and some who cannot afford to buy their kids christmas..(no matter the age) they are still these person's kids....my older kids are grown......with kids,
but id wade hell and high water to make sure they have a gift......im sure some of these older children would understand that the parent just cant afford
to buy presents........but understanding........and HURT FEELINGS are two totally different things......i just dont understand stand people saying.....well they are
older.. 1|1|Understand what you are saying but....|littlewolf|CCsuterlab@aol.com|13:51:20|12/18/2012|
I can see the other side of it as well. The older teens need to learn that there is more to life and Christmas than presents under the tree. In these times, if they have a roof over their head, food on their table and clothes to wear, they are doing MUCH BETTER than a lot of people right now. Plus, the real present/gift is having a family and spending time with them. The LOVE of a family cannot be purchased in any store or mall in our country. Many in our country would do well to remember that.
On to a different note, WHY do the presents have to be store bought and cost a lot of money any way? One of my best friends cannot afford to spend much ,if any money, on his children's presents this year. Instead, he sat down at his computer and designed a coupon booklet for them. It includes things like going to the local park for one on one time with Dad, family movie night(having his teens take turns as to what to watch on tv) and truly being there with them(computer and phones are off) and even something as silly as having a pillow fight with them. He told me that the GIFT of time is more precious than anything one can find in a store. And you know what? He is 100% right on that one. His children may not get the meaning of his gift right now but they will understand it as they get older and wiser.
We ,all as a society, need to get back to the important things in life and stop placing so much value on things that really do not mean anything at the end of the day. In 20 years, which will be remembered more by someone..the love of their family and time spent with them OR the item bought from the local mall?
2|2|You said this so well....|Quietwaters|Quietwaters39@hotmail.com|14:52:20|12/18/2012|
I love to give and receive gifts of time and would never have wanted my parents to go into debt in order to give me stuff. This was one thing my parents did right, they were not into stuff, we got two presents one a need, the other a small want. It's the memories you remember the most.
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First I should probably say that my husband and I don't celebrate Christmas as we have been convicted that God would not have us do it. I have no problem at all with those who do celebrate, God searches the heart. For us, this is what we are led to do. We can hardly wait until January when this is all over with. I find it sad to see all the shoppers, each and every year, who think there is some wonderful, magical thing that will transpire on Dec 25th and work so hard to make it happen. Then its all over and it didn't turn out to be what the magazines said it should and there is a certain hangover from the drunk that is Christmas. So I actually have sympathy for those who still have this burden every year and it is such a relief to not have to do it anymore.
That being said, when I did celebrate it I can recall a few years that have stuck in my mind. Once when my Mom bought a house and there wasn't any bathroom at all, just a toilet in the basement. Well, we took showers at my cousin's house so we could be clean to go to school. Instead of presents that year, my Mom paid to have a shower installed in the basement. Oh yeah, it was still cold down there but it sure was nice to be able to shower! So that is what she told us, here is your present. We also got a candy cane and a new 3pk of underwear. My Mom always said, if we can't eat it or wear it...we don't need it. Remains true today.
When I was widowed 11 years ago it was a sudden shock and beyond the unspeakable grief for me and the kids we also lost half of our income. There was no life insurance and I had to make arrangements to pay the funeral home each month, along with trying to pay the regular bills. So that first Christmas after he passed away, I had $50 to spare for gifts. My girl was the youngest and it was her Dad who passed away so I talked to my older son about presents. He was 14 and she was only 8 at the time. All she wanted was a barbie cash register and I forget how much it was but it wouldn't have left much money to buy my son a gift. My son told me to forget about him and to make sure his sister got a Christmas. So that is what I did and I tell you what, I think he was happier that day than she was. It gave him a lot of joy and boy did he ever man up. Great day indeed. Will never forget that.
That was the only time I can remember while raising my kids that I only bought for one of my children. Otherwise, everyone got something or nobody got anything. I've had to say no to happy meals because I couldn't afford two of them. My kids have split things because I could only buy one. I guess my point is, if you are going to do this holiday, make sure it is all or none. It will most certainly cause hurt feelings and it really makes the darkness of this holiday seem apparent to me. It was my son's idea to only buy for his little sister that year and as a Mom, I saw it as a great way to foster compassion and self-sacrifice on his part and I was more than happy to oblige.
I hope that helps and I hope I have not offended anyone, just know there are so many important things, so many people suffering...and to not have that new gadget or toy is not important. 4|2|Some other Christmas thoughts and memories...|Barb09|Barb0969@AOL.com|21:47:51|12/18/2012|
I found out as an adult that one year...my parents' and their friends sold plasma to get the $$ for Christmas for us when we were small children.
That said:
My mom came from a POOR farm family. Her best Christmas' that she was TRULY happy about as a child involved the year she got a new handmade quilt as her GIFT. And the year her grandmother spent nights making her gift...a trunk full of doll clothes for her doll.
we have come a LONG way....in the wrong direction. People now go into serious credit debt etc...every year...that is NOT the meaning of Christmas!
I am not bad mouthing the Christmas Angel thing....I think it is wonderful!!!
Just sharing some perspective what we WANT isn't always what we NEED.
I looked and looked and found no coupons for troll food......SO, I don't feed the trolls!!
5|3|If you are a christian then I can't understand why you would NOT celebrating the birth of CHRIST!|cashcoll|cashcoll@yahoo.com|23:37:55|12/18/2012|
I do agree with the OP comments.
But what I can't understand is not celebrating Christmas. I guess it because of the way I was raise. We were never RICH in money. My mom stayed home to raise 7 kids and then went to work, when I was 10. The real meaning of celebrating Christmas is because Christ was BORN! That is AWESOME!!
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We had our family Christmas this past week-end. It was a happy & joyous time as 7 sibilings and their family gather to celebrate Christmas. We made 70 goodie bags for a local nursing home and hand delivered them to the patients there, what a "up-lifting and fulfilling experience", when you GIVE to someone else and to see their smiling faces!
JMO
Teresa
Have a Great Day!
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GO HOGS GO!!
Woooooooooo, Pig! Sooiee!
6|4|Christ is the reason why we don't celebrate|cinda68|lacinda68@gmail.com|00:39:27|12/19/2012|
Christmas or more precisely, Christ-mass has nothing to do with Christ but everything to do with Mithraism and the winter solstice. It has been celebrated for around 4,000 years, before Christianity even began. The ancient Israelites did not celebrate this and neither did the apostles. In fact, you can't find any scripture at all that tells Christians to celebrate this day. Romans celebrated the god, saturn, and the rebirth of the sun-god. It was originally called "Saturnalia". At one point in our nation's history, celebrating Christmas was actually illegal, those Puritans after all. It was illegal mostly due to the revelry and the drunkeness in the streets caused so much trouble.
These scriptures come to mind:
Jeremiah 10
1 Hear ye the word which the LORD speaketh unto you, O house of Israel:
2 Thus saith the LORD, Learn not the way of the heathen, and be not dismayed at the signs of heaven; for the heathen are dismayed at them.
3 For the customs of the people are vain: for one cutteth a tree out of the forest, the work of the hands of the workman, with the axe.
4 They deck it with silver and with gold; they fasten it with nails and with hammers, that it move not.
5 They are upright as the palm tree, but speak not: they must needs be borne, because they cannot go. Be not afraid of them; for they cannot do evil, neither also is it in them to do good.
Ever wonder where all the stars come from this time of the year?
Amos 5:26 But ye have borne the tabernacle of your Moloch and Chiun your images, the star of your god, which ye made to yourselves.
Acts 7
41 And they made a calf in those days, and offered sacrifice unto the idol, and rejoiced in the works of their own hands. 42 Then God turned, and gave them up to worship the host of heaven; as it is written in the book of the prophets, O ye house of Israel, have ye offered to me slain beasts and sacrifices by the space of forty years in the wilderness? 43 Yea, ye took up the tabernacle of Moloch, and the star of your god Remphan, figures which ye made to worship them: and I will carry you away beyond Babylon.
The worship of Molech was particularly heinous. Babies and young children were sacrificed on a stone altar after it had been heated to a red hot white. The worshippers believed that sacrifice like this would give them material blessings.
I hope that explains why we don't celebrate and this isn't comprehensive at all, I could write a lot more. I've been studying it for a while and the more I learn...the more I want nothing to do with it. So that is why we don't do Christmas because it does not honor Christ. 7|5|Your right,,,,,,|Quietwaters|Quietwaters39@hotmail.com|07:22:43|12/19/2012|
if you have been convicted by God to not celebrate Christmas, then you shouldn't. I believe God knows the heart, He knows why we do what we do, whether we are in it for ourselves or whether we are honoring Him. No matter what the day, what the celebration, what the activity. Lots of things can become idols, even your tv, or computer, ect...if it takes you away from God.
I find Christmas to be a perfect time for peoples hearts to be open to the amazing thing God did for us. It is a great opportunity for us to share Gods love. Every day belongs to God and can be used to bring Him honor and glory.
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We have to seek to please Him and not men and He alone searches the heart. I agree about the TV and computer too. We haven't had a TV in over 3 years as we came to understand it was an idol, image box we like to say. I don't want to worship images whether they be in front of my eyes or ones I create in my mind, like the image of myself.
The first time I really struggled with what to do about Christmas, I had one friend who showed me the scriptures and I was cut to the heart about it. Yet another friend who laughed it off and told me not to take it so seriously. He insisted I do Christmas so much that he sent me $250 to do it. It was so strange, I was out shopping that year and spent the money he gave me because he thought it wasn't a serious matter. I didn't enjoy it a bit, I felt horrible the whole time. I was literally sick to my stomach in the mall and I just knew what I was doing was wrong. God does wink at ignorance but I wasn't ignorant anymore. He was and still is a wonderful friend and I'll always be thankful for him and we still do disagree on this.
That other friend who patiently showed me the scriptures...I talked to him about all this, afterwards. About how I just felt different this year, something is wrong here and I'm not enjoying this at all. I used to be Miss Christmas after all, made cookies for weeks, the whole bit. That is how it happens with conviction, we get a distaste for it which makes it easier to turn the other way. So my other friend who listened and understood my concerns...he ended up being my husband. :) It is hard for both of us especially with family, they just don't understand. I even had one aunt tell me that I wasn't a Christian if I didn't do Christmas and that really hurt but I must obey what God is calling me to do.
Oh I long since dropped off any Christmas card lists! lol I think the only ones I get are from that aunt and another one of my aunts too. Even my Mom doesn't send me one because I asked her not to waste her money and time and that I don't want them anyhow. My husband's father is a pastor so you can imagine how well this goes over on his side of the family too. lol Oh boy.
Thank you for understanding, I really appreciate it. :) 9|5|I am so happy to hear that more and more people are studying God's Word and learning the truth about Christmas and making the necessary adjustments in their lives...good for you, cinda68... Keep up the good work of studying the scriptures, learning more lifesaving Bible truths, and applying them in your life! |emerald9|brandaseider@yahoo.com|15:51:55|12/19/2012|
True Christians honor God and Jesus all year round...by studying Jesus' example as a perfect intelligent man, meditating on the way he displayed compassion, patience, and the courage to do what's right, and then, they look for opportunities to imitate him in their own life.
Were you amazed and intrigued to know what the Bible says about where the star came from (that everyone who celebrates Christmas puts at the top of their tree and reveres) ?
I am also an avid student of the Bble, so if you ever have any questions about any Bible subject, please don't hesitate to ask...and keep on studying! (Proverbs 3:1-5, Psalm 1:1-3)
10|6|oh I am nothing at all|cinda68|lacinda68@gmail.com|16:51:57|12/19/2012|
I've only received what has been given to me.
1 Cor 4:7 For who maketh thee to differ from another? and what hast thou that thou didst not receive? now if thou didst receive it, why dost thou glory, as if thou hadst not received it?
Daniel 4:35 And all the inhabitants of the earth are reputed as nothing: and he doeth according to his will in the army of heaven, and among the inhabitants of the earth: and none can stay his hand, or say unto him, What doest thou?
I'm very thankful that God has given me this to know, among so many other things. Yes, I was shocked to find out about the star! I used to put one on top of the tree! I had no idea what it meant, along with all the other symbols and meanings. I'm ashamed of myself for having a part of it but all glory to God for calling me out.
Rev 18:4 And I heard another voice from heaven, saying, Come out of her, my people, that ye be not partakers of her sins, and that ye receive not of her plagues.
1 John 2:15 Love not the world, neither the things that are in the world. If any man love the world, the love of the Father is not in him.
I understand what Paul meant when he said he was the chief of sinners, me too!! I've been forgiven much, many many sins.
Romans 3:12 They are all gone out of the way, they are together become unprofitable; there is none that doeth good, no, not one.
Psalm 14:3 They are all gone aside, they are all together become filthy: there is none that doeth good, no, not one.
Praise God for His everlasting mercy and grace which I never deserved and for which I cannot work. I richly deserve His wrath, that is all I have worked in this flesh, the wages of sin is most certainly death. I am nothing and did nothing, all glory to God for His rich mercies and salvation based on Christ alone and nothing of me. :)
Ephesians 2
1 And you hath he quickened, who were dead in trespasses and sins; 2 Wherein in time past ye walked according to the course of this world, according to the prince of the power of the air, the spirit that now worketh in the children of disobedience: 3 Among whom also we all had our conversation in times past in the lusts of our flesh, fulfilling the desires of the flesh and of the mind; and were by nature the children of wrath, even as others. 4 But God, who is rich in mercy, for his great love wherewith he loved us, 5 Even when we were dead in sins, hath quickened us together with Christ, (by grace ye are saved;) 6 And hath raised us up together, and made us sit together in heavenly places in Christ Jesus: 7 That in the ages to come he might shew the exceeding riches of his grace in his kindness toward us through Christ Jesus. 8 For by grace are ye saved through faith; and that not of yourselves: it is the gift of God: 9 Not of works, lest any man should boast. 10For we are his workmanship, created in Christ Jesus unto good works, which God hath before ordained that we should walk in them. 11|6|forgot to mention|cinda68|lacinda68@gmail.com|17:03:38|12/19/2012|
I've been studying about the queen of heaven, goddess worship, the harlot and wow it is a lot, never-ending study. It is all through scripture, from Gen to Rev, and I've found out that so many things I believed were lies, so many ways I did worship a goddess instead of God. It boiled down to self worship, who is God after all? God is God and I am not. 12|1|Sad thing is, most everyone has a copy of the Bible in their home, but not every cares enough to read or take to heart what it says... It's like having our very own manual of instructions for life and not taking the time or effort to benefit from it. |emerald9|brandaseider@yahoo.com|19:52:08|12/19/2012|
It is, in fact, a loving letter from our Heavenly Father, in which he tells us what we need to do to gain life. (John 17:3)
Reading and studying the Bible also helps us to resist temptations to do things that we know are not in harmony with God's standards of right and wrong, as well as to gain insight into Jehovah God's righteousness. ((Daniel 9:13)
13|2|I trust in His righteousness|cinda68|lacinda68@gmail.com|21:23:01|12/19/2012|
I have no righteousness of my own and it is not by works that I was saved but by grace. The bible is a record of His wondrous works and I believe Christ when He said, It is finished.
John 19:30 When Jesus therefore had received the vinegar, he said, It is finished: and he bowed his head, and gave up the ghost.
Romans 3:28 Therefore we conclude that a man is justified by faith without the deeds of the law.
Romans 4
1 What shall we say then that Abraham our father, as pertaining to the flesh, hath found? 2 For if Abraham were justified by works, he hath whereof to glory; but not before God. 3 For what saith the scripture? Abraham believed God, and it was counted unto him for righteousness. 4 Now to him that worketh is the reward not reckoned of grace, but of debt. 5 But to him that worketh not, but believeth on him that justifieth the ungodly, his faith is counted for righteousness. 6 Even as David also describeth the blessedness of the man, unto whom God imputeth righteousness without works,
7 Saying, Blessed are they whose iniquities are forgiven, and whose sins are covered.
8 Blessed is the man to whom the Lord will not impute sin.
Jeremiah 23
5 Behold, the days come, saith the LORD, that I will raise unto David a righteous Branch, and a King shall reign and prosper, and shall execute judgment and justice in the earth.
6 In his days Judah shall be saved, and Israel shall dwell safely: and this is his name whereby he shall be called, THE LORD OUR RIGHTEOUSNESS.
There is nothing we can do to earn it, it is not by works at all. We either seek to establish our own righteousness or we trust in His.
Romans 10:3 For they being ignorant of God's righteousness, and going about to establish their own righteousness, have not submitted themselves unto the righteousness of God.
The standard is set very high, in fact it is perfection:
Matthew 5:48 Be ye therefore perfect, even as your Father which is in heaven is perfect.
Matthew 5:20 For I say unto you, That except your righteousness shall exceed the righteousness of the scribes and Pharisees, ye shall in no case enter into the kingdom of heaven.
Luke 24:44 And he said unto them, These are the words which I spake unto you, while I was yet with you, that all things must be fulfilled, which were written in the law of Moses, and in the prophets, and in the psalms, concerning me.
Now this is what brought me to my knees, sorrowful repentance. Perfect? I must be perfect? Oh God I can't do that! I can't be perfect! As if this was some surprise to God! Ha. Of course none of us are perfect, none of us are even any good! The heart is desperately wicked. But there is grace and salvation by trusting in His righteousness and His works and nothing in me. What a light burden! What have I really worked? Sin, sin and more sin that only leads to death, that is all this flesh can ever work. Praise God for His righteousness and His works, the only righteousness I trust. It is finished. I rest in Him.
Hebrews 4
9 There remaineth therefore a rest to the people of God. 10 For he that is entered into his rest, he also hath ceased from his own works, as God did from his.
14|3|i believe Christ ..is Christmas .. my family and i celecbrate the birth of christ ,on christmas , we r having a birthjday party after church at church on subday to celebrate his life ..|christinasears|chistinasears@aol.com|00:19:19|12/22/2012|
and the fact he was born , to save us and was killed to save us ....but we also enjoy the holidays and and try to teach our kids to remember the lord ..on christmas .. and thats its not all about presents ,, but we give them what we can afford , and i love Christ and christmas ... merry christmas and ..God bless u and yours ..cs