December 24, 2025
In Its Time
Amy Storms reflects on her daughters' performances in the Nutcracker ballet and how God brings everything about in its right time.
Articles for tag: family traditions
December 23, 2025
Grandma’s House
Trevor Littleton recalls Christmas visits to his grandma's house, how a child adopted his grandma's name, & how we have been adopted as God's children.
December 20, 2025
Who’s That Guy?
Chad Broaddus tells us about reading the Christmas story with his family and how Quirinius reminds him of the authenticity of Jesus' birth.
December 19, 2025
The Christmas Gift
Italian missionary Dot Elliot shares a reminder about the greatest gift of all and tells the story of her first Christmas in Italy.
December 18, 2025
The Best Christmas Ever
Dr. Joe Grana recalls the story of a Christmas that changed everything in his life and was the best Christmas ever.
December 25, 2023
The One Thing They Couldn’t Steal
Today, in the final of six Christmas memories that Christian leaders so generously shared with us this season, Christian writer and speaker Seana Scott describes how her family tried to make the best of a nightmare situation. Merry Christmas to all!
December 18, 2023
Dec. 24 Application | Dreaming of a ‘Right Christmas’
Deep down, at Christmas, most of us don’t long for more presents and fancier holiday extravaganzas. We do yearn, however, for simplicity and mercy. . . .
December 20, 2022
The Christmas Program
In the 1996 Christmas program, Margie Redford's parents included a note to family members that encouraged them to "Greet each morning with this prayer: 'Lord, what are You and I going to do together today? I’m reporting for duty.'" The Christmas programs were a family Christmas tradition.
December 25, 2021
The Star on Our Christmas Tree
"I've shared every Christmas of my life with the star that sits atop our Christmas tree," writes Shawn McMullen. "I inherited it years ago from my parents." (This is the final installment in a weeklong series of Christmas memories.)
November 15, 2019
Start Some New Traditions This Holiday Season!
By Michael C. Mack I love our family traditions during the holiday season: taking a drive to see the lights, decorating the house together, going to local events, and, of course, attending church services together. Over the years, our family has worked to make our traditions much more fun, fulfilling, and mission-focused through the power of invitation. One Thanksgiving almost 25 years ago, Heidi and I got to know a young man named Mark who lived at a homeless shelter. I invited him to some of our family and church events during the holidays, and he enjoyed getting out of
December 6, 2017
Blessing Our Children and Grandchildren
How We”ve Created Memories and Provided Opportunities to Talk About What”s Truly Important By Don and Sue Wilson The first time we consciously thought about the importance of blessing our children and grandchildren was probably when we realized our children had grown up, become parents, and we were now grandparents, which meant we must be old. All at once it was apparent our days were numbered and if we wanted to be a blessing to the adorable little children who were cascading into our lives at a rapid pace, we needed to focus on making memories instead of money. Over
February 13, 2017
St. Valentine
By Joe Boyd I am pretty good about remembering my wife”s birthday and our anniversary. Christmas is hard to overlook. But Valentine”s Day always sneaks up on me. If you”re like me, your February 14th may involve a frantic stop at the flower shop to overpay for roses and chocolates. The cynics among us like to claim that Hallmark invented these pop-up holidays to sell greeting cards. Our consumer culture undoubtedly pours a massive amount of gas on the Valentine”s Day fire. But is that all this is? Is there a bigger story at play here? (Hint: there is always
February 3, 2016
Grief: A Solitary Journey
By Jim Tune It was a gray, cold, miserable February day when my father died rather suddenly after a few days of hospitalization for respiratory problems. This month marks five years since his death on February 5, 2011. I miss him and still grieve his loss. It”s a different kind of grief now””not so raw or hard-edged. I miss him on holidays when we celebrated family traditions and rituals. And the February anniversary can still be difficult. It”s possible that the short, dark days of our Canadian winter contribute to my sense of melancholy. Nonetheless, arriving at the five-year mark
December 4, 2014
Christmas Icebreakers for Your Group or Class
By Michael C. Mack 1. Describe a time in your childhood when you were chosen for something (i.e., a team, an award or distinction, or an important task). How did it feel to be chosen? 2. What nativity-set traditions, if any, did your family have? 3. With which character in the Christmas story do you most identify? Why? 4. As a child, what were some of your family”s traditions leading up to Christmas Day? (For examples, an Advent wreath, candles, a calendar.) Do you have any traditions today? 5. As a young child, how did you anticipate the coming of
