Santa

     Alright y'all, the time has come for me to address the question that we constantly get and give a little background as to why we're doing what we're doing. 
     "Is Santa coming to your house this Christmas, little boy?" asked an older woman at the grocery store this morning.  Luckily, he was distracted by other things before any of us had to answer, but it's almost awkward for us to say, "no." 
     Wait, WHAT?  YOU AREN'T DOING SANTA WITH YOUR KID???  One of my precious relatives even said to me, "Aren't you going to let the kid have any fun???"  Allow me to explain.
     Mark and I both grew up with gifts from Santa and thoroughly enjoyed the gift-getting aspect of it all.  We probably knew at an age earlier than we were willing to admit that he wasn't real, just so we could still get the bonus presents.  Now that we're on the other side of life and are parents, we don't just do things because that's how we were raised or that's what everyone else does.  When it comes to Santa, there are a few reasons we're choosing not to "embrace" him and all the fluff.  In a nutshell:

1) Santa takes the focus off of Jesus - the REAL reason we should be celebrating Christmas
2) It's a lie.  Straight up, isn't the truth, therefore it's a lie.  It's not a half-lie, it's a lie.
3) If we tell him Santa and Jesus are both real, then finds out Santa isn't, isn't there a possibility he'll wonder if Jesus is real, too?
4) The concept of "do good and get good stuff" is wrong on so many levels.  That shouldn't be our (or our children's) motivation to do good.

     So would you allow me to unpack that a little bit?  Thanks. :)

1) As a teacher, I saw SO MANY children and whether rich or poor, girl or boy, white, black, or in between, they ALL without fail said Santa as their first thoughts when I asked, "what do you think about when I say Christmas?"  It's a natural response, right?  I mean, who doesn't like getting gifts?  But when the focus is so heavy on gifts and Santa bringing them, there's no room in their little brains or hearts for the story of Jesus' birth and how it all went down.  What an AWESOME story to share with each other, especially our children.  *Fun Fact* Did you know that no where in the Bible does it say that there were three wise men?  Nope, it says there were three gifts, so everyone assumes there were just three.  But when we take the time to sit down and really read and digest the Word, we can find out interesting little nuggets of truth like that.  If you've never done it before, or even if you have, start in Luke 2.

2) "Santa Claus is a man who lives at the North Pole..." Yeah, that's not true and as bad as you hate me saying it, it's a lie.  I know parents say, "well, we lie to our kids all the time about little stuff," or "this is a good lie."  I respectfully disagree.  Mark and I really have to strive to answer Marcus' questions openly and honestly, even though he's just two.  Some things we have to say, "I can't tell you, yet," because his little mind isn't ready.  But as it regards to Santa, why do I want to lie outright to him, just to have it unravel a few years later when he figures it out.  I would be so fearful that he'd say, "I wonder what else they've lied to me about..."  Let us not be the parents who even do, "little white lies," because they are untruths the same.  Let us be honest with our children and with one another.

3) Reasons #2 and #3 are similar, I realize that.  But think about the implications if someone, anyone, actually thought that growing up.  I bet the chances are one in a million, but who wants to take the chances that our child will think that.  Our belief in Jesus has to be FOUNDATIONAL, built on a ROCK.  Not built on doubt that's easily shaken.  I've heard someone say before, "Jesus will work it out," and maybe that's true, but we'd rather do our part to teach, breathe, and live out the TRUTH in our family so no one has to "wonder" what's true and what's not.  God's Word is true, and living, and active!  Sharper than any two edged sword (Hebrews 4:12).

4) Finally, the "do good and get stuff" concept is frustrating.  It almost develops a sense of entitlement and comparison to others when we should only compare ourselves with Jesus, the sinless one.  I've been around so many "entitled" children this past week it makes me sick.  They expect gifts and think you're a bad person for not giving them anything.  They even say things like, "well, I'm better than so and so..."  Blah!  Our call to be obedient and do good (1 Timothy 6:18) shouldn't be because we want anything, be it a ticket to Heaven or whatever.  Our desire to follow God's commands and be obedient should be driven out of our hearts to please HIM, our Awesome Creator who gives us more than we EVER deserve.  Yes, there are reward systems out there for children (and people) that are effective at getting a certain behavior or product.  But when it comes to our faith, let's not have this type of attitude.

     In closing, please know that this is a personal conviction that Mark and I share for our family.  If you and yours want to do the Santa game don't think for a second that we judge you harshly or look down on you.  You have to follow your own convictions and do what you deem as best for your family.  We don't hate Santa, we aren't going to hide Marcus' eyes when he comes on the tv, and it's not a bad word in our house.  We'll play along when we're around and we'll do our best to make sure Marcus isn't that kid who goes around telling all the other children that Santa isn't real.  Our intent is not to ruin your child's view of Christmas, but rather to enhance the name of Jesus Christ, the real reason we celebrate.

     Ponder this final thought.  Jen Hatmaker is an incredible Christian writer and blogger, one I follow often.  Check out what she was told by her non-Christian friend Andrew, regarding Christians and Christmas:

"I always thought it was strange how Christians will tell me they have this giant, awesome truth deep in their souls that they want to share with me, but when December 25th comes around, they lie to their own progeny because, apparently, that liberating and awesomely simple truth is somehow just not enough."

Food for thought, indeed.  

Merry Christmas!