This is the photo we used on our Christmas card in 1986. Yes, that’s Nicole decked out in her cute little Santa suit. She’s about 11 months there and it was her first Christmas. She was actually old enough to enjoy some of her presents and it was a lot of fun for Sharon and I also. It almost seems like another life looking back on that time now. I had completed my second year of having my own business, Sharon had recently given up teaching after 10 years, and the Bears were the powerhouse of the NFL Central division.

I’m so glad I videotaped our Christmas and children’s activity back then otherwise my memory would have faded like the months and years that have passed. Christmas is definitely more fun when you have younger kids. The excitement and energy that they bring fills the room. The challenge for us was always not to go overboard with gifts. Especially when they’re younger you have fun buying them toys in anticipation of the squeals of delight you will hear on Christmas morning. It’s natural to want to bless your children. But Christmas should be about more than presents. The focus shouldn’t be just about what we get.

As we celebrate the birth of baby Jesus, let’s remember that while He did receive some pretty good gifts, Jesus gave infinitely more than He received. He gave up His place with His Father to come to earth and become a baby—to live and grow up as a man and dwell among the people He created. He then willingly sacrificed His life so that all who believe in Him might have life eternal and dwell with Him forever. His life modeled what he proclaimed, that it is “more blessed to give than to receive.”

As parents, we have the ability to mold and shape our children’s outlook—their worldview—on life. How are they going to view Christmas? What are the things that will take place in your home during the Christmas season that shape your children’s view of Christmas? What can you do to honor the one who gave everything?