Wishing you all a joyous and blessed Christmas

What a beautiful day the Lord has blessed us with, we're remaining only with a day in between before we celebrate Christmas. I would want us to look at how we can keep peace in our relationship this Christmas.

Christmas should be one of the happiest times of the year. After all, this is when we celebrate the birth of Christ. However, many times we find ourselves grumbling and arguing during this season more than any other.

What happens to marriages in the month of December? We must admit that the Christmas season is the most stressful time of the year. The relationship with our spouse often gets pushed to the sideline while we're engrossed in buying gifts, cooking meals, attending church activities, and worrying about how to pay for it all. In our celebration of the birth of Christ, we often forget the reality that He came to give us life abundantly (John 10:10). I can't believe He is pleased when our celebration is characterized by stress, frustration, harsh words, and feelings of loneliness.

Marriage is designed to be a picture of the relationship between Christ and the church (Ephesians 5:32). Scripture is clear that love and submission are the keys that keep Christ and His church working together in harmony to accomplish the purposes of God. He loved us while we were yet sinners and gave His life in order to deliver us from bondage. The same principle is true in the marriage relationship.

So what should we do when our seasonal cheer decays into conflict and our Christmas tidings turn to marital tension?

Adopt an Attitude of Gratitude

Many of us focus on the negative aspects of life for so long that we have difficulty seeing anything worth celebrating. Developing an attitude of gratitude is one of the most important things we can do to enhance the emotional climate of your marriage.

We must think back over a day and ask ourselves a few questions: "What have I complained about and to whom did I complain? What is it like living with me?"

If we are really serious, ask our spouse, our children, and at least one work associate this question: "What have we recently heard me complain about?" Often our self-perception is very different from how others see us. If we are going to move from grumbling to gratitude, we have to be honest about our attitude.

Appreciate the Little Things

Verbalize gratitude for the little things in our life. Look around us and verbally thank God for the things we see. It's a simple thing, but it brings to the front of our mind the many physical things for which we can be grateful.

Each week during the month of December, express gratitude to our spouse and family for something we appreciate about them. If gratitude is going to become a way of life, we must look for the positive things in all of our relationships.

Move Beyond Bah Humbug

Christmas cheer only lasts a few weeks, but the joy that comes from knowing Christ should last year-round. The next time we hear ourselves grumbling about something, apologize to God for breaking His commandment:

"Do everything without grumbling and arguing" (Philippians 2:14). Then apologize to the one we offended. Apologizing for our failures is one of the fastest ways to get rid of a negative attitude. If during the month of December we replace grumbling with gratitude, we will lay the foundation for a wonderful new year in 2017.

It's important to implement these ideas, and we will find the Christmas season to be less stressful and our marriage to be more peaceful. The word peace literally means "to be at one with" that is, to live in harmony. This is God's intention for our marriages as we celebrate the event that made it possible to be at peace with God.

Let's pray for the grace to keeping peace between us this Christmas as we say;

Dear Loving Father,

With the Christmas season upon us, it’s so easy to covet the things that we want. We’re surrounded by ads and commercials, we’re inundated with “must-have” messages, that we simply can’t have if we want to stay within our means.

With all of the giving and serving this month, help us to keep a healthy balance so that we aren’t overspending or over-committing ourselves.

Soften our hearts that we might be flexible, sacrificial and understanding this Christmas. Help us to agree on the financial choices we make.

Aside from the spending, we have other choices to make that include in-laws, family, and friends. Help us to keep the peace, as we make these decisions together, remembering the love of our Savior and Lord.

Most importantly, help us to keep our eyes focused on You, to remember the reason for the season, and to glorify You in all that we do.

Our Lord Jesus Christ we pray. Amen.

Make every effort to live in peace with everyone and to be holy; without holiness, no one will see the Lord. See to it that no one falls short of the grace of God and that no bitter root grows up to cause trouble and defile many. – Hebrews 12:14-15, NIV

Wishing you all a joyous and blessed Christmas.