We've decided to do something different for Christmas this year. Every Christmas Eve, my mom's side of the family gathers to celebrate and exchange gifts. It's been the tradition since I can remember, and there's been nothing wrong with it.
But this year, we thought, why not do something as a family for someone else - for someone who needs gifts more than we do. So as a family we decided instead of bringing gifts for one another on Christmas Eve, we're bringing the money we would have spent, and sponsoring a family child for a year. On Christmas, we'll take a family photo, choose the sex, age and country of our child, and write a letter to them.
Then, throughout the year, we'll continue as a family to focus on someone other than ourselves and send cards and photos to our sponsored child.
On Christmas Eve, during what would have been our gift exchange, we're going to do a small white elephant game just for fun.
My hope is that our focus on others throughout the year will make us less selfish, more content, and more like Jesus. And my prayer is that my kids will grow-up knowing that it's definitely not about how much they have or what they get but how much they love and what they give.
