I love questions like that. And I was ready for an answer.
Having chosen to not go the Santa route this year, we have really wanted the children to get the true meaning of Christmas. It's not that I'm "anti-Santa", but there is such a different meaning to Christmas when the big, jolly elf is involved.
Anyway, back to Haviland's question.
Had we played up Santa my answer would have gone something like this:
"Yes. Santa keeps a naughty and nice list and if you're not good enough, he will know and not bring you presents."
Wonderfully though I was able to reply:
"No Haviland. Your behavior does not determine whether or not you receive gifts. We give gifts out of love for one another. Really, none of us are ever good enough to deserve gifts, much less the ultimate gift of Jesus. In fact, it is when we were still sinners that God gave us His Son. Pretty incredible, huh?"
The conversation continued and it was such a treasure for me to be able to share the gospel with my own daughter in such a simple way.
To me, this is what celebrating Christmas is about - understanding God's gift to us and sharing that with others. No present under the tree will top that! :)
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1 comment:
You rock, yet again. We're not doing Santa either, though I am reading a great book on the life and legacy of St. Nicholas. (Liam is on board, but skeptical). I'll give you a call. Not an easy task, to omit Santa. I'd love to talk about it. We're definitely hearing about it from friends and family!!!
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