...of Making
Holidays Meaningful
CTC Readers' Poll:
Holiday Sanity Savers
In the December
1,
2008 issue of the newsletter,
Counting the Cost editor Nancy Twigg asked readers this question:
"What
sanity-saving strategies help you keep your cool during the busy holiday
season?"
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Responses:
"One year we got home
late Christmas night from a relative's house and I
realized we had been so busy catering to everyone else's
plans that we hadn't even read the Christmas story to our
kids that year. Now I try to focus on activities that
are uplifting for my family. Often this means
saying no to extended family, friends, and even church
activities. One thing that helps me is our reusable Advent
calendar (bought on clearance at Starbucks). We refill the
boxes with Bible verses and a piece of candy for each day.
The kids take turns and by Christmas Eve we have read many
passages from Isaiah, Luke 2, and done some fun crafts and
activities (like 'make a thank you card for someone' or
'pray for someone who helps you'). This helps all of
us keep our eyes and hearts on the real reason for
Christmas, as well as our sanity." ~Prajna
"Learn to respond to
invitations, requests of your time,
and other obligations with 'Let me
get back to you' or 'Let me think
about it'. If you are in the 'yes'
response mode, you can quickly
become overwhelmed with obligations
that will tax your spirit and drain
your energy. Simply giving yourself
time to think about the request can
allow you to decide if you really
want to do what is asked and if you
are able to do what is asked."
~ Gabrielle
Editor's
Note: Thanks to these readers who took time to
write!
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