The Christmas holiday represents so many different aspects to everyone that it is difficult to encompass it all in a single article. Children are excited not only for Santa Claus but, at a young age, they experience the thrill of buying loving gifts for the people in their lives.
Adults often experience a similar excitement, especially when they anticipate Christmas for their children. Families develop Christmas traditions that they silently hope their children will carry on. Sometimes, family Christmas traditions are accidentally created by a child’s enthusiasm or a cute antic performed by the child, which the family then adopts as part of their annual celebrations.
The Magic of Christmas Miracles
We like to believe that Christmas is the time for miracles, and we center so much around the idea of a “Christmas miracle.” A Christmas miracle can range from the smile on a grumpy old man’s face to someone special returning home to share the holiday with their family. The notion of a Christmas miracle fills our hearts with warmth and fills our minds with hope. It’s likely that there aren’t more miracles during the Christmas season than at any other time of year, but we are simply more receptive to them—or at least to the thought of them—at Christmastime.
There is undeniable magic in the glow of Christmas lights and the hustle and bustle of Christmas activity. Christmas trees adorn most homes, and if you live in the right climate, there’s always hope for a white Christmas. Yet, for every magical Christmas moment, there is often a Christmas tragedy on someone’s doorstep.
Many people complain about the lost meaning of Christmas and the fading Christmas spirit. For every gift that is wrapped and every special adornment, there is an opportunity to reach out and become someone’s Christmas miracle. For every complaint, there is an action that can alleviate it. Christmas is about more than the opening of presents or the arrival of Santa Claus. It is the one time of year when we can reach a little deeper into our hearts and find our very own version of Christmas enlightenment.
But alas, there are obligations to fulfill, last-minute gifts to buy, and crowds to fight. As Christmas Day finally approaches, we scramble to make sure every last detail of our Christmas morning is covered. Yet, in those moments, we are reminded of how blessed we are when our child unwraps their thirtieth gift, and the thousands of dollars spent on preparations pay off in an hour or two of Christmas bliss. And then, what happens?
Imagine, for a moment, the scope of Christmas miracles if each and every one of us performed just one Christmas miracle on someone else’s behalf. Imagine the far-reaching impact it would have, extending well beyond December 25th. These acts could bring hope to the terminally ill, the homeless, the downtrodden, the hopeless, and the lost.
Imagine the long-term impact these Christmas miracles could have on the state of the world and the human spirit. Three hundred sixty-five days a year, we know of, speak about, and are fully aware of many causes or individuals desperately in need of help. What if the majority of us chose to ignore these issues for just three hundred sixty-four days of the year? Now that would be a true national Christmas miracle. How exciting would that be?
Along with providing a Christmas miracle for the individual or cause of our choice, think about the long-term impact it would have on our own sense of Christmas spirit. How much more incredible would the spread under the tree become if we knew that our family had donated the time and energy necessary to remedy someone else’s loss? And that, because of us, someone else’s Christmas joy was being matched by the miracle we created.
How much brighter do the Christmas lights glow when they are powered by the true spirit of Christmas? How much more meaningful are the gifts under the tree when they are inspired by honest devotion and a genuine desire to make the world a better place?
These traditions are just as important to pass down to your family as the way you decorate your tree or sing carols on Christmas Eve. These traditions create long-lasting impacts and foster a stronger spirit of Christmas that can’t be bought. These are the traditions that the original Saint Nicholas had in mind when he chose to leave gifts for the nation’s poor children and remained anonymous in the process.
The dazzling Christmas spirit that we all search for each year is ironically right at our fingertips. When we feel devoid of the Christmas spirit, it is simple to engage in new traditions that help us find that spirit again. Your children will recognize the power of giving, and they will carry that tradition far beyond their childhood years. And it all begins with the simple desire to fill an empty place in the Christmas spirit.
