Remembering Why I Used to Get Excited About Christmas as a Child

Considering that I didn't grow up in a Christian home where was okay for parents to lie to their children but not the other way around, I used to believe in Santa Claus. Every time somebody told me that Santa Claus wasn't real it really offended me. When a child gets told that Santa Claus isn't real by somebody else and they get offended it's most likely because their parents told them Santa Claus is real. I was lied to that Santa Claus was real. This also made me think that there's one thing Santa Claus is always associated with... it's all about "Joy to the world, the toys have come."

A child's view of Christmas is all about, "When are the toys going to come?" That's what's in their head and I guess that's why the Santa Claus lie is so popular. Stupid parenting calls for parental lying to make their children "good" never mind it could get severe with the trust issues. Whenever Christmas is around the corner it's very easy to see how it's Clausmas and not Christmas. Go to the mall and go almost everywhere and you see that Santa Claus is more popular than Jesus. Santa Claus doesn't exist but people wished he did. Jesus isn't the reason for many people to celebrate the season. For them, talking to Santa Claus means getting what they want.

I remembered how often when the "-ber" months came and I didn't find myself thinking about Jesus. I only thought about the non-existent Santa Claus who I believed existed with all my heart. The problem is that many people think that Santa Claus is just a harmless fantasy game. No, children long for Santa Claus. They love this nonexistent fellow with all their heart. When things started to get rough I just wished that Santa Claus would come soon. My entire mind was occupied with Santa Claus and not Jesus during Christmas. If it wasn't Santa Claus then it's all about the toys and gifts that I would be receiving from relatives. I only thought of receiving cool stuff never mind there's a lot of children who are having a cheerless Christmas out there.

Perhaps the worst part was when I was told repeatedly that there was no Santa Claus. Time came when I was no longer outspoken about my belief in Santa Claus. The problem was when I wished he was really real. I wished that all the gifts I had were from Santa Claus even if he didn't exist. For a time, I just cried in the corner and kept saying to myself that Santa Claus existed. I even wasted time writing letters to Santa Claus. I just went crazy thinking about how Santa Claus wasn't real. It took me some time to accept that reality but I developed trust issues no thanks to that "small white lie". I'm amazed at how parents can be so stupid to think lying about Santa Claus or just anything "white" has no drastic consequences with their relationships towards their children.

After getting saved, I couldn't think of Christmas the same way. I even wanted to stop celebrating Christmas like the early Puritans. I almost wanted to be a legalistic Pharisee when it came to Christmas. Today, I just think that Christmas may have its pagan origins but then again so do the days of the week or that many arguments against Christmas are full of Alexander Hislop's fallacies such as guilt by association or genetic fallacy. Christmas trees weren't even invented yet until later. Not to mention Jeremiah 10:3-5 is all about graven images for worship. I'm still okay with celebrating Christmas but I usually choose not to do so for personal reasons. It's not because Jesus wasn't born on December 25 but it's because how it's a commercialized holiday. There's no Christ in their Christmas so they might as well call it XMas or Giftmas instead. 

I could also close by saying that Christmas isn't the only time to do good. I'm sick and tired to how many wicked people are kind on Christmas (and in extension, the Lenten season) but do wicked for the rest of the year. Doing good works is the Christian life and it's an everyday task. Ephesians 2:8-10 calls the Christian to be ordained to a life of good works. Titus 2:1114 says that good works are the result of God's grace at work with the believer. I may not get excited for Christmas anymore as I used to but everyday for me is an exciting day to live the Christian life.