Another year has almost come and gone, and Christmas is only 6 days away. At the end of the day, we need to reevaluate what Christmas means to us.

As my second Christmas as a college student is quickly approaching, a lot of things in my life have taken on a different meaning. Growing up, I never really realized how much I took holiday traditions for granted. Thanksgiving is viewed as the one day of the year in which we all talk about what we are "thankful" for. In my opinion, I think that we need to focus on these things more so on Christmas.

In today's society, we have become so fixated on instant gratification. We really just focus on the instant gratification of the gifts we get on Christmas morning. We get caught up in the decorations and music. We fail to realize that the day that is dedicated to giving has actually made us more greedy.

It is kind of ironic if you think about it. The day that symbolizes the ultimate gift to us as Christians has become more about us, instead of the gift we received.

The Savior of the world came to us in the most unflattering of circumstances. The One who would die on the Cross for us was born in a dirty manger, when He actually deserved to have the most incredible birth ever. The Creator of the Universe who would walk on Earth with us as humans, who would become flesh, who would suffer as we suffered came into the world on this day that we celebrate.

Where did we go wrong and forget that?

As a Christian, I can say I am guilty of forgetting this sometimes too. Whenever my parents ask me what I want for Christmas, I always tell them the same thing every year. " I have everything I need, I do not really want anything." But each and every year out of the kindness of their hearts, they always get me something. Do not get me wrong, I am so incredibly thankful for that, but since I have come to college I feel my opinion on Christmas has changed.

What if one year, none of us gave material gifts? What if one year, none of us put up the sterotypical Santa blowups in our front yards? What if one year, none of us put up huge Christmas trees? Would we still be as excited as usual about Christmas?

The sad answer is, more thank likely not. You see Christmas is a time to celebrate the ultimate gift of life. The one life that came to save us all. We need to let that soak in. The gifts we give, the decorations we display, the awkward family photos, at the end of the day have nothing to do with what Christmas really means to us as humans. They are all just factors we have added to the equation.

So here is my challenge to you.... think about all the things that we can be thankful for because of the life that was created on Christmas day. Hopefully you will see that our lives as we know it are the greatest gift we could ever have, and we have to thank the One who designed us to lean on Him in all things.

To God be the Glory.