The REAL War on Christmas

When I was a kid, the holiday season was awesome. And I say 'holiday season' not to be PC, but because it actually IS a season of holidays. It isn't just Christmas starting on November 1st and ending on December 31st. There are other holidays going on during that time. I've blogged about that before. I won't repeat that part. Do I believe there is a war on Christmas? Yes. I do. I believe it is rooted in two fronts.

The first front is the fact that people keep pushing the holiday season earlier and earlier. I'm already hearing Christmas music. Stations are already playing holiday music. People are already posting angry "Christmas is about Christ" stuff over and over again. Stores are already talking about their Black Friday sales. We still have two weeks before Thanksgiving and this is already starting.

I think the other aspect of this war is the knee-jerk reaction some people have to anything they decide is an affront to 'their' holiday. Christmas should be a time of joy for Christians. It should be a time of awe and reverence. It should be a time when they celebrate one of the holiest events in their religion. Some of them are. But others? Nope. Instead of focusing on this holy event, they are focused on the world around them. They look for reasons to be angry. They scream when store clerks don't validate them. They grumble when communities don't look festive enough.

With all this negative stuff going on inside them, no wonder they don't enjoy Christmas. How could they? You can't be filled with joy and filled with anger at the same time. And here's the tricky part. The onus of your joy isn't on someone else. No one has to validate you for you to be happy. No one has to participate in your activities for you to be happy. Happiness is a choice you make. You can either be happy and joyous about the season or angry about all the parts you find offensive.

And if you decide you want to be offended and be angry about everything, guess what? It doesn't make anyone move closer to Christ. Mostly, it just annoys people. So do what will make you enjoy the season and let the rest of it go. Rise above. It can make a world of difference in your life.