Thrifty 31 Blog: Activities that keep Christ in Christmas

As we approach the Christmas season it can often be difficult to remember the reason for the season. For me it's so easy to get caught up in watching Christmas movies, searching for the perfect gift or eating fresh baked cookies for breakfast that it's hard to remember to keep Christ the focus. This year and especially once we have kids, I want to make a real effort to include Christ in Christmas. I want my family to know what the day and celebrating is all about, the birth of Jesus our Savior.

Luke 2:11 - For unto you is born this day in the city of David a Savior, who is Christ the Lord.

1. Set out a nativity! (Check out this Little People nativity set perfect for when you have littles in the house because they can play with it too!) I have a couple nativity scenes I put out each year. I always place one under our tree to remember that Jesus is the best gift we could ever receive!

*Photo via Pinterest*

2. Eat cake! Along with your Christmas cookies, how about baking a birthday cake for Jesus! Whether it's a coffee cake you eat for breakfast Christmas morning or a cake for dessert later in the day, sing "Happy Birthday" and celebrate Jesus birth!

*Photo via Pinterst*

3. Wandering Wise Men! I saw this idea on Pinterest and thought it was so cute! Instead of Elf on the Shelf, have the wise men wander your house searching for Jesus. Each day the wise men can be found resting, facing some kind of obstacle, get something to eat, etc until they find Jesus in the manger Christmas morning.

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4. Three Christmas gifts! One of the most exciting parts of Christmas is giving and receiving gifts. It's easy though to get so caught up in getting gifts or often overspending when buying gifts, that we forget the real meaning of Christmas. How about buying only three gifts for each member of the family? It's a great way to bring up Jesus and the wise men on Christmas morning since three gifts are how many Jesus received when he was born.

*Photo via Pinterest*

5. Christmas lights and the nativity! Print out a coloring page of the Christmas nativity. Have your children color it and you write a little note at the top that says "Thanks for keeping Christ in Christmas" or "Thanks for remembering the reason for the season". As your family drives around looking at Christmas lights, stop at the houses that have a nativity in the yard and leave the coloring page in their mailbox.

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6. Scripture Advent! Starting December 1st until Christmas, celebrate advent by reading a story out of the Jesus Storybook Bible each day. I love this storybook bible because the illustrations are gorgeous, the stories are beautifully written and every story points to Christ!

*Source*

7. Nativity Story Box! Read the Nativity story and as each character or prop is introduced, pull it out of the box. After reading and discussing, children can play with the toys and reenact the story on their own.

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8. Christmas Eve Service! This is something I remember doing every year growing up. Each Christmas Eve before heading to our family's Christmas dinner we would head to church for a candlelight service. It was a great reminder of why we were celebrating before getting caught up in the food, gifts, etc of the rest of that evening and especially on Christmas day.

*Photo via Pinterest*

9. Gift of Giving! Set some money or time aside for others this year. As a kid and even now, I love shopping for Operation Christmas Child shoe boxes every year! It's a great way to spread the love of Jesus and helps remind us that it's not all about us.

10. Symbols of Christmas! Find a small Christmas tree and ornaments that go along with this version of what each Christmas symbol means. This would be fun to do before you put out your Christmas decorations in your home. Once you've gone over each symbol and decorated the tree, let the kids use it as a decoration in their room.