A Christ-Centered Christmas Doesn't Have to Be HardSýnishorn

What! No Santa?

The anticipation and excitement around Christmas is a magical time for children. As a child, I was fascinated with the wonderment of old St. Nick, a chubby old soul who left assorted and brightly colored packages under our tree.

Each year on the way home from Christmas Eve service, my brother, sister, and I would look for Santa’s sleigh. Nearly every year we caught a glimpse of the flashing red light in the sky that was most certainly Rudolf’s nose.

Once home, our parents would tuck us into bed so that Santa could deliver our presents. They said he couldn’t come until we were fast asleep.

One year, my parents extended a special invitation and convinced Santa to bring our gifts while we were still awake. I couldn’t believe it!

Santa made his entrance with a jovial Ho! Ho! Ho! And although he certainly looked and sounded the part, something didn’t add up in my six-year-old brain. I asked Santa some questions about his sleigh and reindeer, but his ambiguous answers were unconvincing, leaving me skeptical.

This was the year I began questioning the idea of Santa Claus. I approached my mom and asked the infamous question. “Is Santa real?” Since she didn’t answer me straightforwardly, I was pretty sure I was on to something. She finally told me the truth. Santa was not real, and in fact, the man posing as Santa on Christmas Eve was a distant relative.

Aha! I knew it!

“See to it that no one takes you captive through hollow and deceptive philosophy, which depends on human tradition and the basic principles of this world rather than on Christ” (Colossians 2:8).

When we are young, we tend to believe things just because someone tells us it’s true. The Bible tells us that we need to be childlike in our faith. However, at some point, in order to mature in our Christian faith, we need to carefully examine what we’ve been taught to see if it holds together as truth.

In my early thirties, I began to seek Jesus in a more deliberate manner. I had grown up in the church, but eventually realized I needed to discover who Jesus was for myself.

Each one of us must have our own personal relationship with Jesus. We cannot ride into heaven on the coattails of our parents or grandparents. Our faith journey must be our own.

Unlike my experience with Santa Clause, everything I have learned, and continue to learn about Jesus, only confirms the truth. Jesus really is the Son of the Living God; He is who He says He is.

“The Bereans were acknowledged by the apostle Paul as being of noble character because they didn’t just accept a teaching because someone told them it was true. They checked everything against the Scriptures to see if it lined up with God’s Word” (Acts 17:11).

Like the Bereans, we need to investigate stories in the Bible for ourselves. We need to dig deep into Scriptures and see if our beliefs line up with what the Bible says. The Bible is truth and has stood the test of time. It is trustworthy and unchanging.

God has protected His Word for thousands of years. He did this so that you and I wouldn’t have to wonder what is true and what is not. We can know the truth because it’s right there in black and white in the Bible, preserved for all time.

God the Father, Son, and Holy Spirit are the real deal! And so is God’s Word.

Personal Reflection

• Which stories in the Bible (if any) do you struggle to believe happened as they are written?
• What outside influences could have possibly shaped your skepticism?

Prayer

Lord Jesus, you tell us in your Word that we can ask and it will be given. Help me to better understand the stories in your Word that seem incredible and hard to understand. May your Holy Spirit give me eyes to see, ears to hear, and a mind to conceive. Thank you for answered prayers. Amen