A Christian's Christmas

Today was a great day! I had the opportunity, privilege and blessing of spending December 25 with my husband, mother, brother, sister and niece.  We had a great dinner but the highlight of our time together was me and my sister watching the others play a boardgame called "Sorry."  And it we had a BLAST!!! 

What's unfortunate is the fact that I had a telephone conversation with my Dad that started off wonderful until we embarked on the conversation about how my husband and I are Christians (he's Baptist and I'm Pentecostal) but we do not celebrate Christmas.  In fact, we don't celebrate neither Christmas or Easter. 

Something my Dad said in the midst of this conversation was that (in a nutshell), my relationship and walk with Jesus is (and I quote) "immature" b/c I've chosen not to celebrate these two Christian traditions.  I was very offended.  Particularly because he chose not understand, accept or even respect my freedom to choose which traditions I celebrate and which ones I choose not to celebrate.  His perspective came, in my opinion, solely from a place where since Christmas is a holiday that "all" Christians celebrate the birth of Christ then we should most certainly fall in place and do so as well. 


I understand his heart, and I understand his point. But I disagree. At this point in my life, I don't see celebrating the birth of Christ (in December at that) and His resurrection as requirements within the Christian faith.  It's perfectly fine for people who have chosen to do so and I have absolutely nothing negative to say about my brothers and sisters in the faith who choose to.  But does it make me less of a Christian or lessen my relationship and pursuit of God b/c I choose not to celebrate a holiday (for my own personal reasons and convictions) that everybody (believers and unbelievers) celebrate?? 


Whatever...


We don't celebrate Christmas but we're not against others who do.  And we are most certainly FOR spending quality time with family with great food, laughter, conversation and love. 


I celebrate the birth, life-on-earth, death and resurrection of my AWESOME Lord and Savior each and every day of my life, 365 days a year.  For a person to not understand or respect that is sad...life isn't about being in agreement with everyone all the time regarding everything!