefit Living Waters and a local outreach effort. That…from the second poorest county in Indiana. These people were totally awesome while still celebrating their own Christmas. However, if it was like my family’s it was slimmer. I personally asked that my family cut my gift giving to one thing and give the rest of the money they would have spent on me to me so I could send it somewhere (either Crystal Peaks Youth Ranch or Living Waters. They did and I was a happy camper.

By: Kevin D. Hendricks

Kevin D. Hendricks — Tue, 30 Dec 2008 14:08:23 +0000

Honestly, I think some of you are missing the point. Josh never said it was bad to have a good time with your family or to celebrate. But the question is what are we celebrating and why are we having a good time? Is it the giant pile of toys or is it Jesus?
It’s very easy for the materialism to outshine Jesus and the stress of the season to wipe out your joy. If that’s happening to you (as I think it is to many people), then let’s rethink it. If it’s not happening to you, great. But don’t call the rest of us Scrooge because we’re trying to get back to Jesus.

By: Jason

Jason — Sun, 28 Dec 2008 22:07:23 +0000

I disagree with this article. Don’t change Christmas. There is NOTHING wrong with people enjoying their families. Nothing at all. Putting an end to gift giving could be compared with calling attention to yourselves much like the Pharisees who made sure people knew they were fasting, praying, or giving money.
If your family decides to cut back and not spend as much money on Christmas, great, more power to you. But don’t use it to call attention to yourselves.
It is more than possible to help the poor and still make Christmas time a very pleasant and enjoyable time for your family. I showered my family with gifts to the best of my financial ability (without going into debt), and I loved every minute of it… the smiles on their faces were 100% worth it.
But our church still did things to spread the message of Christ for Christmas. We adopted a family of 4 kids who’s parents couldn’t afford gifts, and made sure they had a great Christmas. We spent time at Nursing homes singing to the people there. We delivered snack trays to local fire departments. We did lots of other things individually as well.
Too many churches want to throw the baby out with the bathwater when they come up with ideas to make things more holy.
All that does is make outsiders want to stay outside.

By: Tim C

Tim C — Sun, 28 Dec 2008 20:50:24 +0000

I would much rather see the world in a frenzy of any kind however distantly related in the birth of Jesus, than to have even one less reason to at least hear of His birth, or even His name. What is next, a movement from within the Church to call the Christmas celebration a holiday celebration so as not to pollute Christ’s birth with a season where people seek to please others with gifts and large feasts among families and friends?

By: Megan Miles

Megan Miles — Sun, 28 Dec 2008 20:04:28 +0000

My church used the Sunday before Christmas to celebrate giving. Single parent families received gift cards; other families received game systems or games. Many people in the congregation donated money to help others in need. I know it’s contained within one church, but it’s a start!