Experiencing Christmas with All Five Senses

Sitting on the couch wrapped in your hubby’s arms or with a little one wrapped in yours, peering at the Christmas lights with the scent of a pine candle burning, sipping eggnog, and the soft sound of Christmas music filling the air.

Bundled up in outdoor gear feeling the crisp cold air on your cheeks, noticing the smiles on little one’s faces and listening to the laughter and squeals that fill the scent of fresh air as you run through the snow with them, then trudging back into the warm house for a cup of hot cocoa.

Feeling the warmth of soup cooking and hearts giving by serving in a soup kitchen, with the aroma of savory abundance; hearing the chit chat of the string of people as they walk through the line, looking into the eyes of a stranger, and tasting the same communal soup that each one in the room partakes of.

It’s not just in baking those cookies, or putting up the tree, or listening to angelic music, or going to that party that truly brings us in step with the spirit of Christmas. What I have found helps in experiencing a spirit of Christmas, in calm or chaos, is experiencing these moments fully, with all five of our senses working together.

Because our senses are how we experience our world and, with them, we can experience more fully the spirit of this season with those around us. And isn’t that what the spirit of Christmas is truly about? relationship? Engaging in family and community, what ever that may look like for you, in celebration of the greatest gift of all – Jesus – so that we can be in relationship with God through him?

However, we can only fully experience this when we choose not to let the tidal wave of the season carry us away from being present to the moment. And in order to do this? to experience Christmas with all five senses? We have to be willing to slow down, cross out a couple unnecessary demands, and engage in the moments that are offered us.

I heard a message last week, where the speaker shared this scripture and reiterated that God wants to "bless our socks off!" He emphasized that where our wildest imagination stops, God's blessings begin:

And I pray that you, being rooted and established in love, ¹⁸may have power, together with all the Lord’s holy people, to grasp how wide and long and high and deep is the love of Christ...Ephesians 3:17b-18

God is so much bigger than our hustle and bustle, and in spite of ourselves, He wants to bless us this season more than we can even imagine, let alone make happen!

We have six days to anticipate Jesus' coming and then another twelve to celebrate His birth. Are we possibly at a point where we can slow down enough to be intentional about receiving Him?

My prayer for us this season is that we all may experience peace and joy as we engage all that we see, hear, smell, taste and feel fully in the moments. And may we recognize it when our Savior takes these moments to bless our socks off!

Sharing with Finding Heaven, The Wellspring, Graceful, Seedlings in Stone, and Chatting at the Sky