Five Ways to Make Christmas Count

It is Christmas season again. We want to be leaders who make the Christmas season really count. We know this season tends to fly by, so I want to give you five ways to make Christmas count this season and help you become a better leader.

#1 Plan to Read

Our Bible reading plan is one of the most often overlooked pieces of our spiritual life. And when it comes to Christmas, it is so busy that I usually do a terrible job with my devotions. I have found that an Advent reading plan is a great tool to use during the holidays. The Bible App has many to choose from.   Whatever you decide to do, follow a plan because we must stay in The Word during Christmas.

 #2 Plan to Embrace Family

We typically want to make the holidays about family, but family can also cause stress. Your kids might fight more because they're out of school and have little to do. You might have family coming to visit and you know there will be tension. Past pain creeps in, and all kinds of drama fill the holidays. We need a plan to embrace family, and that might mean I need to remove my resentment. I need to turn from that; I need to let it go so that when I see this person, I don't look like I want to kill them. I need to embrace family.

This year, plan to embrace your family as much as possible, and prepare for stress points. That might mean we establish a two-hour max. After that time, we're going to leave. We want to make a plan to make the most of our time with families. If we take kids to the grandparents, bring some projects for them to work on and occupy their time. You know what's going to stress you out, so think of ways to prevent it before it happens.

#3 Plan to Rest

Christmas is so busy. I encourage you to take time off from work and family functions. On the rest days, commit not to work on the house. We're not going to run around; we're not going to shop. We're just going to chill on this day. It would help if you had time to catch your breath. Because if you don't rest during the busyness, the new year will be here, and you'll be off and running again. The next thing you know, your diet is gone, your exercise is gone, and your Bible reading plan is gone. Life takes over again. Work is back to normal and you're just grinding. You'll be exhausted and stressed, and your body will continue to deteriorate. We must get rest.

#4 Plan to Praise Your Team

Use this season to praise your employees and your team. Celebrate them and encourage them. End-of-year reviews might be happening, and you can use that time to encourage and thank your team for the work that they have done. We don't want to blow through the year without saying thank you and pointing out the good things they're doing.

#5  Plan to Reflect on the Year

Reflecting on the year is very important and hardly ever gets done. The perfect opportunity to reflect upon the previous year is the week after Christmas and before the new year begins. Here are some thoughts and some questions to help you reflect.

• 4 Words that describe 2023
• 4 Hard lessons I learned
• 4 Scriptures that helped me
• 4 People I am thankful for                                                -
• 4 Things that made me smile
• 24 Things I want to try in 2024
• 4 Places I want to go
• 4 Ways I can serve others
• 4 Goals for 2024: Spiritual, Physical, Family, and Work