Be purposeful this Christmas season

Black Friday. Over. Cyber Monday. Come and gone. We are now in the middle of the Christmas shopping frenzy. By the time this column is published, there will only be about 14 shopping days until Christmas. Or, for some, 13 days before Christmas shopping begins. Gift-giving, though, is more than exchanging packages. Gift-giving reflects a faith in the one who gave himself for us. There are some simple ways then we can reveal a theology of giving.

First, avoid taking on debt. The theology of Christmas is freedom from the curse. As the line in the Christmas carol Joy to the World rings out, "No more let sin and sorrow grow, Nor thorns infest the ground, He comes to make His blessings flow, Far as the curse is found." The curse, for Christians, is a reminder of the debt to sin that all men owe. Jesus set men free from the debt of sin. Our practice of gift-giving should not then imprison us to financial indebtedness.

Second, celebrate, don't just check the list. Knowing what others want for Christmas clues us into who the people we love are. When you give, do so because you know them and want to celebrate who God is creating them to be. Anyone can give you something, but only someone who cares about you will give a gift.

Third, elevate experiences over stuff. One in 11 Americans rents a portion of the roughly 2.311 billion square feet of storage rental space. The volume of those storage units could fill the Hoover Dam more than 26 times. Gift-giving should not result in one more thing to store. When choosing a gift, ask, "Will this gift create an experience for them and us? Or, will this gift find its way to the donation pile in six months?" Experiences build memories. Stuff collects dust.

Gift-giving is one of the many traditions associated with Christmas. Ace Collins, in his short book Stories Behind the Great Christmas Traditions, details how the Romans, early Christians, Queen Victoria, the Dutch, Germans, and a host of others have influenced our modern traditions of gift exchanges. Gift-giving, though, is an opportunity to teach the meaning behind the Christmas story of Jesus, who came to give not to take. We give to others because he gave to us.