Family Ideas and Resources to Keep Christ in Christmas

Christmas truly is the most wonderful time of the year! My favorite Christmas verse for 2017 says, Him hath God exalted with his right hand to be a Prince and a Saviour, for to give repentance to Israel, and forgiveness of sins. (Acts 5:31)

Why Should We Keep Christ in Christmas?

Christmas is all about Jesus!

I love the decorations at home, the way the lights twinkle in windows, the Christmas music in stores and restaurants, and the chilliness in the air, but these are tangible blessings from the Lord to remind us the Christmas season is all about Him!

I am the teacher for the Wednesday night children’s program at church, and just last night I began the Christmas season with the gospel message of salvation. Many years ago, Jesus was obedient to God and came to Earth as a baby so He could die for the wrongs we do as sinful creatures. This is why we celebrate Christmas.

When I was growing up, my parents explained to me that the Lord gave them money to buy my Christmas gifts. Of course, they took my picture with Santa, and we always decorated the Christmas tree and followed usual Christmas traditions. In fact, Christmas was a big deal to my parents, and they gave sacrificially to my brother and me so we could enjoy the gifts of Christmas day.

One Christmas tradition that we had and continue to have to this day is a Happy Birthday, Jesus cake. This tradition is simple, but points us to the Savior and the true meaning of Christmas. My little boy enjoys talking about Santa, and I just tell him that Santa is a dress-up character for Christmas time just like he plays dress-up with his fireman and train conductor costumes.

I’m not against Santa or the festive traditions (I love them!), but it is important to keep the focus on Christ as we enjoy all the fun and exciting events. Remember, we can use these events to remind us of Him!

The Bible

The Bible, God’s Holy Word, is our Greatest Resource for keeping Christ in Christmas, and I am so excited about some of the additional resources I have discovered this year to help my family focus our minds in the right direction.

Fisher-Price® Little People Nativity Set

Since I have a toddler and a preschooler, one of the first things I wanted them to have this year is the Fisher-Price® Little People Nativity Set.

My children have played with this toy probably more than any toy they have ever owned. I set it on their little table in the kitchen, and they play with it on a daily basis! Our nativity was purchased from Christian Book Distributors.

Miss PattyCake

A favorite resource that my family was introduced to a couple years ago is the Miss PattyCake DVD’s!

Miss PattyCake exists to share God’s BIG LOVE with little lives, and help parents, grandparents, teachers and caregivers teach God’s Word through music, stories, scripture, and fun activities. She does this through biblically based resources and live appearances, and assists in the Kingdom work of spiritual formation, which is, laying a foundation for salvation and establishing a biblical worldview.

Miss PattyCake’s Christmas DVD teaches children all about the birth of Jesus. It is truly an excellent production.

Advent Guide for Children from the Authors of The Jesus Storybook Bible

This guide is a free printable and provides 24 days of suggested Bible readings to help keep Christ in your family’s Christmas. I’m so excited about the printables, and we plan to make Christmas ornaments with our advent cards. Click here for the link to The Jesus Storybook Bible Advent Guide. All you have to do is enter your email address and then print! I printed our guide on cardstock to make the advent cards more durable.

Christmas Devotional, Come Let Us Adore Him by Paul David Tripp

We plan to begin the book Come Let Us Adore Him by Paul David Tripp. It is a daily advent devotional with a reading for each day in December. It also includes Scripture references for further study and a section for parents and children that highlights each of the 31 days.