I know, I know. What a Scrooge! But honestly, it seems like everyone on earth is completely obsessed with Christmas, and I feel like I’m the only one asking this question. But I’m bringing it up today to see if I am in fact the only one, or if anyone else out there finds themselves asking it too.

And I’m sure by my last blog post, I probably seem like I’m just as in love with Christmas as anyone. That post is full of spirit and holiday festivities. Now don’t get me wrong, there are things about Christmas that I love. But there are also many that I question, despite continuing to do them year after year.

The Christian answer

So what’s the Christian answer? Well of course Christmas is wonderful because we’re celebrating the birth of Jesus. But researching the history of Christmas was something really eye opening for me. Many Christmas traditions are actually rooted in pagan traditions that date back long before the birth of Christ.

In early Christianity, Easter was the biggest holiday and the birth of Jesus wasn’t even celebrated. The pagan Yule and Winter Solstice celebrations were done by many European cultures to honor pagan gods. Firs and spruce were used as indoor decorations because it was believed that they scared away witches and ghouls.

In fact, many of the original Christmas traditions are more related to Halloween traditions than anything biblical. (The first time I learned this, I was really surprised. I’ve done research on the history of Halloween before, and feel like I’m one of the few Christians who actually grew up not celebrating it.)

How Christmas started

So why did Christians start celebrating the birth of Jesus on December 25th?

The Roman Catholic church decided to create this holiday a few hundred years A.D. and put it at the same time as the pagan winter holidays in order to encourage its popularity. (We actually don’t know the date or even the season Jesus was born in.) But what happened is that the pagan traditions and Christian holiday got mixed together into one big celebration.

Early Christmas represented drunkenness, revelry, and the poor classes terrorizing the rich by raiding homes and demanding food and drink. In fact, Christmas was a banned holiday during early American settlement. The Puritans were strongly against the worldly holiday and viewed it as sacrilege. And even when Christmas started being celebrated in America, Christmas trees were still not used because they were seen as a pagan symbol.

And I haven’t even touched on the tradition of Santa Claus yet!

Long story short, Santa is based mainly on the legend of Saint Nicholas, combined with many different tales of a man (or woman) delivering gifts to children for different reasons throughout different countries in Europe – a combination of many pagan superstitions. Saint Nicholas’ death day, December 9th, became a holiday to celebrate him, which is how the Santa tradition got tied together with all the rest of the hodgepodge Christmas traditions.

Modern American Christmas

So what are we supposed to do with this information? That’s what I’ve been trying to figure out. Although Christmas roots are from many different and strange origins, that doesn’t mean they’re all bad. The holiday has evolved to become about family, gifts, loving and caring for the poor, and of course Jesus’ birth.

I think my personal dilemma for awhile was wondering, should we even be celebrating Christmas? Do we know what we’re doing and why we’re doing it? What’s the point? And what I realized is that it’s not necessarily the traditions that bother me about Christmas, as long as we’re doing them with purpose and honoring God with them. But it’s the modern phenomena of Christmas obsession and indulgence that gets to me.

I guess it depends on each family, and each person’s heart. I love Christmas parties, Christmas movies, the cookies, even the decorations, and (most of) the music. But what I struggle to reconcile in my mind is the gifts, and the crazy amount of spending spending spending!

“Giving” or getting?

I love being able to surprise the people I love with a gift that I picked just for them. Something they weren’t expecting that they love and that’s meaningful. But what it seems like Christmas has come to is everyone rolling out a laundry list of all the things they want, and telling everyone around them exactly what to buy them so they get everything on their list.

No longer is there any joy in picking something special for people when you’re just buying them what they ask for (or demand). And the amount of money people throw away at Christmas seems insane and ridiculous to me. It’s basically turned into an excuse for everyone to just GET GET GET everything they want but wouldn’t normally buy themselves all at once because it would be too frivolous and indulgent.

We disguise our ridiculous amount of spending as “giving” to others. When in reality we know we’re going to get back just as much in gifts given to us! I know I might be stepping on some toes here, but I think the gift tradition has become one of the most selfish traditions ever. (Okay okay, I know not EVERYONE is only thinking about themselves – this is just a generalization!)

Everyone feels obligated to give things to their family members or else they’re considered a jerk. You can’t just not buy people Christmas presents!! (Well maybe you can… maybe your family has already stopped the usual gift tradition and opted for something more simple or special.)

It’s a facade

Not only that, but the entire facade of Christmas spirit… I think that’s exactly what it is: a facade.

I know, I know. How sad, right? I hate to burst that bubble. But growing up, Christmas was so magical. And I remember a point in high school, when it was the first year I didn’t “feel it.” It didn’t feel Christmassy to me, even when the season was in full swing! I thought something was wrong with me. Where was the magic?? It resulted in a pretty depressed and disillusioned teenage Becka.

Isn’t that sad? But over time I realized that’s actually normal. As a child everything seems so much bigger and grander and more magical, especially Christmas. But as an adult, enjoying the season is just a choice we make.

But it seems like everyone is forcing themselves and everyone around them to believe that Christmas is still magical, even if it never really was. Like it holds some kind of power, to make you feel warm and fuzzy, and everything hard and sad disappears during December.

But truly in my heart, I know that that’s not true. And for years I think I’ve let Christmas time be an escape. A way to feel good, and hide from reality. I still think it’s possible to enjoy Christmas and have warm fuzzy feelings, without letting it be an excuse to run from our problems. In all honesty I think we put Christmas on a pedestal and make it an idol when we give it so much power over us.

What I want to do about it

So what now? Since I’ve thought this through, I guess you can say I’m fed up with Christmas as I currently see it. I think it’s time to change something. If you feel the same way, maybe you want to change something too. This is what my hope is for Christmas in the future:

I want to stop with the presents. Okay maybe not completely. But at least drastically cut down on them! My siblings and I are grown up, so we’re a family of all adults (I understand if you have children this might not seem as reasonable for you). That means we all have our own money, and if there’s ever anything we need or want, we can just buy it ourselves.

The pressure of buying each other gifts and not knowing what to get, and stressing out about shopping, and then all the returns and exchanges that happen after Christmas day are just not worth it! Maybe we can commit to each getting each other one small but special gift – something that wasn’t asked for but picked out by the giver.

I want to make Christmas more simple. I don’t want to not celebrate it altogether, but just focus on the best aspects of it! What traditions do we partake in that we really don’t even like or care about, but do them out of obligation, or just because that’s what we’ve always done?

Is it putting up lights outside? Decorating our huge and inconvenient and falling apart 9 foot tree? Listening to Christmas music nonstop even when we’re sick of it? Fighting the crouds to go out shopping again and again until we check everything off our list (and going to all the stores we never go to except in the month of December)??

Simplify

Whatever it is, I want to get rid of it. All the annoying Christmas songs I don’t like… I don’t want to listen to them. Feeling the pressure to start the season before December? No, I don’t want to feel obligated to do that. I’d rather things to be slow, and simple, and relaxed, and enjoyable.

I want put more effort into focusing on a biblical celebration of Jesus. Not just baby Jesus, but Jesus who died and rose again. If we have the opportunity to celebrate Him, we should! Every day, but even more at Christmas. It’s been years since I’ve done a real advent study, so I want to make more time for that. Spend time with family in the Word and reflect on the gift of a Savior.

I want to make it more about giving to others and not just about self-indulgence. Maybe volunteer and give to those who might need help. Or find a less fortunate family and do something special to bless their socks off!

And I kinda want to forget about Santa. Now don’t hate me for this one! Maybe you and your kids love Santa, and that’s totally fine. I grew up loving Santa. But as an adult I think it’s a little silly, and it’s just adding to the noise of all the pointless things that distract us during this time of year. (I’ve even thought about not doing Santa when I have kids someday, but I guess that’s a decision for later on…)

If you’ve read this far…

Alright, well I guess that’s the end of my rant. What’s the point? I’m not really sure. I just hope that if you’ve never thought about any of this before, maybe I could spark your interest and give you some food for thought for your own Christmas celebrations.

And if you have thought about it, maybe you can feel relieved that someone else out there actually feels the same way. Maybe we can encourage each other make Christmas something more worthwhile and less like the world’s version of frivolity and indulgence, and enjoy something so much more meaningful together in years to come.

I hope this didn’t just put a damper on your December day! Instead I hope it gave you a little inspiration to live a more intentional life with purpose in everything you do. Let’s live wide awake, because every single day counts, and we’re not promised tomorrow after all!

Feel free to let me know your thoughts. I’d love to hear your perspective, whether you agree or disagree!

Xo,

Becka

P.S. – How to make the most of your quiet time, and 3 goal setting tips for the New Year.

Sources:

History of Christmas | History of Christmas Trees | History of Santa Claus

The post The Real Problem I Have With Christmas appeared first on Live It Lovely.

Maybe you’ve tried to have a regular quiet time but haven’t found a routine you can stick to. Maybe you want to have a daily quiet time but don’t know where to start. Today I’m sharing some ideas for how you can make the most of your quiet time, because let’s face it: our time is precious. It’s something we can never get back, so we should use it well.

Remove distractions

First of all, I would recommend a quiet time in the morning before you start your day if at all possible. That might mean you have to readjust your schedule or even sacrifice a little bit of sleep. If you just can’t swing it, then another time will work, as long as you can go somewhere quiet to be alone with God. Maybe your lunch break, or in the evening after dinner.

The most important thing you can do is to remove all distractions. And by that I mainly mean your PHONE! When my phone is nearby, I’m always tempted to pick it up, even just to check the time. If I’m not careful I’ll start looking at something and quickly waste half my quiet time. How lame, right?! Leave your phone out of reach across the room so you’re not tempted to pick it up. Put it on airplane mode, and even set a timer if you need to so you know when your time’s up!

Use a real Bible

One of the biggest tips I have is to read an actual, physical Bible. For a couple years I only read my Bible in an app, and even though I was reading through a study almost every day, there was still a sense of disconnect with what I was reading.

When I switched back to my real Bible, I felt a huge difference. I realized that I retain so much more when I read Scripture on a page in the context of a book! It’s so important for me to be able to flip to different spots, highlight, underline, bookmark, and get familiar with each passage as part of the whole.

Start with worship

Okay, so you might actually need your phone for this part. Or your computer, or maybe you still use an ipod…? Haha. Recently I started listening to a worship song at the beginning of my quiet times, and I gotta say I’m loving it! It only takes a couple minutes, but it quiets my mind and heart before God. Find a song on Youtube, or make a playlist of your favorite worship songs on Spotify and just pick one. Spend a few minutes praising God. Then after the song, set a timer and immediately throw your phone across the room! Just kidding. Kind of.

Pick a reading plan

If reading the Bible regularly is not something you’ve done before, maybe it sounds overwhelming. So pick a simple study or devotional that can lead you through a reading plan! For the last couple years I’ve switched between She Reads Truth and the First 5 app, two different online devotional studies that you can follow along with daily. Either one is a good starting point, but recently I’ve felt that I need something a little more in-depth.

Maybe you’ve never read through the entire Bible, so you want to start with that! Try a read through the Bible in a year plan. There are so many to choose from! Even if it takes you longer than a year, it’s an awesome way to get familiar with the Bible as a whole. If you’ve never done it, I think it’s a must. You’ll grow and learn so much, promise.

Get a good study Bible

One of the biggest reasons people are afraid to read the Bible is because it can be hard to understand. A good study Bible is an extremely useful tool to help you comprehend what you’re reading. I have an ESV study Bible that I love. It’s kinda big and heavy, but I LOVE that it has insightful commentary on every page for almost every single verse. With the commentary, I can even read through a book of the Bible on my own, and find answers to any questions I have right there on the page!

Take notes

Try keeping a journal on hand to take notes during your Bible study time. You don’t have to necessarily write something down every day! But if a verse or thought ever stands out to you, it helps to write it down. You’ll retain what you’re learning better, and you’ll have a place to look back to for reference if you want to look something up later.

I like using the same journal I take notes in at church for my daily quiet times too. That way I can easily flip back to my church notes and make connections to what I’m studying on my own time!

Pray

Prayer is something we should be doing all throughout the day. But during your quiet time is a great time to pray more specifically and get a little deeper. I love praying out loud, which is why I like to do my quiet time alone in my room in the early mornings. Try talking openly with God about your life! Invite Him into your day and have a real conversation with Him.

If you can’t get alone in a quiet place, try writing your prayers! Journaling is a great way connect with God and can also help you process and focus better. Keeping a prayer journal (this one’s my fave) is such an awesome way to pray more intentionally for things that matter. And you can go back later and see how God answered!

Related post: 3 Amazing Benefits of Journaling Regularly

If you don’t have a lot of time…

Maybe you struggle to stick to a quiet time, because you just DON’T. HAVE. TIME. Girl I get it! But I wanna give you some hard truth… your relationship with God should be your first priority, period. If it’s not, I can guarantee that everything else in your life will suffer. But maybe you’re type A and it drives you crazy to miss a day, so much that it’s tempting to just give up (GUILTY)!

Batch your quiet times

I’ve been there too. I figured out that if I want to have an amazing prayer time AND dig deep into the Word all in one sitting, I’d need an entire hour of quiet time a day. But that’s just not always practical! So lately I’ve been batching my quiet times. What does that mean? Well it’s kinda like batching your tasks at work! When you pick one type of task to focus on each day of the week, you’ll get much more done because you won’t waste time switching between tasks throughout the day.

So why not apply that to quiet times too? If you only have 30 minutes in the mornings, maybe try reading your Bible during that time every other day. On the in-between days, spend that time praying and journaling. I’ve been doing this for the last few weeks and so far it’s working great!

Quality over quantity

Although it’s SUPER IMPORTANT to spend regular time with God, there’s no verse that says exactly how or when to do your quiet time. But when we look at how Jesus lived his life, we know that He rose early and went somewhere secluded to pray before the day began. If Jesus thought quiet time in the morning was important, then I’m thinking we should too!

Of course, your quiet time will have to adjust as you go through different seasons of life. When I was a teenager I read my Bible at night before bed (because waking up for school was a struggle), and I loved that too. You just have to go with the flow. It’s a relationship, after all, so it will evolve.

If you’re running late or just have a ton on your plate, it’s OKAY if you miss a day! Just pick it up the next day, or whenever you can. But it’s definitely something you should work to incorporate into your routine and make a habit. If you’ve never had a regular quiet time before, it’ll take some effort and sacrifice to get used to.

It’s a relationship

Once I started viewing my quiet time with God as a way to grow our relationship, my mindset shifted. Instead of seeing it as a chore, I thought about what it’s like to be in a relationship with someone. When you’re dating, you’re not necessarily going to see that person every single day. Sometimes you only have time for a special date night once a week (or maybe even less)!

But that set-aside time is something you look forward to throughout the week. It’s when you get to reconnect, do something fun together, talk about your week, and just get closer. It’s something you don’t want to take for granted, and the less of it you have, the more quality you want it to be!

Think of your quiet times as your dates with God. It’s special to be alone together, to talk, and to just be. So when you have less time in your schedule, it’s better to have 2 or 3 days a week of rich quality time with God, than 7 days of quick mindless prayer and speed-reading something you won’t retain later!

If  you work hard to integrate a quiet time into your daily life, I promise you’ll grow and your life will change for the better. What tips would you would add to this list? How do you make the most of your quiet time? Leave a comment and let me know, loves!

Xo,

Becka

P.S. – 3 easy fall outfit ideas, and what loneliness has taught me about contentment.

The post How To Make The Most of Your Quiet Time appeared first on Live It Lovely.