Peaceful manger scene…or two T-Rex fighting over a table saw? It might take you a minute to see it! 🙂
“This will be a sign to you: You will find a baby wrapped in cloths and lying in a manger.” Luke 2:12 (NIV)
The past several years, I’ve really tried to slow my pace during the Christmas holiday season and really try to savor and enjoy it. One of the things that I’ve reintroduced into my holiday break is to read books, particularly holiday-themed ones. A few Christmases ago, I read a wonderful book, The Christmas Box, which gave me an idea for a blog post about engaging our five senses at Christmastime and elsewhere. I made note of it in my notes app on my phone, and just recently I was reminded of it. Therefore, today I’d like to share some insights on the senses of Christmas.
In The Christmas Box (which is a bit of a tearjerker by the way), there’s a scene where one of the characters is asking an elderly widow about which of the five senses she thought was most affected by Christmas. Her response was,
“I love everything about this season,” she continued. “But I think what I love the most about Christmas are its sounds. The bells of street-corner Santa Clauses, the familiar Christmas records on the phonograph, the sweet, untuned voices of Christmas carolers. And the bustling downtown noises. The crisp crinkle of wrapping paper and department store sacks and the cheerful Christmas greetings of strangers. And then there are the Christmas stories. The wisdom of Dickens and all Christmas story-tellers.” She seemed to pause for emphasis. “I love the sounds of this season. Even the sounds of this old house take on a different character at Christmas. These Victorian ladies seem to have a spirit all their own.”[1]
This description got my mind reeling about my own experiences at Christmas based on my five senses. I tried to answer the same question about which of the five senses I thought was most affected by Christmas. Honestly, I couldn’t narrow it down to just one. They are ALL affected!
Sound senses of Christmas–Jingle bells
When I think of the sounds of Christmas several things come to mind, much like those stated in the book excerpt. My favorite sound, obviously, would be that of Christmas music and carols. I seriously get giddy like a child when it’s time to break out the Christmas music! More annoyingly, I think of those repetitive holiday commercials. Then there is the collection of Hallmark Christmas ornaments that my kids play over and over by repetitively pushing the buttons on each and every one…every…single…day (I secretly enjoy this though, ssshh).
I also love the sounds of jingle bells, Salvation Army bell ringers at the stores, and Christmas stories (including THE Christmas Story). There’s also the chatty banter at family get-togethers. Finally, I can’t forget the hustle and bustle of shoppers (which can now often be avoided with online shopping!).
Sight senses of Christmas–the lights
The sights of Christmas are some of my favorite senses to engage. I love, love, love the lights! We love to go out as a family gazing at the neighborhood lights in surrounding communities. A Christmas tree can be seen in nearly every room of our house—it’s a rule.
Decorations abound in our home too. This completely irritates Eric because he dreads the day when it’s time to trek up into the attic to drag out the countless boxes of décor. There’s just something about twinkling greenery wrapping around railings, banisters, mirrors, windows, and doorframes that gives the home such a festive, warm, fuzzy feeling!
And we can’t forget about the Christmas movies! You know my addiction to Hallmark Christmas movies!
The smells…
I’ve always loved looking into the deeper meaning of things to try to learn and understand better. I love learning about the historical, geographical, and cultural context of events, especially scriptural ones, and looking at the deeper meanings of the Christmas story is no exception. That’s why I loved learning about some of the significance of some of the events surrounding the birth of Jesus in a video series from Pastor Rick Renner.
I think you might enjoy watching them too!
Watch this video series to dig deeper into the significance of the events and surroundings of Jesus’ birth. Each video is just under 30 minutes long. Pastor Rick Renner has the series and a study available for purchase, OR you can watch the videos for free on YouTube (all videos linked below).
According to Pastor Renner’s website:
“In this 15-part series, Rick will draw you right into the pages of the Bible to show you shocking and surprising things about events that occurred at the time of Jesus birth — things you’ve probably never heard or considered before. If you’re ready to dive deep into the birth of Jesus and all the events surrounding His birth — and if you’re ready to explode with excitement at what you’ve perhaps never considered — this series is for you! You will love this eternal story more than ever as you dive into these messages entitled, Christmas: The Rest of the Story!”[1]
“In this 15-part series, you’ll discover:
**Click here for a Link to Playlist of all 15 YouTube videos**
Daniel slept in a lions’ den. Peter slept in a prison. Jesus slept in a storm. No matter your circumstance, you can take a nap. 🙂
“…Let’s go off by ourselves to a quiet place and rest awhile…” Mark 6:31 (NLT)
When I asked Eric what I should write about, he said “your addiction to Hallmark Christmas movies”. Did you sense some sarcasm in that? Me too. Actually, it’s not a bad idea though. I’ve got to be honest. I really am addicted to Hallmark Christmas movies! Sadly, he’s not lying. I admit it. I’m a full-blown Hallmark junkie.
I’m a huge fan of the Hallmark channel and their original movies, albeit cheesy and predictable as they sometimes are. Maybe it’s the predictability that I like? I always know they will tug at my heartstrings. Even if they have some sad parts, I can also always count on a happy ending. Real-life doesn’t always have happy endings, so the certainty of watching one can be enticing.
Maybe the movies are an escape too? That might be where the “addiction” comes in. Addictions are often an escape from something else, aren’t they? Hallmark Christmas movies can offer an escape from an often stress-ridden and drama-filled holiday season. In the movies, we can see the picture-perfect holiday season, traditions, memories, and romance.
Many years ago I discovered that I was developing unrealistic expectations and discontentment in my marriage due to my obsession with romantic movies and books. I felt a strong conviction that I needed to overcome this struggle (that I previously didn’t even know I had). To overcome this, I had to start watching my intake of “romance”. When I started noticing discontentment, I knew I needed to limit how much I was reading and watching. I had to start practicing moderation (or sometimes even eliminate them completely for a while).
If I’m not careful, I can do the same thing with these Hallmark Christmas movies. It can be easy to develop unrealistic expectations of what a Christmas holiday should look like. Real-life might start to pale in comparison to fictional films if I fixate on them constantly. I might start to think, “Man, my Christmas stinks compared to the picturesque traditions and moments they have.” Without caution, I might forget that…THEY AREN’T REAL!!!
This was a cute nativity meme I saw the other day…Nativity 2021 Style. Someone got pretty creative!
“She gave birth to her firstborn son. She wrapped him snugly in strips of cloth and laid him in a manger, because there was no lodging available for them.” Luke 2:7 (NLT)
This past week in the United States we celebrated our Thanksgiving holiday and subsequently the start of the largest shopping season of the year. It’s easy to lose focus and lose sight of what we celebrate this week and to remain in a “thankful” posture. In light of that, that’s a primary reason why the Tuesday following the Thanksgiving holiday has been designated as “Giving Tuesday”.
GivingTuesday.org describes this day as a “Global Generosity Movement” that was “created in 2012 as a simple idea: a day that encourages people to do good. Over the past seven years, this idea has grown into a global movement that inspires hundreds of millions of people to give, collaborate, and celebrate generosity.”
Giving Tuesday can serve to remind all of us to be both thankful for what we blessed with as we recognize others in need as well as become more outwardly focused, looking to our communities and to those in need in order to find ways of helping them.
I would like to take the opportunity before Thanksgiving and before Giving Tuesday to get readers to start thinking about a purposed and intentional plan of generosity.
My challenge today is to encourage you to form a plan of some kind of “sacrificial” generosity or giving in one of four ways:
Hallmark Christmas movies are in full swing now, so I thought this meme was fitting! 🙂 … What has 15 actors, 4 settings, 2 writers, and one plot? 632 Hallmark movies.
“All share a common destiny…” Ecclesiastes 9:2a (NIV)
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