Consume this…

Last night I did something that I have not done in a long, long time, I went caroling with my church. I didn’t want to do it as I think it is cheesy, but I was compelled to do it for two reasons. The first reason was that I want to get involved in this church, my new community. The second reason is that I wanted to do something this Christmas that was not about me, but about others.

I have been thinking about Christmas a lot lately, mostly because it is the Christmas season (it’s been the Christmas season in the stores here since November). My thought is “I don’t want to get caught up in consumerism, but I want this Christmas to be about Jesus and about others.” More people spend more money that they don’t have on thing they don’t need this time of year than any other time of year. How can I change that for me and my family, how can I change what Christmas is all about for me and my kids this year?

My suggestion to myself is to give and not consume. Now, I am not going to have my children and wife wake up on Christmas morning to a tree with nothing under it, I am just going to focus more with them on the Christ aspect and less on the consumption aspect of Christmas. I want my girls to get great gifts that they are totally psyched about and remember for a long time, but I also want them to know that they have done more than just receive, they have given.

This year our family is going to give to Father Joes Village, an organization that works with the homeless population in San Diego. We are going to bring toys down there that they can distribute to kids in our city that have none. I want my kids to be a part of something bigger than themselves. My question for all of us is this, what are you going to do this season that makes Christmas more about Jesus and less about us?

Here is a video that explains this better than I. Thanks.