By
November 1st we are already deep into plans for Christmas. In fact,
with our church’s choir beginning rehearsals by early September at
the latest, we have already been thinking about Christmas for quite
some time. Considering November and December’s schedules, it would
be all too easy for me to fall into the category of those who merely
survive the season instead of celebrating it. That I do not is a
combination of the grace of God and a handful of hard-learned
organizational skills.Keeping God involved is of paramount importance.
I continually remind myself to spend time with Him and I actively
seek His guidance in all matters of life. And yes, I mean all matters
from determining which commitments to make and which to avoid to what
to purchase for that one last person on my gift list. Too many times,
in years past, I have been so busy during the holiday season that
I forgot to celebrate the One for whom the season was set apart. In
those years, I always seemed to reach the first of January feeling
empty, as if I had missed something vital along the way. Now I know
I had, and I work to avoid making the same mistake again.
Prioritizing
is the next most important step and, again, I go to God when setting
priorities. In my case, because our family sees the annual Christmas
production as the ideal opportunity to reach out to the lost world
around us, the production becomes one of the highest priorities on
the list. Knowing this, I look at the commitment it will require and
adjust most of my other priorities accordingly. Practically speaking,
this means I make NO other commitments during the holiday season.
We attend family gatherings, obviously, but anything else, be it a
trip to the theater or a friend’s Christmas party, is weighed against
my three highest priorities—my relationship with God, my relationship
with my family, and my production commitments. If the event conflicts
with any of the three, the answer is no.
Planning Ahead is obviously
one of the tools in my box, too. If I am to be free to celebrate the
season rather than merely survive it, certain things must be taken
care of early. The Christmas decorations, for instance, must be up
by Thanksgiving or they’ll get tossed up willy nilly in some spare
moment of time if they get put up at all. Formal homeschooling also
stops in early November while we spend our time learning and polishing
music, memorizing lines, working on stage sets, designing posters...whatever
is needed at the time.
And...you knew I had to ‘go there’. I do everything
in my power to have all of my gifts purchased, wrapped and mailed
absolutely no later than November 30th. I don’t always accomplish
this, and I pay for it when I don’t. There was a time when I would
have considered such a suggestion almost sacrilegious. Christmas shopping
was, in my mind, part of what made Christmas Christmas. I finally
admitted, however, that typical, last-minute Christmas shopping was
also one of the things that made Christmas so stressful. It only took
a couple of years of early shopping to make me realize the value of
the difference.
There is great freedom
in knowing I don’t HAVE to find a particular last-minute gift, even
though I do still have the option of buying something special if I
see it. I was also quick to realize the financial freedom such early
shopping provides. We stopped using credit cards years ago, so you
won’t find us charging our Christmas gifts anyway, but you also find
us less likely to be flat broke. With gift expenses out of the way,
December’s expenses—fast food meals, special clothing and other production
related expenses aren’t nearly as likely to put a cramp in the family
pocketbook.
Finally, to ensure my freedom to truly celebrate the season,
I take care of my body. I make myself get sufficient rest. I also,
because of the amount of time I spend singing, drink gallons of water
and go through bottles of vitamin C. Considering all of the fast food
we eat during the six weeks preceding the production, a good multivitamin
is essential as well.
I realize not everyone has the type of holiday
schedule I have, but most of us, if we’re honest, will confess to
being too darned busy during November and December, so I thought sharing
from my own experiences might help. This being the November/December
issue, you don’t have the option of beginning your shopping in June
like I did, but still... Here’s hoping you, too, are able to celebrate the
season this year. Just remember....
Keep God first...Prioritize...Plan
Ahead...and Take CARE of Yourself.
