On a trip to Walmart last week, no sooner had I walked in the door than I heard Bing Crosby crooning Christmas tunes on the overhead speaker. Christmas decorations lined the shelves as I walked in, and the home and garden section looked like a pitiful forest of plastic pine trees guarded by a giant blow-up Santa.
Really, Walmart? Really? I thought. November seriously just started. Must you forget about Thanksgiving? It gets me every year. Beside selling a few turkey stuffed animals wearing pilgrim hats and stocking up on giant turkeys in their meat section, Walmart completely skips over our nation's gratitude holiday. But Walmart isn't the only culprit. If you watch your TV for any length of time, you are bound to see a Christmas-themed commercial from any number of stores. I actually saw some of those commercials before Halloween! And, I don't want to rant and rave, but it drives me crazy.
Don't get me wrong, reader. I love Christmas. I mean, I love Christmas. If you know me really well, you know that around Christmas time, I become like a seven-year-old who's eaten 10-too-many candy canes. I get giddy-excited about Christmas decorations and music and lights and food and sweaters and parties and giving presents and receiving presents and everything about it. I seriously love Christmas. I can't wait to listen to Bing Crosby's Christmas album and wear my green t-shirt with my red cardigan and start wearing a Santa hat around the house (and possibly out in public). In fact, I'm the one in my family who will get out the Christmas decorations and make sure they get put up the weekend after Thanksgiving.
However, it has to be after Thanksgiving. I'm adamant about that.
Some people don't care. I know a few people who put up Christmas decorations before Thanksgiving, and I'm well aware that a lot of people start listening to Christmas music long before the season officially begins. Not me. Some people might think that I'm too strict about it, that it's really not a big deal. And maybe for them it isn't a big deal. Maybe I'm too strict about something that doesn't matter that much. To me, it matters, for three reasons.
First, it's tradition. Thanksgiving is a national holiday and therefore is worth remembering. Our culture often says that traditions don't hold any value, but that's not true. Traditions really are worthwhile, and spending November to anticipate and celebrate Thanksgiving is important. December (and the last few days of November) belong to Santa. The rest of November belongs to the Thanksgiving turkey. Let's keep it that way.
Second, Walmart does not celebrate Christmas because of Jesus. Our culture doesn't look forward to December 25 as a celebration of the coming of the Savior of mankind. In the eyes of the world, Christmas season is the shopping season. Thanksgiving definitely isn't a shopping season, so of course Thanksgiving gets skipped over. As a Christian, I can celebrate the coming of Christ all year long. In fact I should. But I don't believe I can truly honor God by skipping over the holiday dedicated to being grateful for what He's given me. I don't want to be a Grinch or a Scrooge, but I don't want to be like the culture either.
Thirdly and most importantly in my mind, I'm convinced that there's something important, vital even, about taking a month to be thankful for what we have before we take a month to spend so much of our time and thoughts on the giving and getting of presents. Gratitude comes before presents. Thanks must come before giving. Because we have been given so much.
Giving to others is a wonderful thing (and I honestly have been excited about Christmas ever since September), but taking time to give thanks for what God has given me is what allows me to give to others in any kind of genuine way. Giving from the place of gratitude is far more soul-feeding, life-giving, and joy-producing than giving simply because it's that time of year.
First, it's tradition. Thanksgiving is a national holiday and therefore is worth remembering. Our culture often says that traditions don't hold any value, but that's not true. Traditions really are worthwhile, and spending November to anticipate and celebrate Thanksgiving is important. December (and the last few days of November) belong to Santa. The rest of November belongs to the Thanksgiving turkey. Let's keep it that way.
Second, Walmart does not celebrate Christmas because of Jesus. Our culture doesn't look forward to December 25 as a celebration of the coming of the Savior of mankind. In the eyes of the world, Christmas season is the shopping season. Thanksgiving definitely isn't a shopping season, so of course Thanksgiving gets skipped over. As a Christian, I can celebrate the coming of Christ all year long. In fact I should. But I don't believe I can truly honor God by skipping over the holiday dedicated to being grateful for what He's given me. I don't want to be a Grinch or a Scrooge, but I don't want to be like the culture either.
Thirdly and most importantly in my mind, I'm convinced that there's something important, vital even, about taking a month to be thankful for what we have before we take a month to spend so much of our time and thoughts on the giving and getting of presents. Gratitude comes before presents. Thanks must come before giving. Because we have been given so much.
Giving to others is a wonderful thing (and I honestly have been excited about Christmas ever since September), but taking time to give thanks for what God has given me is what allows me to give to others in any kind of genuine way. Giving from the place of gratitude is far more soul-feeding, life-giving, and joy-producing than giving simply because it's that time of year.
Good one, I wholeheartedly agree. And #3 is such a good reminder!
ReplyDeleteBrava! I've never thought about it in those terms, but you're so right: we need to be thankful before we ask for more.
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