Park Gate Baptist

What is Christmas really about? Is it not about family and friends? Is it not about spending time with the people you care about and showing them that you love them? Few years now, it seems as if it’s becoming more and more about gifts. If you haven’t noticed, over the past couple of years, shopping centers have been putting out Christmas decorations earlier and earlier. It used to be that you didn’t see any Christmas themes until December but now days, it’s not uncommon to see them go up after Halloween. With office secret Santa parties where people talk about random things including the words, “I hate my job” and shoppers wishing they had some passive income to pay for their long list of gifts to buy, perhaps this holiday is headed in the wrong direction.

So who are the people pushing this idea that it’s more about buying gifts? The corporations of course. For them, it’s all about getting people in the buying mindset. This is why you will hear Christmas songs play throughout the mall. Companies have spent millions of dollars over decades to produce this almost hypnotic effect on people and boy does it work. The 4 weeks leading up to Christmas is the biggest shopping time of the year. In fact, this is where most retailers make most of their money.

There’s nothing wrong with buying gifts of course but just remember that spending time and appreciating those around you is way more important than who gets who want and how much they spent. And now for a Christmas song.

Christmas gifts for children are sometimes hard to select, especially if the children in question are not your own. Many parents are unhappy when their children receive noisy toys that do not add value to their lives, and they would much rather that the gift that you give their children would be a book with a wholesome message. But if you want to please the child, then sometimes you just have to include a toy in with any book, or the gift will not be well received. In such a situation, the best solution might be a book/toy combo, in order to please everyone.

Take the children’s book In Case There’s a Fox. 

A delightful read for both the parent and the child, this children’s classic will last for years. But in order to entice the child to accept the gift, it will not be a bad idea to include a realistic stuffed animal fox in with the book, as a kind of book/toy combo Christmas gift.

The stuffed animal may become a favorite, worn with care over the years, or just as readily, it can be discarded without much use. But the book In Case There’s a Fox will continue to give pleasure years into the future and may even become a favorite of the following generation.

The important thing to remember when choosing a Christmas gift for children is to keep in mind both the child and the parent.

The kids are going back to school, and as the days grow colder, and the nights get longer, many moms and dads are turning their thoughts towards Christmas.

In the hustle and bustle of putting up decorations, preparing food, buying the hot new toys for this Christmas, and wrapping gifts, it can be easy to forget the true meaning of this celebration.

And if the adults in the family are focussing on the materialistic instead of the spiritual, how can we expect children to learn about the values that underpin this time of year?

While we still have plenty of time to make our preparations, draw up a teaching schedule for the month of December.

Write down all the values, lessons and principles you would like your child to learn. Once you have it clear in your own mind, what you would like your child to learn about, you are ready to begin teaching. Use the story of Jesus’ birth to meet your goals. For example you can talk about how diligent Joseph was in his care of Mary, and how hard working the beast was that carried her to Bethlehem. For older children you can discuss the trust that Mary had to put in God that everything would be OK.

By taking time to reflect on the meaning of Christmas you can bring the story to life and help your child move away from the material trappings of this time of year, and focus on the important things.