Finding God at Christmastime

Michelle Nott reflects on how we can still find joy at Christmas despite the chaos. 

I am sure we can all agree that the weeks leading up to Christmas and even the weeks after Christmas are a busy time of year. The holidays can bring lots of emotions and make you feel lots of pressure to get things done and to do them the right way.  

I am guilty of this but am trying to learn to let go of things this year as we are missing a core part of our family this season. In the past, I have held high expectations for myself to get Christmas cards mailed, shopping done, baking done, help with class parties, and still manage to teach the kids about the true meaning of Christmas.  

While I still have high expectations, I have made progress and let go of some of those items on that list. However, I am still trying to teach my kids about why we celebrate Christmas and the history behind it. We have talked about the Jesse Tree in the past and usually started reading stories from a book and never completed it. This year, I am just keeping a book about the Jesse Tree next to our rocking chair, and if we have time to read a story from it at night, then we’ll read the one for that day. It still gives them a lesson, and I don’t feel guilty if we can’t make it through all the stories during the season.  

Our Reflection from our Story Last Week 

One day last week, we had time to read a story from that book. The story was about Joseph, his rainbow coat, and his relationship with his brothers. We were called to reflect how we, like Joseph, can see God even in times of trouble. Or, to put it in words my kids would understand, can we still find good that comes out of a bad situation? 

This turned out to be the perfect story for my family last night, because we have all been having a tougher year. When that reflection question came up at the end of the story last night, I was able to use our current situation as an example. I told them that while it’s sad our loved ones cannot be with us this year for Christmas and have been gone this past year, good still has come from the situation. We have met so many new friends who have become like family to us. That would not have happened if we hadn’t been in this situation.  

My kids have also been asking a lot of questions about their sibling, Jesse, who unfortunately passed away due to miscarriage 4 years ago. As they have gotten older, they are starting to talk about Jesse more and ask why he or she died. I also was able to use Jesse as an answer to that question last week, too. I told the kids that while it is sad that Jesse passed away, we were blessed with our son, Elijah, right after.  

How We Can Find God During Christmas 

This can relate to all of us during the holiday season too. A lot of us feel stressed and maxed out in all areas of life for a few weeks. It also seems like everything happens during the month of December. Cars need maintenance or things break; major snowstorms happen — all things that pile on top of an already stressful month.

But during Christmas, if we can still manage to show up to the manager at night and find the baby boy we are celebrating this whole season, then we have done what we are called to do. We don’t need to be perfect to show up. We just need to come as we are and offer our love and forgiveness. That’s what this season is about.  

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Copyright 2025 Michelle Nott
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