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Do you think we get too early a jump on Christmas season?
Last week I blogged from Branson about the inspirational stories people wrote us describing the inspiring people in their lives and communities. Guideposts honored the three winners of our Inspiring Americans contest in a ceremony at Silver Dollar City and I mentioned that the awards event coincided with the lighting of a huge beautiful Christmas tree followed by a rollicking holiday parade through the park. The winners rode on a Christmas float and had the time of their lives. They are truly positive people!
Georgia Thompson posted a response on our Facebook page questioning why Christmas season was beginning in mid-November and asking whatever happened to Advent, and that got me thinking about the question: Do we begin the Christmas season earlier and earlier each year and has it gone too far? Has the season become just a long, drawn-out excuse for retailers to sell stuff rather than a period of time when people prepare spiritually for the birth of the Christ child? I have to admit I love Christmas carols, particularly the old standards, but by mid-December I’m ready to scream if I hear another one piped over the sound system of every store I go into. I mean why am I listening to Christmas music at the car wash the weekend before Thanksgiving?
So what do you think? Does Christmas season start too soon? Have we forgotten about Advent? Post below. Let’s see if we can get a discussion going.
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Edward Grinnan is Editor-in-Chief and Vice President of Guideposts Publications. Edward lives in New York City with two blondes—his wife, Julee, and Golden Retriever, Millie, who has been featured in his blog and popular videos. Edward loves cycling, hiking with Millie at his house in the Berkshire Hills and Wolverines that hail from Michigan.
Your Comments
Monday evening, Nov. 22, my feelings twisted with lots of anxiety. Part of my past that I thought I had left behind me, intruded on something I had looked forward to immensely sharing with someone that has become very important to my husband and me for the past 14 months.
That sharing was not possible as I had hoped, although I tried several ways to connect with this person.
Trying to finally get to sleep around 8 a.m., I read a number of devotionals suggested by topics in the index to 2010 DAILY GUIDEPOSTS.
Then your devotional for Tuesday, Nov. 23, spoke most strongly to my trauma -- over something touching on fewer lives than your wife's broken collarbone,your trying to get to her, to recruit help for Julee and Millie.
I realized that, as I gave up on connecting with people I'd anticipated joining that evening, I also had "suddenly reminded myself,'God is in charge, and I just need to step out of the way and calm down.'"
"'What if ... after all these years I just learn to get God take charge when I can't?'"
In the wee hours of this morning, I realized that twice that evening I probably could have taken better care of two problems in two different communities, if I had just
arrived a quarter of an hour earlier each place.
One of my husband's favorite sayings is, "I'd rather be early than late." But after nearly 26 years of marriage, I haven't yet started practicing that good trait.
I sure do enjoy reading my Daily Guideposts devotionals. I have been doing so for many years and feel like many are family. Especially those who have been writing for years.I make it a practice to pray for the person, each day. Thanks for sharing your lives and faith with me. Sincerely, Leberta Hamel
First Mr. Grinan I would like to thank-you, thank-you, thank-you for today's Daily Guidepost message. It was so inspirational for me, something I definitely needed at this time. I am the worst 'what-if(er)'. I can what-if something, well the 'mole-hill into a mountain' morph! I have done it so long that I now need to diligently do the '30-day remove habit' thing. Seriously,it's a bad habit and I've done as a protective measure for ever! But my real protection comes from God. A word of wisdom that I obviously don't do, but my Grandmother always said 'why worry, it isn't going to change a thing'!
Thank you and many blessing to you and your family (Millie too) at Thanksgiving!
---------------answer to your blog question:
The good 'ole USA seems to have forgotten that this is a sacred, holy day.
As far as the music, Thanksgiving weekend is a bit early and I am a music lover. The radio stations need to be more diverse in their selection and not get stuck on repetition.......of the same song!
We still celebrate the season with prayers and meditation at the table using a Advent guide from our church.
A few years ago at a national chain store there was a Christmas tree decorated with Halloween items, a skull at the top. My call (along with several others) to the manager thankfully resulted in the "decorations" being removed. Now I start seeing Christmas items after Labor Day! Christmas doesn't have anything to do with retail...remember where Jesus was born; and He was homeless for 2 years while his parents fled to hide him from Herod.
Christmas definitely starts earlier than it did when I was a child. We are trying to teach our three children the importance of Advent as a time of waiting for the Christ Child to come. We do a few things in our family to support this idea. For example, when we put out our Creche, we don't put the infant in the manger until Christmas morning. We have discussions with our whole family about how the retailers are selling Christmas items, but we, as a family, are in an Advent mindset. Advent and Lent are two seasons that are really important in preparing for what follows. Also, Christmas season only begins on Christmas day. It continues for a couple of weeks after that. We don't have to go along with our commercialized society.
On the other hand, I understand why my friend with the music store starts selling for Christmas early. He has to sell and compete in order to survive in this economic climate.
Peace!
I also feel that the stores start putting out their Christmas stock way too early. This year in particular I noticed that there were isles of Christmas merchandise out with the Halloween stuff. I don't know anyone who thought that was appropriate. It's really a shame, they've even moved Black Friday hours up a weekend to try to get ahead of the competition.
Yes, I think the Christmas season keeps pushing everything else away so the retailers can make money. I enjoy Christmas as much as anyone else but it has become too commercialized. The real reason is forgotten and replaced with santas, reindeer and snowmen. And the phrase "Happy Holidays". We need to remember that Thanksgiving is a holiday also and we should be thankful to God for everything he has given us, especially his Son.
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