Christmas day

I hope you all had a wonderful Christmas! I hope it was filled with love, joy, and excitement, because you all definitely deserve that :)

I'm actually not going to go into details about my day or anything, because quite honestly it might end up sounding like a "bummer boots" story. I did realize today, however, just how much emphasis is placed on material good and money when it comes to Christmas. I don't particularly like it, not at all. I suppose the biggest factor in that was the recurring pattern of seeing my family members give gifts to people that all equalled the same dollar amount {put simply, the same mount of money was spent on everyone}. I didn't have many presents under the tree, which I didn't mind. But once all the presents downstairs were opened, my mom asked me to go upstairs with her. She handed me a fifty dollar bill and told me she was sorry {because I didn't get that many gifts}. I told her that I didn't need it, that I didn't care about how many presents I got. But she's stubborn, and told me to go put it in my room. I literally cried a little bit when I took it to my room. It was given to me out of guilt, and I honestly felt a little ashamed. Christmas is not supposed to be about how much we get, and it certainly isn't about giving because of guilt. In that moment, I wanted nothing more than to be sitting at church, worshipping God and celebrating Jesus's birth properly. I wanted to read my Bible, discuss scripture, and put emphasis on the gift of Christ. That focus is lacking when I celebrate with my family, which is why I don't get as much enjoyment out of it anymore. It seems like everything is "I got this... I wanted that... Why aren't we doing this... It's not like they're going to give us that much anyway..." Really? I heard statements like that throughout the day, and each time my heart felt a sharp pang. It is not about the presents! You have no idea how many times I wanted to shout that today. Sometimes I feel like I'm the only one in the family who remembers that, and it makes me sad. God gave us Jesus so that Jesus could give us everything. Our Father and Lord are selfless! They gave, they give, and they will continue to give forevermore! They demand nothing from us. So why should we insist upon receiving? Why can we not just give out of love and do so with a happy heart? In all honesty, I do love the holiday season, but today was not my happiest of days throughout the season. The highlights of Christmas, for me, was giving to my friends and watching their faces light up with excitement. I loved seeing them happy, and giving them a small symbol of how much I love and adore them. Despite the things I was given today, the things that meant the most were the videos, texts, and wall posts of my friends wishing me a merry Christmas, and simply saying "I love you." Those things meant the world to me, because they were sincere. I love you all so very much! I feel so incredibly blessed to have you all in my life, words cannot even begin to express it. I hope you all had an amazing Christmas! I'd love to hear about what you all did and the highlights of your day! Let us praise Jesus for His presence on this Earth! Although He suffered tremendoudly, He never stopped/stops giving to us, and He has given us the ultimate gift of eternal life and salvation with our Father :) Thank you, God, for the birth of your Son :) Goodnight loves.

"For God so loved the world that he gave his one and only Son, that whoever believes in him shall not perish but have eternal life."
{John 3:16}


"In everything I did, I showed you that by this kind of hard work we must help the weak, remembering the words the Lord Jesus himself said: ‘It is more blessed to give than to receive.’ ”
{Acts 20:35}


"Each of you should give what you have decided in your heart to give, not reluctantly or under compulsion, for God loves a cheerful giver."
{2 Corinthians 9:7}