Christmas in July
We've all heard the advertisements - "Enjoy Christmas Savings in July!" So, here we are once again in July and Christmas couldn't be any further away from our minds. Or is it?.... I just purchased my first gift for someone last week and it has me thinking about the monetary value we've connected to this very special day designed to remember the birth of our Lord and Savior.
Are you starting to plan out your gift giving? Preparing to over shop, over think and over spend for this 2017 Christmas? The thought has me thinking....We so often start saying things like, "we need to end the commercialism of Christmas" (and other holidays for that matter), "we need to be thinking about the reason for the season," "we need to make Christmas about faith, family and love." But do we ever follow through? Often times, when we start making these statements it's too late to make the necessary adjustments, people have already bought gifts for us and time starts rushing by quickly. Maybe, if we start considering a solution earlier. What if we start planning now, in July to scale back on the gifts, volunteer more or volunteer to do a specific project, go to church and connect with our family. Christmas in July could be a beautiful time of readjusting our thoughts and actions to really consider the magnitude of the day and by living it we could adjust our lives monumentally. What if we talked to family and friends about giving up the gift giving or using the money we would have spent to donate to our favorite charity and just spend time together. Could we collectively change the scope of our connection to others and to God this year?
With this thought in mind, I am going to begin implementing a new plan for December, right now. We will be scaling back the gifts, plan activities that give back, spending more quality time with family and friends and give to those who are truly in need.
Let's take back our holiday and see what we gain. The gifts we receive may be far greater than the pretty boxes with bows under the tree.
Wishing you Grace, Peace & Healthy Living,
Lorraine
