Christmas Where It Isn’t Celebrated

Celebrating Christmas Where It Isn’t Celebrated

The Christmas season in America or other Western nations gives us natural gifts to enjoy. The cold weather gives the gift of snow or the comfort of a fire burning to gather around. We sip cocoa under cozy blankets and enjoy the beauty of a twinkling tree next to us. We drive in our cars to see Christmas lights and freely tell our neighbors, “Merry Christmas!” Even if they’re not Christian, they are probably looking forward to celebrating the day with family.

Those natural gifts are not given to us in our country of service. There are no Christian communities, or even post-Christian ones. We live in the Islamic Middle East that is thick with sand and the call to prayer. Christmas Day is not given as a school or work holiday. We have heard that Christmas trees and other decorations are actually illegal. So, do we celebrate? And how? Is it difficult to have joy without getting to receive the natural gifts of a place and culture that celebrates Christmas?

“It is more blessed to give than to receive.” (Acts 20:35b)

We have found this to be resoundingly true. While we do not receive the gift of a Christmas feeling around us, the Lord gives to us as we give to our children and to our neighbors.

Christmas at Home

Our family takes the joy of Christmas season very seriously. My kids may not have hopes of a white Christmas, a snowball fight, or seeing Christmas light displays, but they do anticipate December 1st as the start of daily “Advent surprises.” We have a normal rhythm throughout the year of family worship every day, but during each day of Advent we read an Old Testament prophecy that foretells the coming of a Savior. After this they get to open or find out their Advent surprise. This might be a small present, some Christmas pajamas, a pizza and movie night, building gingerbread houses, making eggnog and fudge together, baking Christmas cookies, or going out to a sand dune for “winter sledding” (turns out you don’t need snow for that!).

It is busy and over the top for me, their mom, who has the lion’s share of prep and cleanup to pull off something fun every day. But I also have the lion’s share of seeing their little hearts and faces light up like Christmas trees as they do something every day that celebrates the extravagant gift of Christ, the newborn King.

Christmas to Our Neighbors

Non-Islamic religious celebrations are forbidden here. Strict Muslims would even view eating or communing with any non-Muslims as forbidden. Everyone knows that Christmas is a time where we Westerners give gifts and throw parties, but we were not sure at first if we could talk about our personal celebrations publicly; would we be met with hostility, apathy, or acceptance?

My husband and some coworkers decided to throw a Christmas party last year, partly to test the waters. They each invited someone they were sharing with or who they thought would be interested, and we were glad to see guys gathered together from different families and tribes who would otherwise never meet together. They sang a hymn, first in English and then in Arabic, then gave a brief explanation of why we celebrate Christmas before a gift exchange. Many of them heard for the first time the reason we celebrate.

At one point during conversation, my husband was explaining a funny story that had happened to him where a local man was trying to get him to say the Islamic “shahada,” or confession of faith. A guy who was listening to the story said, “Why din’t you just say it? We’re all trying out Christianity tonight by being here!”

It was a funny, although misguided, view of conversion, but showed us what we were wondering. What does it mean for a guy from here to accept an invitation to a Christmas party? Apparently, it is laying down some assumptions to come and accept another person’s gift of hospitality. That is a wonderful gift to get to give.

We are grateful that many people got to hear the gospel in that familiar Christmas party setting. We hope and pray that they taste and see that He is good. We pray for more opportunities to share that the reason we celebrate is because God became a man to save us from our sins. We pray that they would join us soon in celebrating Christmas as permanent Christians.

The True Gift of Christmas

The beauty of the Christmas gift we receive is that He remains a truly great gift, even when the community around us does not confess Him to be the Christ. We can continue to give to our children or our neighbors as a response of thanksgiving to God for giving us His Son.

We pray your Christmas season is as blessed as ours.

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