Christmas. It’s the most wonderful time of the year. A time filled with events, food, gifts, laughter, and many traditions. Traditions are a funny thing-it’s something you don’t really consider (at least I didn’t) until you embark on the journey of parenthood. How does a tradition become just that? Does this mean that every year you are stuck doing the exact same thing?
I’ve spent quite some time reminiscing about my own childhood and what events, smells, foods, etc filled my memories. We led fairly simple lives. The only two things that stuck out from my early years was going to my grandma’s every Christmas Eve and that I always would sneak down to the basement in the middle of the night Christmas Eve to snoop through my stocking.
My teenage years and onward were entirely less conventional at holiday times. Suddenly divorced parents meant awkward gatherings and too much traveling around. Subtly these things made me less and less sentimental.
Fast forward to when I met my husband. He comes from a fabulous tight-knit, affectionate, and ooey-gooey family. They had similar foods every Christmas and always read the Nativity story together on Christmas Eve. They played games together and just enjoyed unplugged family time.
These things were rather foreign to me. Our first married Christmas was an experimental time of tagging along with each of our respective families to basically observe. Then we had a son by the next year. We had more to think through and figure out. What was our family going to look like? What was important to us? What did we want our kids to have memories of when they were in our shoes?
Our oldest son is now 4 and is finally starting to get some things established. We have a really nice Christmas Day routine filled with games and music and playing with our new toys together. We make candy together at the beginning of December to box up and give to all of our church family.
We have a candlelight service at church where we sing some of the most treasured Christmas hymns together. But most of all, our home is full of love and joy. True joy. Something I didn’t experience as a child very often. My home has an aroma of warmth and love. And this especially comes out in the holiday season.
My spiritual journey is one with many bumps, setbacks, trials, and failures. In many ways, I have had to learn how to truly love. Through emotional healing, forgiveness (of myself and others), and the humble leadership of my husband, God has redeemed my story.
He is letting me raise my kids in a way that I didn’t experience myself. He is breaking down my emotional walls and allowing me to freely have affection for others. He is guiding me on His path where my life is being poured out as a living sacrifice for His purposes.
What a wonderful Savior we serve! He not only saves us, but He blesses us beyond measure.
We don’t simply get to be saved from His wrath (although that would be entirely more than we could ever deserve), but we get to truly enjoy the riches of this world. The laughter of our children. The pure delight in their eyes when they see the Christmas tree lit up for the first time that year. The delicious goodies that remind us the holiday season is upon us. The cheerful music (that I listen to far too early apparently). All these things and more.
Christmas is such a wonderful reminder of the journey I’ve been on and continue trekking.
‘My heart is steadfast, O God, my heart is steadfast; I will sing, yes, I will sing praises!’ -Psalm 57:7-
About Kacie Malcom
My name is Kacie Malcom. I am a wife to a wonderful husband who is in pursuit of a ministry degree with his sights set on full-time ministry. I have two rambunctious boys and have our first girl on the way!! We live in a small historic town in Southern Indiana (very Stars Hollow!) I am thankful to be a stay-at-home mom while working a successful side hustle where I get to help women see their God-given beauty and be encouragers of one another.
Please feel free to follow me on Facebook- @Kacie Malcolm