Christmas

Every year it’s the same hopeful mantra… This year, Christmas is going to be different—I’m going to find a way to slow down and focus on “the reason for the season.” I’ll find the time to [...]

Back, back, back in the day, families generally lived near their extended relatives. In some countries where land and heritage are priorities, this is still the case. But because we in the U.S. [...]

2019 is here and if you're like many, you’ll wake up tomorrow determined to change your life. You’ll buy a new planner, dust off your bucket list, set career goals, and possibly spend $500 at the [...]

What is Advent? Is it in the Bible? How do church traditions during Advent season relate to the calendar full of treats we open every day leading to Christmas?

Trials, pain, and sadness are very real things in this world, often rearing their ugly head during the advent season. As we face the issues brought about by these ‘challenges,’ Jesus makes us a [...]

Christmas music on the radio, movies on television, lights on houses, and delicious cookies baking in the oven. These have commonly become the sights, sounds, and smells of this season; but are [...]

It's a disconcerting fact of adulthood that it doesn't take much to feel discouraged. A glance at the headlines, a report of a friend's illness, an announcement of rising costs.... Opportunities [...]

We've heard it said before: if we don't schedule the things that are important to us, they won't happen. This adage applies to the Christmas season as much as it does to regular workouts and [...]

Christmas crunch time has arrived. In fact, I’m a little shocked you’re reading this because I figured everyone would be busy with events and travel and last-minute errands. But here you are, so [...]

It's almost December. The temperatures have dropped, only half of the presents are bought, and none of them are wrapped. The stockings are not hung by the chimney with care, but instead are [...]

Saying that we want to focus on Jesus during Christmas and actually doing it are two separate things. The doing is the hard part—there are a lot of things filling up our minds, and many of them [...]