christmas fhe pass along book

7/30/2019 Christmas FHE Pass Along Book

1/8

Christmas

FHEFamily Home Evening

Lesson

ResourcesIncluded are several lesson resources.Feel free to use what you feel will be

meaningful for your family.


2/8

A Christ-Centered ChristmasDecember had come. The house was

decorated, most of the presents

bought, and Megan and I were

driving in the car listening to

Christmas carols. Strapped into her

car seat and bundled up in her

winter coat, Megan did her best to

sing along. Then, just as one song

ended and another began, Megan

said one simple sentence that forever

changed the way our family

celebrates Christmas. Mom, she

began, I believe in Santa Claus, and you believe in Jesus Christ.It was a moment of epiphany. I thought back over all of our holiday

preparations and the experience we had created for our children. Wehad written letters to Santa, had talked about being good for Santa, and

had counted down the days until Santa would come. We had spent the

majority of the season teaching our children to believe in the reality of

Santa Claus, and because of our efforts they trusted that he really

would come. But suddenly I realized that we had not spent the same

amount of time teaching them to believe in the reality of the Savior. I

thought over all of the traditions that filled our holiday season and

realized that none of them strengthened my childrens belief in Jesus

Christ.

~ A Christ-Centered Christmas ~(An excerpt) by Emily Freeman


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Quotes on Gift Giving

Though we make an effort to follow

the pattern of gift giving, sometimes

our program becomes an exchange

gift given for gift expected.Never did the Savior give in

expectation. I know of no case in his

life in which there was an exchange.

He was always the giver, seldom the

recipient. Never did he give shoes,

[socks], or a vehicle; never did he give

perfume, a shirt, or a [coat]. His gifts

were rare ones: eyes to the blind, ears

to the deaf, and legs to the lame;cleanliness, wholeness to the infirm,

and breath to the lifeless... We should

strive to give as he gave.

- Spencer W. Kimball

We all enjoy giving and receiving presents. But there is a difference

between presents and gifts. The true gifts may be part of ourselves

giving of the riches of the heart and mind and therefore more enduring

and of far greater worth than presents bought at the store...

This Christmas and every Christmas will be richer by sharing and

enjoying gifts that cannot be held but only felt.

- James E. Faust

What did you get for

Christmas? This is the

universal question among

children for days following that

most celebrated holiday of the

year. ... The gifts so acquired

are fleeting. Dolls break,

dresses wear out, and fun

games become boring. ... If we

change but one word in our

Christmas questions, the

outcome is vastly different.

What did you give for

Christmas? prompts

stimulating thought and causes

tender feelings to well up and

memorys fires to glow

ever brighter.

-Thomas S. Monson


4/8

3 Levels of ChristmasChristmas is a beautiful time of the year. We love the excitement, the giving spirit, the special

awareness of and appreciation for family and friends, the feelings of love and brotherhood that

bless our gatherings at Christmastime.

In all of the joyousness it is well to reflect that Christmas comes at three levels.

Lets call the first the Santa Claus level. Its the level of Christmas trees and holly, of whispered secrets

and colorful packages, of candlelight and rich food and warm open houses. Its carolers in the

shopping malls, excited children, and weary but loving parents. Its a lovely time of special warmth

and caring and giving. Its the level at which we eat too much and spend too much and do too

muchand enjoy every minute of it. We love the Santa Claus level of Christmas.

But theres a higher, more beautiful level. Lets call it the Silent Night level.Its the level of all our

glorious Christmas carols, of that beloved, familiar story: Now in those days there went out a decree

from Caesar Augustus.... Its the level of the crowded inn and the silent, holy moment in a dark

stable when the Son of Man came to earth. Its the shepherds on steep, bare hills near Bethlehem,angels with their glad tidings, the new star in the East, wise men traveling far in search of the Holy

One. How beautiful and meaningful it is; how infinitely poorer we would be without this sacred

second level of Christmas.

The trouble is, these two levels dont last. They cant.

Twelve days of Christmas, at the first level, is about all most of us can stand. Its too intense, too

extravagant. The tree dies out and needles fall. The candles burn down. The beautiful wrappings go

out with the trash, the carolers are up on the ski slopes, the toys break, and the biggest day in the

stores for the entire year is exchange day, December 26th. The feast is over and the dieting begins.

But the lonely and the hungry are with us still, perhaps lonelier and hungrier than before.

Lovely and joyous as the first level of Christmas is, there will come day, very soon, when Mother will

put away the decorations and vacuum the living room and think, Thank goodness that this is over

for another year.

Even the second level, the level of the Baby Jesus, cant last. How many times this season can you

sing, Silent Night? The angels and the star, and the shepherd, even the silent, sacred mystery of the

holy night itself, cant long satisfy humanitys basic need. The man who keeps Christ in the manger

will, in the end, be disappointed and empty.

No, for Christmas to last all year long, for it to grow in beauty and meaning and purpose, for it to

have the power to change lives, we must celebrate it at the third level, that of the Adult Christ. It is at

this levelnot as an infantthat our Savior brings his gifts of lasting joy, lasting peace, lasting hope. Itwas the adult Christ who reached out and touched the untouchable, who loved the unlovable, who

so loved us all that even in his agony on the cross, he prayed forgiveness for his enemies.

This is Christ, creator of worlds without number, who wept because so many of us lack affection and

hate each otherand then who willingly gave his life for all of us, including those for whom he wept.

This is the Christ, the adult Christ, who gave us the perfect example, and asked us to follow him.

Accepting that invitation is the waythe only waythat all mankind can celebrate Christmas all

year and all life long.

by William B. Smart, Messages for a Happier Life


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This Christmas,Mend a quarrel.

Seek out a forgotten friend.

Dismiss suspicion and replace it with trust.

Write a letter.

Give a soft answer.

Encourage youth.

Manifest your loyalty in word and deed.Keep a promise.

Forgo a grudge.

Forgive an enemy.

Apologize.

Try to understand.

Examine your demands on others.

Think first of someone else.Be kind.

Be gentle.

Laugh a little more.

Express your gratitude.

Welcome a stranger.

Gladden the heart of a child.

Take pleasure in the beauty and wonder of the earth.Speak your love and then speak it again.

Christmas is a celebration, and there is no celebration that compares with the

realization of its true meaningwith the sudden stirring of the heart that has extended

itself unselfishly in the things that matter most.

~ Howard W. Hunter


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Music


7/8

Christmas

FHEFamily Home EveningActivity

Ideas

Merry Christmas!


8/8

ChristmasTreats

Bag label

Treat Container Label

christmas fhe pass along book

Documents