Is Christmas something you celebrate, or buy at a mall? The answer could bring you frustration or lasting peace...

     Christmas  is in some ways an American phenomenon, a medley of shopping, foods, carols, and It's a Wonderful Life.  I love the season and everything about it.  I like piles of packages under a tree.  I love cookie and fudge recipes that conjure up memories of my precious little Grandma. But most of all, I embrace the fact Christmas is not a temporary holiday but a way of life.       This year, our family is a bit strapped for cash.  I'm unable to buy those things that would "wow" our kids, all over 17.  (It takes more $$$ every year, when they have considerable purchasing power in their own right!)  Will my financial pinch prevent me from accessing the Spirit of Christmas?  No way!  It starts with a story.      Begin reading in Matthew, Mark, Luke, or John, take your pick.  Better yet, start in the Garden of Genesis where God revealed His love for the fallen Adam and Eve and His plan to send a Savior.  Hints of a coming Messiah are scattered through the judges, the prophets, the poetry and the wisdom literature.  It all blossoms forth in the New Testament.  Christmas is about restored relationships with a loving God.     Beyond the religious aspect, Christmas is an opportunity to revive family relationships.  We gather together with our traditions, our stories and remembrances.  Christmas is an active thing.  It is baking cookies...leading your family in worship...collecting items for those less fortunate...telling others how we treasure them.      My parents never made a big deal of Santa.  We always had Santa gifts, but as soon as we suspected the scam, they admitted.  "Mommy and Daddy are really Santa," they said.  To me, Christmas lost none of its magic.  Our family was very frugal when I was growing up, and each gift was a treasure of thoughtfulness chosen or made by my mom.  She could do wonders with her sewing machine!  Her gifts said, "I see you.  I know what you like, what you enjoy."     As soon as we were old enough, we wanted to give gifts, too.  I remember buying odd things at a church bazaar to give my parents.  My brother drove to Pittsburgh to buy materials to craft Mom a leather purse.  The trip was hilariously fraught with wrong turns to the point where Mark finally parked and hailed a taxi to take him to the Tandy Leather store.  Christmas morning, there was Mom's purse, a perfect surprise.  She carried it proudly for years.      I am chilled by the current giving climate.  We usually exchange gift certificates because my young relatives "want to choose for themselves."  How hollow!  Why don't we just stuff money in envelopes, or better yet, trade nothing and call it even?  It is more like a business transaction than an affectionate way to recognize each person's unique place in the family.  Sure, the kids (including my own) all get to go shopping, but where is Christ in all that?  Instead of grace-gifts chosen by the giver, the insidious thought has crept in that each person is "owed" a certain dollar amount. Why don't we just go shopping each for herself, and at least enjoy being out together?    We can skip a step and not even guess at which store to purchase the gift certificate.       Personally, I'm striking against the spending.  Forget the credit cards, I'll spend time and imagination.  I'll worship the King.  I'll compose verses to everyone I care about expressing in a calligraphy how much I love them.  I'll crochet and construct some funny-looking gifts, print some photos and concoct some albums, stir the eggnog and sing some songs.  We can't buy Christmas, but we can celebrate it.