5 Tips to De-stress (Next) Christmas

Christmas is almost here. Are you delighted or debilitated?

Use these 5 tips to make next year's holiday season more joyful than Tiny Tim on Christmas morning. 



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5) Prep for next year. Get in the habit of post Christmas and other clearance shopping. Watch for new-in-package items at garage sales and thrift shops. Keep the gifts in a tote, and you'll have a head start for next Christmas. Works great for birthdays and baby showers too. 

4)  Limit spending. Fix a gift budget and stick with it. Last year my sister-in-law, Murph, gave me a gorgeous plaque she'd found at a thrift store. It was in perfect shape, and fit my décor wonderfully.
Re-gifting is great. When you receive a potential re-gifting item, tape a note on it. Include the date and who it's from to keep from giving it back to the original giver.

3) Break Tradition. If you always cook a feast for your extended family, ask each member to bring along a side-dish instead. You'll save time and money. Plus it assures your guests of one dish they'll enjoy-their own.
Create new traditions, like taking a special family outing in lieu of gifts. Seriously, how many gifts do your children need?  

2) Under-commit. It's OK to say no. "Sorry, I can't host the ... cook the... head up the ..."  No need to explain why. A simple, "I'm sorry, I can't." suffices. You might need to repeat it several times, but it will work. That goes for parties too.




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1) Remember why we celebrate Christmas in the first place. Focus on the joy of Jesus birth. Let cooking, cleaning, and shopping take a back seat to the great news found in Luke 2:11:

"The Savior--yes, the Messiah, the Lord--has been born today in Bethlehem, the city of David!"

Finding The Rhythm of Joy

 

Can I share a secret?



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After a decade of moving to gospel music, it's hard to keep a polka beat. 

Last month I'd taken my wonderful in-laws to the Corrigan Senior Center's music fest. A gracious older man, Joe, danced me across the floor.

 

Going from Kirk Franklin's funk to Barefoot Becky's perky polkas, I needed to follow a new beat. 

All around me people spun to the music.
 

Joy surrounded me. I needed to catch the rhythm.

Much like a precious young woman I mentored.
 

She and her husband, both military, downsized to a small apartment right before his overseas duty tour. She was left stateside to handle a full time job, their newborn, and her step-son.

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One evening I went to over to help. She turned to me in desperation and said, "I'm up with the baby all night, work all day, then come home to cook and clean and take care of the kids.

When's it my turn?"

I looked into her exhausted, tear-streaked face and answered,

   "Now."



She jerked to attention like a marionette in the hands of a demented puppeteer. She gestured to the piles of laundry and dirty dishes and said, "Ms. Jeanie, you gotta be kidding me."

I put my arms around her and shared the hard-won wisdom I'd learned through years of difficulties:

 

"You're not joyful BECAUSE of the mess, but You can find joy IN SPITE OF IT."

 

 

She seemed skeptical at first, but eventually weariness won out. She counceled with our pastor, Ramona Smith of Bible Truth Ministries, and received wisdom.

For instance, this new mom thought she needed to hold her baby whenever the child was awake. Also, she started asking her church family for help.

Here's a tip for everyone: Don't go it alone. The Lone Ranger wouldn't have gotten far without Tonto.


In Nehemiah 8:10 the people heard,
"...Don’t be dejected and sad, for the joy of the Lord is your strength!”

We need to learn to dance to a new beat, to connect with the rhythm of joy.
Instead of complaining about the dirty dishes, thank God for the food.
Instead of complaining about the job, thank God you have a way to provide.

I'm not saying to stay in rotten situations.
I'm saying we need to live in joy as we pray and press our way out of those situations.

 

So whether you're clapping to a 1-3 beat or a 2-4, keep on singing, keep on praising, keep on dancing to the rhythm of joy.

 

If you feel so overwhelmed you don't believe things will ever get better, write me. I'll pray for you, and do my best to show you how to connect with joy.

Calgon, take me away!

 

Years ago a TV commercial showed a frantic woman scrambling to simultaneously deal with a ringing phone, screaming children, barking dog, and a delivery person at her door.    

Finally in desperation she throws her hands up and cries, "Calgon, take me away!" Immediately she's luxuriating in her bathroom tub, discreetly covered in bubbles from the neck down.

Evidently behind the scenes in Happy Commercial Land the dog stops barking to answer the phone, the delivery person baby-sits the children, and Betty Crocker and the Keebler Elves have dinner under control.

How about you? Do you feel overwhelmed? Could you use a Calgon moment? I'm pretty sure the Fed-Ex man and Marie Callender won't show up to help any time soon, but there's some good news.

There's a God who love you. He wants to help you.

Here's what He says:

           "And call for help when you’re in trouble—

               I’ll help you, and you’ll honor me.” Psalm 50:15 The Message

So the next time life buries you in a multi-tasking avalanche, don't crumble under it. Call to God for help. He's available 24/7.

 

Betty Crocker and the Keebler Elves are already busy in my kitchen.

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