CHRISTmas

I want to be purposeful about everything we do this Christmas. Everything means something!
So at the breakfast table, I asked the boys what a Christmas tree has to do with Jesus being born.
Sam, unprompted and with no previous instruction in the matter, said, "Well, it kind of looks like a cross."
I explained that sometimes the cross is actually referred to as the "tree".
"And so when we look at our tree, we can be reminded that Jesus was born to die on that cross so that we could live forever with him." I finished.
"So what about the green of the tree? Think about what happens in the springtime." I said.
Sam came back with "Growing things, things turn green."
"Things come to life." I prompted.
Sam gets really excited. "So it's like the tree of life? The tree of life in the garden of Eden? And the cross was like a tree of life because we have eternal life because Jesus died on the cross."

Can you wrap your brain around that?

I encouraged them that as we place each ornament on the tree in the next couple of days, I want them to tell me the spiritual significance of each one. *Earlier in the week, I removed all purely secular ornaments from our collection.
It's our goal that as we look at each ornament we're reminded of something Jesus has done for us or a facet of Who Jesus is.

So we had a little example. "One of our ornaments is a small stuffed lion. How could that relate to Jesus?" I asked. I had left our little animals in the collection, thinking that Jesus was the Creator of them all, so they'd work on the tree.
Sam can't be bothered by such a simple meaning though.
"Oh yeah, like how Jesus is the lamb of God, but He's also the lion of Judah."

Oh yeah.

Good job, Sam.

Somehow I think they'll have no problem with this task, and our Christmas "traditions" will take on new and significant meanings.