Mecklenburg Community Church

Now that Thanksgiving is over, let's focus in on Christmas! There is so much that goes into the season, but do you know the meaning behind each of these traditions? Let's start with the tree!

There is so much fun and excitement in getting all of the Christmas trimmings out of storage. The lights. The inflatables. The elf on the shelf. It can be easy to miss an opportunity to point our kids towards the ways that we decorate for the season that symbolize the Good News of Jesus’ birth that we are preparing to celebrate. Over the next two weeks, we want to highlight simple ways you can have meaningful conversations about the reason we are celebrating as you unpack Christmas.

A Christmas Tree

Just like we gather ornaments to adorn our tree that symbolize important parts of our lives - like marriages, births, or big trips - the tree itself is a symbol of the important aspects of the Christmas story. You might point these symbols out as you take them out of boxes, or for older kids ask them if they can think of how they connect to Jesus’ birth.

THE TREE

Traditionally, an evergreen tree is used to symbolize the eternal life Jesus offers us. We see this evergreen symbolism in wreaths and garland as well!

STAR OR ANGEL TOPPER

The angels and the star are ways God brought people together at the birth of His son. The star bringing the wisemen, and the angels bringing the shepherds. Both symbols show us that God is bringing us to Him through the birth of Jesus.

Ask your kids "What does it tell us about God that He included both rich wisemen and poor shepherds in celebrating His son’s birth?"

PRESENTS

One very exciting part of Christmas is gift giving, and it marked the first Christmas, too! Wisemen brought gifts to Jesus to show Him that they knew He was special. We do the same with people we love. This can be a great time to put gift giving in perspective, not as a time to get everything we want, but a time to show others we care about them.

Just like the wisemen, we can also give a gift to Jesus! Through Giving to Christ at Christmas, our families can give a gift to those Jesus asks His followers to care for.

ORNAMENTS

As we wrap up the tree decorating, The Grounds Bookstore and Cafe has a special ornament to help remind us that while we step into the joy of the season, everything about Christmas kneels to the birth of Jesus. This is a great visual reminder and talking point for kids and adults as we can all get caught up in the busyness and flurry of December.

As we decorate our trees or as we sit soaking in it's beauty, let's remember to talk about these simple things and bring our kids into the true meaning of Christmas.