We’re all familiar with that extremely well-known and popular poem, “Twas the Night Before Christmas,” right? Sure we are! We’ve heard it over and over through the years. It’s all about getting ready for the coming of Santa Claus. All the preparations are made, and the children are comfortably snug and warm in their beds. They have heard the encouragement from mom and dad to go to sleep quickly so the jolly man in the red suit can make his entrance. Even as I write those words, I am reminded of my childhood Christmases: the excitement, the anticipation, the joy.

After marrying the love of my life, Teresa, and starting our family, we made every effort to share the joys of our childhood experiences with our children. I wanted them to experience the same excitement and anticipation that I had enjoyed. I wanted them to awaken on Christmas morning with the same gleam in their eyes and the smile on their faces that displayed the sheer joy of realizing the fulfillment of their Christmas wishes.

And now, as I ponder these memories, as I rehearse in my mind the recollections of Christmases past, I ask myself an extremely important question: Did I make as much effort to prepare my children for the coming of Jesus as I did the coming of Santa? Did I share the message of Jesus’ coming with the same zeal, excitement and anticipation?

Through the years of my life since becoming a follower of Jesus Christ, I have sincerely tried to surrender my life to His Lordship. I have tried to live my life according to His teachings. I have failed time and again to live up to His admonitions to live holy lives, but it has been my desire to do so.

Having said that, let me return to the subject of this blog. I have been asked many times through the years how I balanced the celebration of Christmas which is focused on Santa Claus, with the true celebration of Christmas, which is all about Jesus Christ. Is it possible to maintain a balance which allows our children to enjoy the excitement of the coming of Santa while sharing with them the true meaning and message of Christmas? I think it is.

When our children were young, we wanted them to enjoy the excitement of Christmas, while teaching them its true meaning. We allowed them to sit on Santa’s lap, telling him of the things they desire to have under the tree on Christmas morning. And we did all we could to build the excitement and anticipation of the big day. But we also shared with them that the gifts they received were gifts of love, expressions of the love of God. We tried to share with them the reality of Christmas, being the celebration of Jesus’ birth.

Our focus was on the birth of Jesus, not the coming of Santa. We shared with them the story of St. Nicholas (there are too many different legends to share in this blog), who gave gifts to the needy as an expression of God’s love. And we always made the effort to place emphasis on the birth of the Son of God and Savior of men.

Did we do this perfectly? Certainly not! Could we have done it better? Absolutely! Would we do things differently if we had the chance to do so? Without doubt! But we did try to maintain that balance. And now, looking back from my present day perspective, I think we must have done a decent job. Our children have all grown to accept the fact that Jesus Christ is the real focus of Christmas. The celebration of sharing gifts, sitting on Santa’s lap, anticipating Christmas morning, were all kept in balance with the focus on the ultimate gift of all, Jesus Christ.

I have said all of this to simply remind us to keep Jesus the very center of all our Christmas celebrations and festivities. Don’t allow the glitter and glamour and the gifts to keep us from focusing on THE GIFT, Jesus Christ. And let’s strive to anticipate His coming as much as we anticipate the coming of the jolly man in the red suit.

And now, Merry Christmas to all, and to all a good night (yes, I had to say it!)