Christmas is very fast approaching. 10 days to be exact. The time of year decorations get put up, stores get busy, the radio changes songs to Christmas carols, Christmas baking happens, and the time of year where everyone is looking forward to Christmas.

But none of those things is really what Christmas is all about.

Something I have learned this Christmas season is that you don’t need all the decorations for Christmas. We have 3 different sets of Christmas lights that we normally put up outside, and this year because of all of the circumstances that have gone on, we didn’t put up any lights. Now just because we don’t have our lights up doesn’t mean we won’t celebrate Christmas. Two days ago all we had on our Christmas tree was 3 decorations(There are more on now), but just because we haven’t done all the decorating and the baking, that doesn’t mean that we still can’t celebrate Christmas.

Christmas will still be celebrated the same if you have your Christmas tree up, or if you don’t, if you bought lots of presents for family, or if you didn’t, if you got your hair to look like a Christmas tree, or if you didn’t, even if you didn’t bake Christmas cookies, Christmas will still be celebrated the same. Because Christmas is about Jesus Christ, not about the tree or presents, or cooking, or decorating, or shopping. I personally don’t think that when Jesus was born Mary and Joseph put up a tree in the stable.

Now I’m not saying that you can’t put up decorations, or bake cookies, or go Christmas shopping. I’m saying, don’t make that the centre of the Christmas season. Since we didn’t have a lot of decorations on our tree, or put a tree up until a few days ago, it was starting to bother me, not because we didn’t have a tree up, but because people were making it out to seem like you couldn’t celebrate Christmas without any of the things I have mentioned. Which would have meant that we wouldn’t have been able to celebrate Christmas. Which is entirely not true, Christmas can still be celebrated because all that you need at Christmas is Jesus and the hope He brings.

A quote I have recently seen says “it’s not how much we give, but how much love we put into giving.” -anonymous. We can even take the word “give” out and put in other words, such as bake, shop… you can fill in the blank.

Yesterday as I was playing some Christmas songs on the piano I came across this song called “The Christmas Shoes” By Leonard Ahlstron and Eddie Farewell. I hope the words encourage you, and remind you the Christmas season is not all about yourself.

It was almost Christmas time, there I stood in another line
Tryin’ to buy that last gift or two, not really in the Christmas mood
Standing right in front of me was a little boy waiting anxiously
Pacing ’round like little boys do
And in his hands he held a pair of shoes
His clothes were worn and old, he was dirty from head to toe
And when it came his time to pay
I couldn’t believe what I heard him say
Sir, I want to buy these shoes for my Mama, please
It’s Christmas Eve and these shoes are just her size
Could you hurry, sir, Daddy says there’s not much time
You see she’s been sick for quite a while
And I know these shoes would make her smile
And I want her to look beautiful if Mama meets Jesus tonight
He counted pennies for what seemed like years
Then the cashier said, “Son, there’s not enough here”
He searched his pockets frantically
Then he turned and he looked at me
He said Mama made Christmas good at our house
Though most years she just did without
Tell me Sir, what am I going to do,
Somehow I’ve got to buy her these Christmas shoes
So I laid the money down, I just had to help him out
I’ll never forget the look on his face when he said
Mama’s gonna look so great
Sir, I want to buy these shoes for my Mama, please
It’s Christmas Eve and these shoes are just her size
Could you hurry, sir, Daddy says there’s not much time
You see she’s been sick for quite a while
And I know these shoes would make her smile
And I want her to look beautiful if Mama meets Jesus tonight
I knew I’d caught a glimpse of heaven’s love
As he thanked me and ran out
I knew that God had sent that little boy
To remind me just what Christmas is all about
Sir, I want to buy these shoes for my Mama, please
It’s Christmas Eve and these shoes are just her size
Could you hurry, sir, Daddy says there’s not much time
You see she’s been sick for quite a while
And I know these shoes would make her smile
And I want her to look beautiful if Mama meets Jesus tonight