I have a love/hate relationship with the holiday season.  I love the excitement surrounding the season: the glistening lights, the festive decorations, the heartwarming Christmas music.  As a child I eagerly anticipated the start of the season and joyfully welcomed it with open arms.  These days, though, I feel less like like the wide-eyed child I once was and more like one of Pavlov’s dogs. But rather than a bell stimulating thoughts of food, it’s the signs of the season that trigger an immediate rise in my anxiety level as I have come to associate these signs with thoughts of the added burdens and responsibilities that arise during the holidays.  As a result, in recent years it seems the season rolls in more like a dark storm cloud than the joy-filled time of year it should be.

Daily life is hectic enough and I feel like I am barely treading water as it is.  Just the thought having to tackle the additional tasks required to make the season worthwhile and memorable for my family makes my blood pressure boil.   How am I going to find the time to accomplish all the cleaning, decorating and menu planning, not to mention the extra shopping trips all around town and online for gifts?

Before attempting to tackle this year’s holiday to-do list, in an effort to rediscover the joy and excitement of the holidays I decided to start the season by allowing myself to open three gifts first.

The Gift of Perspective

The gift of perspective offers me the chance to look beyond the superficial.  It gives me the opportunity to cut through the noise of the materialistic and consumer-focused aspects of the holidays to consider the true meaning of the season.  It allows me to focus on what matters most: celebrating the birth of a Savior, one who wants us to have an abundant and joy-filled life (John 10:10, John 15:11).  One who offers rest to the weary and the burdened (Matthew 11:28).  One who wants us to seek Him first above all else (Matthew 6:33).

The Gift of Choice

Employing the gift of perspective as a lens, I can take a serious look at everything that has been piled on my to-do list and begin to identify what is truly necessary.  In doing so, I discover I also have the gift of choice.  The choice to determine which of my burdens are self-imposed and which ones truly matter.  The choice to decide whether or not I am going to allow myself to stress out about how my efforts stack up against others.  The choice to recognize which things I am doing are truly worthwhile and which are simply based on the perceived expectations of others.

The Gift of Permission

Once I realize I have the gift of choice, I can unwrap the gift of permission.  Permission not to feel guilty when I’ve chosen to say no to invitations and activities that are more of a burden than a joy.  Permission to adjust my schedule and my expectations as needed.  Permission to simply make and take the time to relax and enjoy the holidays.

I am grateful for the gifts of perspective, choice, and permission, for they allow me to cut through the hustle and the bustle to be able to experience the true joy of the season and appreciate the greatest gift of all – Jesus.

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