On Advent: What is tradition and why bother with it?
For our first Christmas after we were married, Jeff gave me the book Treasuring God in our Traditions by Noel Piper (free PDF here). It had just come out, and it was perfect timing. We were a brand-new family, deciding together what traditions we’d keep, leave behind, or begin.
These days, tradition sometimes get a bad rap, at least in some circles. We’re looking for things that are new, fresh, innovative — not old, regular, same. Why do the same thing again and again when you can do something NEW?
But tradition isn’t good or bad in and of itself, it’s simply a vehicle. It’s the transmitting of customs, beliefs, behaviors, from generation to generation. It’s a way of passing down. Or, quite simply, it’s a way of remembering.
There’s a Jewish proverb that says,
“Put something where you can see it so your eye will remind your heart.”
Yes! We observe a tradition because it reminds our hearts of what is good, right, and true. The reason God gave the nation of Israel various feasts to celebrate, various rituals and ceremonies, was to remember. By speaking certain words, eating certain foods, and engaging in various activities, they were reminded again of the truth, of God’s faithfulness, of all that He had done.
Tradition is simply something we do again and again, for a particular purpose. So even if we say we don’t “do” Christmas traditions, we probably do.
We shop. We wrap. We use bows. We decorate with green and red. We eat cookies. We throw parties. We get a manicured fir tree. We string lights on it. We hang stockings on the hearth, but not real stockings that we wear, huge decorated boot-shaped things for the purpose of stuffing full of stuff. We listen to certain music. We watch certain movies. We wear ugly sweaters. We exchange gifts and eat pie and all of these are traditions.
So the question isn’t, “Do you do traditions?” the questions is, “What do your traditions do?” When you observe a tradition, what do you see? What do your traditions say, what do they imprint on our hearts, what purpose do they serve?
I’m really not sharing all this to poo-poo the “traditional” traditions. I love exchanging gifts. We have a tree and stockings too. The point is, if we’re going to go through all this hassle to “keep” such elaborate traditions (I’d say paying money to cut and haul and prop up an actual tree inside our house is elaborate), then let’s make sure that at least most of these traditions point us in the direction we want to go!
The direction of Christ.
Some prefer to say Advent instead of Christmas, but no matter what we call it, both are about Jesus. Advent simply means Coming. Jesus’ birth is His first coming. Christmas comes from the words Christ’s Mass, the church service held to honor Jesus’ birth.
Advent is fun because it’s not just about one day, it’s the 4-5 week period of preparation and anticipation. It usually involves a daily countdown to Christmas day.
So, where do we begin? Here are a few ways to celebrate Advent as a family:
- Unwrapping the Greatest Gift by Ann Voskamp — we use this as a daily Advent reader, and Heidi and I made felt Jesse Tree ornaments using these as a rough pattern. I love these ornaments!
- Tomorrow, Dec 4th, will actually be the second Sunday of Advent. So, on Sunday, perhaps at dinner, you can explain that we are anticipating the coming birth of Christ, and will be lighting a candle each Sunday, leading up to Christmas. On Christmas morning you’ll light the final candle. My friend Anna has a great script you can follow for each Advent Sunday, with songs and scriptures (hoping to share soon). Or you can simply choose one Christmas carol and one Scripture to read each Sunday. Keep it simple, especially for small kids. Isaiah 9:2 or John 1:1-9 is a great place to begin! There are dozens of scriptures talking about Jesus being the LIGHT. Do a study and dig them up on your own then share with your kids!
- Advent cake. You can bake a simple bundt (round) cake, and decorate with green frosting and green-tinted coconut flakes, as an advent wreath (see pic). Use red-hots for decoration, and celebrate the beginning of Advent with this sweet treat.
You could also do sugar cookies instead, decorated as wreaths, or any special treat you choose. The point is to make the beginning of Advent a celebration, a treat, a special opportunity to point your family to Jesus.
- Advent calendar. These are readily available in every store, usually including chocolate. I have the fabric one from when I was little, which my mom would use to write notes and verses. Now, the kids each have a special little “mailbox” on the Christmas tree, and each day they receive “mail” from me— a love note, a treasure map to find a treat, or some special fun instructions about the day ahead. The kids love receiving their mail each morning!
So, this is all for now, there are many more fun things to share in days ahead. We’ll talk about St. Nicholas Day, stockings, nativity scenes and activities, Christmas day and Epiphany.
I’ll leave you with a fun little Christmas story Anna read to us, for perspective. 😉 Thanks for reading.
Joy to the Mall
Chris Dolson
And it came to pass in those days, that there went out a decree from the U.S. Treasury that all of America should go shopping. (And this decree was first made when leading economic indicators dipped to their lowest point.) And all went out to shop, each to his own mall.
And a Christian also went up from his suburban home to the city with its many malls because he wanted to prove he was from the household of prosperity. And with him was his wife, who was great with economic worry. And so it was, that, while they were there, they found many expensive presents, pudgy-faced dolls, trucks that turn into robots, and a various assortment of video (and computer) games. And the woman wrote checks for those they could afford and charged the rest on many different kinds of plastic cards; she wrapped the presents in bright paper and laid them in the garage; for there was no room for them in her closet.
And there were in the same country children keeping watch over their stockings by night. And, lo, Santa Claus came upon them; and they were sore afraid (expecting to see the special effects, they had seen in the movies). And Santa said to them, “Fear not; for behold, I bring you good tidings of great joy, which shall be to all people who can afford this holiday. For unto you will be given this day, in your suburban home, great feasts of turkey, dressing, and cake – and many presents. And this shall be a sign unto you: you shall find the presents wrapped in bright paper, lying beneath an artificial tree adorned with tinsel, colored balls, and lights.”
And suddenly there was with Santa Claus a multitude of relatives and friends, praising one another and saying, “Glory to you for getting me this gift; it’s just what I wanted.”
And it came to pass, as the friends and relatives were gone away into their own homes, the parents said to one another, “I sure am glad that’s over. What a mess! I’m too tired to clean it up now. Let’s go to bed and pick it up tomorrow.” And when they had said this, they remembered the statement that had been told them by the storekeepers: “Christmas comes only once a year.” And they that heard it wondered at those things that were sold to them by the storekeepers, but the children treasured all their things in their hearts, hoarding their toys from each other. And the parents, after a drink, went to bed, glorifying and praising each other for all the bargains they had found in the stores.
From Whatever to Worship: A different kind of Christmas
What one word would describe your usual Christmas season?
Busy?
Hectic?
Fun?
Stressful?
Sad?
Debt-accruing? 😉
I love Christmas. And, to be fair, we don’t usually have an over-full schedule, so I don’t feel super busy or hectic. I don’t stress a lot about things being perfect, and we don’t overspend. So, on the whole I don’t feel like there’s anything wrong with our holiday season, but I also feel like there’s potential for better.
That is, I think we effectively keep out a lot of stress and distraction, but I don’t feel like we are taking full advantage of the opportunity to point our eyes toward Christ. Plus, I see how my kids gravitate so strongly toward tradition. They LOVE traditions. And tradition provides such a powerful way to shape our children’s hearts and lives. We don’t usually remember what we do once. We remember what we do again and again.
I’ve forgotten almost all the Christmas gifts I ever received, but I remember the traditions. That’s what sticks with me most.
I want the same for my kids. And while we have a few simple traditions (accidentally), it hasn’t been with much intentionality. I’ve always given the gift of Whatever, which is a great start, but I think there’s something even better than Whatever.
Before Thanksgiving, I was praying about the upcoming Advent season, about how to focus our efforts, align our hearts, what to do and not to do. And the one word that surfaced in my heart and mind, time and time again, the word I wanted to describe this Christmas season, for myself and my family, was this:
WORSHIPFUL.
I want a worshipful Christmas. I want to be like the wise men, who searched out Jesus, bringing their gifts to him, and when they found him, “the fell down and worshiped him.”
That’s how I want to respond to Christ’s birth.
So, worshipful has become the new filter for sifting through all the scores of possible Christmas-time activities. The question becomes, “Can I do this as an expression of heartfelt praise, thanks, and honor of Jesus Christ? Does it draw our hearts closer to His?” And no, this doesn’t mean we can’t have gingerbread cookies and spiced cider! For “whether we eat or drink or whatever we do we can do it all for the glory of God.”
Pursuing a worshipful Christmas means I put to death my toxic tendency to worry about pleasing people. I will pray specifically about any simple gifts I can give to loved ones, without obsessing. I will ask the Father how He wants me to spend His money to honor His Son. I’ll ask Him for ideas, and spend more time in His Word than on Pinterest.
I’ll remember that God chose a filthy stable as the perfect place for His Son to be born, so pursuing the perfect Christmas-decor need not consume my thoughts.
I’ll remember that trying to control is never worshipful, so I will not attempt to manufacture magical experiences.
The miracle has already happened. We’ll witness more miracles when we stop controlling and start honoring our miracle-working God who came to earth as a baby in order to save us.
Of course the big question is: HOW? Well, most importantly I’d encourage you to seek the Lord on your own and ask Him for ideas, but I also would love to share with you some simple ways that I recently learned from a dear friend, Anna Hunter. She put together a presentation called Celebrate the Truth: Inspiration for a Christ-Centered Christmas. It’s fabulous!
She’s generously shared her materials with me so I can share here in abbreviated form. All that to say: More to come! For now, 2 things:
- Spend today praying God will show you how He wants you to honor Him in intentional ways this Christmas? Ask Him for specifics! Ask Him what needs to go, to stay, to change.
- Look around for 5 candles. You can use a traditional Advent-wreath, something more like this (this is like mine) or even five tea-lights from the dollar store. Go as simple or elaborate as you wish.
Okay, my kids need breakfast! More later. Happy Advent! Thanks for reading.
My Charlie Brown boy: Look for the heart
We weren’t going to get the tree tonight, but at 4:15pm, just 15 minutes before the sun would set, Dutch saw our housemates pull into the driveway with their freshly cut tree in the back of the truck.
“Can WE get our tree?!”
And so the boys climbed into the truck and took off in search of a tree. They came home, all smiles and flushed cheeks, having conquered. While Jeff outside was getting the tree ready for the stand, Dutch came in and quietly and asked if he could have a strand of lights. I said sure, gave him a strand, and he disappeared.
Ten minutes later, Jeff came in, grinning. He slipped off his boots, and said, “Hey, Heidi. I think you better look in your room.”
We looked down the hall and saw that the door was closed. So we crept quietly to the door, and cracked it open. There was her own tiny tree, with a little wooden stand, and all lit up with lights.
Her face lit, her eyes wide. “My own tree!”
“Merry Christmas!” Dutch jumped up from behind her bed, his face beaming. “I picked it out for you and set it up so you’d be surprised!”
“Oh, I love it! Let’s go get our ornaments!”
And as they turned toward the door, Dutch stopped. His face fell.
“Oh no. I wore my muddy boots in here.”
Well, yes. Brown muddy footprints tracked in on Heidi’s white carpet. *sigh*
Of course he knows better. Of course he knows not to wear his boots in the house. But as I saw him standing there, face fallen, looking at the muddy smears, I saw my own Charlie Brown boy.
I saw how so often, even when he tries to do it right he does it wrong. I saw that how he’d conceived this Christmas-tree idea, a special way to bless his sister. And I saw his face fall at realizing he’d managed to mess it up.
I thought of my own experience polishing the silver. With shoe polish.
I leaned in close, took his hand, kissed his cheek.
“It’s ok, babe. It’s just carpet. We can clean it. I love your heart to bless Heidi. That’s what matters most.”
He smiled. Soon they were lost in their little world of pretend, decorating, setting up stuffed animals around the tree in their own little Christmas scene.
My heart was so happy, they could’ve lit the carpet on fire for all I cared.
And I thought back to how many times I wish I would’ve been able to see the heart behind so many actions, that–as my mother-in-law told me this weekend–when people are being difficult, it’s because they’re having difficulty. Sure, we don’t excuse mis-behavior, but if only we could look for the heart.
Sure, the muddy footprint situation was minor, and easy to see the innocence behind it. But can I do this on a larger scale?
Can I do this this Christmas? Can I honor Christ by giving His people the benefit of the doubt? Can I believe the best? Can I pray earnestly to see them as He sees?
When someone tramps into my life with muddy feet, and maybe messes things up a bit, Can I see past this to what good there might be?
Can I squint the eyes of my heart to see Jesus in disguise? In them?
That’s my prayer, anyway.
We’re all Charlie Browns, right? We’re all trying to love and serve and lead and give and we wind up making a royal mess out of things more often than not. Yes? I know I do. And so I need to receive grace and give grace to all my fellow Charlie Browns out there.
They say that the Apostle Paul always writes, “Grace and Peace” in that order because you need grace before you can have peace.
So true.
Grace-extenders are peace-receivers.
…Surely He taught us to love one another; His law is love and His gospel is peace…
Thanks for reading.
With Thanksgiving: 3 things that would create real change
There is good news:
People are praying. Though Christians’ views differ widely on political issues, the current climate is literally bringing people to their knees. I see it. I hear about it. I now actually have a scheduling conflict because I have two prayer meetings scheduled at the same time.
What a great problem!
Recently I’ve been chewing on Philippians 4.
Two verses, really, contain all we need to see radical change—in our hearts and in our nation. So often I’m doing all this Bible study, all this reading and trying to learn more, when really, if we’d just DO the most simple things Scripture tells us, things would be dramatically different. Here are three things from Phil. 4:6-7
“Do not be anxious about anything, but in everything by prayer and supplication with thanksgiving let your requests be made known to God. And the peace of God, which surpasses all understanding, will guard your hearts and your minds in Christ Jesus.”
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DO NOT be anxious.
Girls, guys, this is a command. This means when we have a wild bucking bronco of a thought-life, and our fears and anxieties are yanking us around something terrible, we’ve got to rope those thoughts DOWN and make them obedient to Jesus. Fear will lead us to make terrible decisions. Only the fear of the Lord (acknowledging His rightful place as Lord and King) brings wisdom.
This starts by recognizing I am not my own. My life is Christ’s. My mind is His. My family is His. My body is His. My marriage is His. My country is His. My money is His. I have been bought with a price and I am not my own. So I do not have the legal right to let my thoughts run amok. My only hope of joy, peace, stability, and victorious living, is to take those thoughts captive and make them bow down to their rightful Lord and Master, King Jesus.
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With Thanksgiving.
Oh, that we’d give THANKS! What a game-changer this is! If all we resolved to do this year was become habitual thankers, what a difference we’d see in our mindset, our marriage, our families. If we would devote ourselves to a daily thanksgiving habit, things would change.
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Present your requests to God.
Pray. Oh, that we’d PRAY. I am the first to raise my hand, that we have been a nation of so-called Christians who simply do not pray. We are spiritual sloths, content to stay in the same place, eating Sunday’s leftovers day after day, instead of fervently, passionately, patiently, faithfully, pressing in in prayer and seeking God’s heart, His will, letting His kingdom come and His will be done HERE on earth as it is in heaven. We’ve embraced apathy and called it His sovereignty. We’ve ignored injustice and shrugged our shoulders, assuming it’s “His will.”
Sisters, we must pray.
And it begins with simple stuff, daily stuff. How often have we made requests known to everyone but God?! That is, how often have we wished, lamented, vented, Facebooked, texted a friend, or Googled an issue, instead of simply presenting our requests to God. Note it doesn’t even specify “needs” here. It’s just “requests.” Anything we want, anything, we can go ahead and lay before God. He’s smart enough to sort through it all and let us know what makes the cut. How much time and metal energy would we save if we went to Him first! Man, this is really hitting home. Just this week I wasted so much time …
Anyway.
Notice the promise: Peace. Isn’t this what we’re all desperate for these days? Isn’t this what we need as a shield about our minds and hearts right now? He promises His peace will guard us, a peace so much greater even than familial peace or national peace. His peace can endure no matter what outward circumstances you face.
No matter how hectic your house or heart may feel today 😉 may we do these 3 simple things and enjoy His unshakable peace, today and always.
Happy Thanksgiving. Thanks for reading.