There are some who don't think we should celebrate this time, but I could not find it within myself to allow the most precious advent in the history of the earth to go unrecognized. If not for Jesus we would have no hope of reaching God. How could we even consider celebrating the birthdays of our relatives, and let the Birth of our Saviour go unrecognized? Besides, I don't consider myself above the angels; and if we read the Gospel of Luke, Chapter 2, Verses 9 through 14, we find:

9: And, lo, the angel of the Lord came upon them, and the glory of the Lord shone round about them: and they were sore afraid.
10: And the angel said unto them, Fear not: for, behold, I bring you good tidings of great joy, which shall be to all people.
11: For unto you is born this day in the city of David a Saviour, which is Christ the Lord.
12: And this shall be a sign unto you; Ye shall find the babe wrapped in swaddling clothes, lying in a manger.
13: And suddenly there was with the angel a multitude of the heavenly host praising God, and saying,
14: Glory to God in the highest, and on earth peace, good will toward men.

      So we see that the hosts of Heaven celebrated the birth of Christ. But was the celebrating of this time limited only to the inhabitants of heaven? Let's go to verse 20 and see...

20: And the shepherds returned, glorifying and praising God for all the things that they had heard and seen, as it was told unto them.

      So the praise and the gratitude and the joy and celebrating were not confined to the hosts of Heaven, but extended even to the shepherds of the fields. And let's not forget the wise men who brought gifts and offerings to the Christchild. Should we do less? We cannot present gifts to the Child, so we present them to those around us to illustrate His love for us. But why do we put up a tree and decorations?
      We cannot speak for others, but aside from demonstrating the great joy this time represents for all mankind, our decorations have great traditional significance.

      The tree is an evergreen. It is selected because it represents everlasting life... the greatest gift that was ever offered to mankind. That's why Jesus was sent... to allow us to be able to receive everlasting life in the kingdom of his Father.

      The red decorations, ribbons, etc., commemorate that precious blood that was shed for us... willingly. It was this blood that opened up the New Testament, the new contract between God and man.

      The gold and silver represent the treasures that are laid up for the children of god in Heaven, treasures which we shall enjoy if we hold to the teachings of the Christchild.

      The angel, of course, which is always at the top of the "tree of life", is comemorative of that first angel which brought "good tidings of great joy" to all the people of earth.

      The white lights represent the brilliant, glowing light of the love of God for the people of this earth, and the various colors--the spectrum of the rainbow--remind us of his promises to us, promises which have all been kept, from that first rainbow to the birth of Jesus. And we now look forward to that final promise... the return of Jesus Christ to this earth.

      As I have said, we here at our home cannot speak for others, but these are the things our decorations mean to us. And their primary purpose is to let anyone who sees them know that we are eternally grateful in our hearts and minds for that most precious time when the God of the universe had mercy on the people of earth, who were not a people, but are now the children of God if they follow the teachings He preserved for us through his only Son.

      It really doesn't matter how we celebrate this time. What really matters is that we always remember it as that most precious time when the creator of all things gave all men the opportunity to reside with Him forever. One day we will see the fruition of all his promises... all the things reserved for those who love Him. And that day won't be long in coming.

      Always remember, and remind others, the Reason for the season is not Santa Clause, It's