Christmas is coming, and many are getting ready to celebrate the birth of Christ. It is supposed to be a joyful time filled with love and unity; in fact, every day we should be celebrating Jesus and releasing the love of God.
As Christmas approaches, the controversial topic of “Should Christians celebrate Christmas?” comes forth. There are two sides to the coin, and there are two sides to our Christian beliefs. One set of Christians will celebrate Christ’s birth, while others will abstain, believing it is wrong to celebrate a pagan holiday when it isn’t truly even Christ’s birthday.
I think most of us would agree we can get caught up in buying presents, decorating, Christmas parties and lose the focus of celebrating Jesus and keeping Him at the forefront of our activities. We do know that Christ wasn’t born on Christmas day.
However, does that mean we shouldn’t celebrate Christmas? I believe every day should be a day of celebrating Christ, not just at Christmas. But does that mean I don’t celebrate Christmas? This is my choice and my conviction. I will honor your convictions if you honor mine. That is how I believe we should proceed forward in love and acceptance, respecting the other person for their choices.
I believe we need to stand by our personal convictions. Thus, there is no wrong or right answer if we should celebrate Christmas. If you are convicted to not celebrate Christmas, if celebrating it comes against your personal beliefs and you are uncomfortable celebrating the holiday, then, by all means, don’t. However, if the Holy Spirit hasn’t convicted you not to celebrate, then keep celebrating Jesus, not just at Christmas but every day.
I think the most important thing is that we don’t get caught up in judging and criticizing each other in the process. It is not a time for a theological debate that no one is going to win. Our convictions and beliefs are just that; they are ours, not another person’s. We need to live together in love and unity and not try to force our beliefs onto other people. People have their stances and convictions for a reason.
We are all going to stand before the Lord one day, and I don’t think whether we celebrate Christmas or not is going to be a deal-breaker. I think the Lord is going to look at the attitude of our hearts and how we lived for Him 365 days a year, not just 24 hours. {eoa}
Kathy DeGraw is a prophetic deliverance minister releasing the love and power of God to ignite and activate people, release prophetic destinies and deliver people from the bondage of the enemy. She is the founder of Kathy DeGraw Ministries and Be Love Outreach. She is the host of the Prophetic Spiritual Warfare podcast. She is the author of several books, including Speak Out, Discerning and Destroying the Works of Satan, Unshackled and Warfare Declarations. You can connect with Kathy on Facebook at facebook.com/kathydegraw/ or visit kathydegrawministries.org.
